It’s day 16 of Blogtober already! I can hardly believe I’ve done a post every day this month, but here we are!
The Blogtober group I’m a part of has a list of daily prompts for inspiration, and I haven’t really been following it due to my bookish niche and keeping up my regular Monday-Friday posting schedule. But today, I needed something to write about, and the prompt is “Journal Prompts.”
This got me thinking about all the beautiful book journals and book planners I see over on Bookstagram. Try as I might, my attempts to use a paper journal to track my reading never go well. Between the book blog and Goodreads, I don’t really feel like I have anything else to say or track in a paper journal, much as I love the idea.
For this year, I did get the Always Fully Booked planner from Little Inklings Design. I absolutely adore the setup and it’s a beautiful item to have, but I already use a daily planner so wasn’t sure I’d end up using the planner aspect. It’s much easier to track my review dates and new book releases in the planner I already carry with me than to have it in a separate place. That said, the AFB does have a beautiful little coloring bookshelf page to track your reading, and that has been a satisfying addition to my reading life.
I have a friend who keeps a bullet journal, and she tracks her reading in there, which is also a nice idea in theory. I do (sometimes) keep a journal, but I mainly log gratitudes and use it to tape in ticket stubs and other things I like to collect when I go out and do something fun. I am sporadic with this practice, so I don’t think I’ll be diving more deeply into the world of book journaling any time soon.
What about you, book friends? Do you track your reading or your reviews in a book journal of any kind?
And while we’re on the subject of journal prompts, I’d be remiss not to mention that I have a Tarot Tuesday series over on my self-care blog, Running Into Joy, where I draw a tarot card each week and provide some journal prompts on the theme. The series is on unofficial hiatus while I do Blogtober slash travel most weekends in October, but you can check out the existing prompts if you’re interesting in journaling and tarot.
Your Book Friend 
Interesting post! I started a book journal earlier this week but found it was just one more place to track books and didn’t provide me with any value. Besides my blog tracking my books read, I also rely on Goodreads which I’ve been using for more than a decade.
A book journal sounds like a good idea to keep track of what your read. x
I use Goodreads and I have a spreadsheet, and that seem to be all I can handle. I love the book journals I’ve seen around, but It’s not for me.
Great post. I don’t keep a book journal or track what I read anywhere. I wish I did as family and friends will sometimes say, have you read this one? I think I haven’t but when I begin reading it, remember that I did about 20 years ago etc! I need to start listing books I’ve read on the blog, instead of only writing about ones I review xxx
I have a blog – does that count. LOL! I used to use my blog as my journal (yeah I know everyone can see it) but it was so therapeutic for me. I miss doing that and am trying to get back to it. I have always journaled in some way or another – my high school diaries are very embarrassing to read but it is fun to remember things I had totally forgotten about.
Blogging definitely counts as journaling for many of us, I think! I also like going back to my high school journals and being reminded of things I forgot.
A book journal sounds good but I also use Goodreads and my blog to track my books. I do keep a journal though.
I keep a bullet journal and track my reading in it. It works well for me. I keep up with my blog posts in it, books read (with relevant info), series trackers, upcoming reviews, buddy reads, new authors, and a billion other things. LOL!
That sounds like a great way to keep everything in one place. I hope to have a better system some day but right now my planner is for the day job, mostly, with the book stuff sprinkled in.
I started a reading journal this year, but I plan to add it into my bullet journal next year. I like having a space to write down thoughts as I’m reading, but after trying it out I don’t think I need a separate journal for it.
I keep a list of what I have read in my planner in the back on the blank pages. I have it set up like a book shelf and then color a book in on the shelf once I finish a book. I do not usually rate the books on paper. I am usually pretty good about remembering them. I used to do a star rating system but got away from that.
That’s a good idea! I might have to try that for next year, since having a separate book planner didn’t really work for me!