I have kept a writer’s notebook through different times as I have grown older. I jot down details about interesting people, places, ideas, and conversations. Newspaper and magazine clippings, photos, postcards, ticket stubs, invitations, and drawings also fill the pages. When I reread my notebook entries, I also highlight words or phrases which might be future writing topics.
My present writing notebook is a double-entry journal. I have two columns. On the left side, I write a quotation or paraphrase something I have read that speaks to me. On the right side, I write my reaction to these words.
I invite you to join me by reading my notebook entries and responses, then thinking about your own response to the same entry. How is your reaction the same or different? If you have a writing notebook like mine, you might use one of my entries and write your thoughts in your own notebook. Have fun thinking like a writer!