9 Stimulating Books That Make Journaling Easier

Samara O’Shea provides a funny, candid entry point to journaling by sharing excerpts from her private collection. She uses these to show that journaling can take whatever form it wants to. 

O’Shea also shares lessons from well-known journalers, along with prompts to help readers get started right away. O’Shea’s writing makes this a fun read, and the tools provided make the book an excellent resource. 

The author makes it clear that everyone should give journaling a real try. 

This creative take on journaling teaches the reader to write their own stories. Author Renée Damoiselle invites readers to transmute the energy of their past and imagine a new future. 

There are several exercises to try out within its pages. Storytelling Alchemy also includes an introduction to magick and how to enchant some of the work you’re doing along the way. 

The book is a combination of real-world work and energetic behind-the-scenes magick. Check it out to add some whimsy and a sense of transformation to your practice. 

Suleika Jaouad shares about the lifelong impact a journal can have on someone in The Book of Alchemy. Included in the pages of this book are profound words from Jaouad, along with essays from other great minds. 

The reader gets to explore how we can interact with a journaling practice to explore our inner world and connect with our creativity. This book is a must-read and a culmination of years of wisdom in journaling, sharing, and living. 

In Journal to the Self, Kathleen Adams uses the pages to share every journal tool in her arsenal. 

There is an introduction to the basics, an extensive list of short journaling practice ideas, and a resource listing different approaches to the art of journaling. 

A very thorough book that looks at journaling from different angles, it’s definitely worth a read for new and seasoned journalers.

Alexandra Johnson begins this charming book by sharing her extensive collection of diaries and reflecting on what it means to keep a diary or journal. 

Johnson provides jumping-off points for people to dive in with a pen in their own journals. Leaving a Trace also takes this a step further by sharing how one could use the work to transition into memoir or fiction writing. 

The book provides great material for approaching the journal as a storyteller, and it’s a great read for those looking to step up their writing. 

The book Writing Down Your Soul by Janet Conner offers an interesting technique in writing to a higher power. This may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the author swears by it. 

Making a point to say it can be any version of a higher power, Conner explains that by free-writing quickly and honestly, we will find the answers coming through our pen. 

This approach to journaling asks the reader to shed all of their protective layers, get vulnerable, and leave it on the page. In doing this practice, Conner shares that wisdom is soon to follow. 

Meera Lee Patel creates absolutely stunning illustrated guided journals. 

In Go Your Own Way, the journal is filled with art, quotes, and prompts for the journaler to engage with while working toward feeling more confident in themselves. 

The pages are meant to be filled up by you and scribbled on. Patel’s guided journal on confidence is the warm welcome we sometimes need on the page.

To add visual elements to your journal, look no further than Journal with Purpose. In this book, Helen Colebrook shares various doodles and decorations that readers can draw in their journals. 

This is great for those who love the self-decorated bullet-journal vibe but feel like their skills or inspiration don’t translate to the page. 

Colebrook helps the journaler move past that so they can get back to doing what they want: filling up their journals. 

Barbara R. Call shares truly inspiring touchstones in The Crafter’s Devotional. The book is full of creative sparks, prompts, quotes, and instructions to get any creative person’s mind moving. 

A large part of what Call offers is ways to reflect in our journals on ourselves, our lives, and our creative practice. This is a great book to have on hand any time you feel stuck or in need of that little nudge to make something.