Complete Idiot's Guide to Journaling (Paperback)

~ Joan Neubauer (Author) "We all think about our legacy, but the shape each legacy takes is different for everyone..." (more)
Key Phrases: cathartic journal, other journalers, journaling habit, The Write Idea, The Least You Need, The Spiritual Journal (more...)

Product Details

• Paperback: 1 pages
• Publisher: Alpha (January 1, 2000)
• ISBN-10: 0028639804
• ISBN-13: 978-0028639802
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #294,555 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Too much rigid scheduling and categories, August 20, 2002

By	Zoe Cannon (Nottingham, NH United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Journal writing is an area I've been interested in for quite awhile, and I've read several books on the subject. I was disappointed by this book. It spends a lot of time categorizing different kinds of journals, such as the log journal, the unsent letter journal, and the cathartic journal, but I couldn't fit my journal writing into any of the categories and thought that a better approach might be to combine several of the approaches into your journal, an idea which is only mentioned briefly near the end of the book. Such rigid categorization goes against my idea of what a journal should be - in addition to the many categories of journals, there is a section on setting up a journal schedule where you map out the days of the week and times of day you will write in each of your journals, if you have more than one - and while this approach may work for others, I think that fitting my journal writing into categories and schedules would inhibit my creativity and make me like the process of journal writing less.

I also didn't like this book's strict adherence to the idea that you should force yourself to write every day for a certain amount of time to get yourself into the habit. I'm not saying this isn't a good thing to do - I think that in many cases it would be - but I don't think journal writing should be something you force yourself to do. If you start out with that mentality, it's less likely that you'll have fun with writing in your journal. The book says that deciding to keep a journal is making a commitment, and that if you don't think you can stick to a regular writing schedule then maybe you shouldn't make that sort of commitment. I disagree with this. I think that getting yourself to write in your journal every day is a good way to give yourself the habit of writing in your journal, as is having a regular writing time, but the most important thing is to enjoy it, whether you write every day or only every couple of months.

In the section on the family journal, which is a journal that all the members of the family get together to write in, one of the suggestions the book gives for keeping teenagers participating in the family journal is to take away privileges if they refuse to participate. I think that journal writing should be something to enjoy, and punishing teenagers for not participating in it makes it nearly certain that they won't view it this way. Journal writing should not be seen as a chore, and if this mindset is imposed on teenagers then it's much less likely that they'll want to keep a journal after they're grown up.

All in all, I think that this book focuses too much on journal writing as a responsibility and a method of goal-setting and self-improvement, and not enough on self-expression, creativity, and enjoying journal writing.

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Obviously not for Idiots, July 8, 2001

By	Joanne "Reader" (NY USA) - See all my reviews

I usually bypass the ...for Dummies and Idiot's Guides but after reading this Idiot's Guide I might be looking at others more closely. This book is well-written and thorough, a very good compendium and probably the first journaling book to read before considering purchasing others. It details the many types of journals as well as the many reasons a person might want to keep one in the first place as well how as what to journal in and how to keep the writing private. It goes into specifics for each type of journal ('the unsent letter', for example, toward healing and resolution) and generally serves to enlighten one about journaling.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful Beyond Belief, March 27, 2001

By	Amelia Wood (Prescott, AZ) - See all my reviews

As a Mormon, I've been trying to keep a creative and meaningful journal for years. I had so much I wanted to say, and say it well, but until I read this book, I had no idea how to do that. Now, with the information and ideas that this journaling book has given me, I'm keeping the kind of journal I've always dreamed of. I'm not only writing more creatively, but find myself leaning toward the more spiritual aspects of journal writing and growing. Give yourself the gift of this Idiot's Guide and quit feeling like an idiot.