Week 5 Journal Prompts

Day 1: Tape in an Image
Ok, let’s have fun this week! When you get going on these prompts, I want you to remember three words. Ready? Don’t overthink it! Many of these prompts are designed for flexible interpretation. In case you are wondering…

YES! You are doing it right!

Today I want you to find an image somewhere in your house. It can be a photograph, a drawing made by one of your children, a page from a book or magazine, a found object that is flat, etc. Tape it into your journal. Leave it at that, or if you feel like doing more, write about the image. Remember that it doesn’t have to be profound, and you don’t even have to know why you feel drawn to a certain image. Lean deeper into your intuition. You are going to find some sweet surprises this week.

Day 2: Draw a Map
Today, I would like for you to draw a map in your journal. It can be from a certain season of your life, a day in your life, a walk that you have taken, a place that you have been. Let your imagination go and see where this exercise takes you. Feel free to include symbols and a map legend if you like, labeling anything you want to label. Or leave it mysterious and wordless. This is your map, your journal, your life. Enjoy!

Day 3: Linear Double Portrait
Today, we are going to be creating a double portrait. Don’t freak out! It isn’t what you think… (I told you, no art skills necessary, remember?) I want you to consider a relationship that you have with someone, and today, we are going to draw a picture of that relationship. Imagine a portrait of two people, side by side. This is what you are going to create, but instead of two figures, you will use lines and marks on the page to represent each person. No recognizable shapes or objects are allowed. Only lines. Think straight, curvy, short, long, winding, dotted, up and down, zigzag, thick lines, thin lines, jagged lines, smooth lines, horizontal, diagonal, vertical, free and flowing, straight and stern… This is a completely intuitive process, so the best way to approach the page is just to start drawing. (Remember what I said earlier this week? Don’t overthink it!) Just let your hand make marks, and continue leaning into your intuition and see what thoughts may emerge from the drawing. Feel free to label it or not. I guarantee you will be able to emote a lot of complex information and leave it in your journal. No one will ever have a clue what it is all about! I love this exercise because it can reveal things about a relationship that words have not yet discovered. Be brave, make marks, and let your intuition lead you.

Day 4: Treasure Hunt (Build an Image Using Color and Found Objects)

Today you are going to go on a treasure hunt! Look around your house, indoors and outdoors for things that you can tape or glue into your journals. Bits of this and that, natural materials, snippets of papers that reflect some aspect of your life. Try to fill up your page with an assortment of things that you find. If you have time and want to take it a little further, label things, make notes, doodle on the page, add colored pencils or markers in the blank spaces. Have fun!

Day 5: Dreams

Dreams are incredible sources of unique imagery. Have you ever thought about the fact that the images of your dreams are only accessible to you? Even if you share them with someone else, another person can never know exactly what it looks like in your head. Today I want you to record some of the imagery of your dreams. You can write out one dream, or you can make lists of people, places, and things that you have seen in your dreams.

Day 6: Imagery from Music

Today you are going to write while listening to music. Do a quick youtube or spotify search for instrumental music. Hit play, and begin writing whatever scenes come into your mind’s eye.