It is a new month and this means I usually break in a new notebook. This month in addition to my regular moleskin notebook I am going to keep a journal that maps out my adventure trying to write a new novel.

I did not plan to write a new story right now because quite frankly I am pretty busy. But this idea just turned up on the page and also in a nightly dream. First I thought it was going to be a YA but then it turned out to be a crime fiction idea. The working title is “Skymechanics and Morning Murder”

Because I won’t be able to write regularly on the story I thought I would keep a journal dedicated only to this story where I can capture ideas, scenes and different kinds of inspiration so when I am ready to do the actual writing I have a lot of material to dive into. Every day in addition to the ideas I will make a little log of 4-5 lines to keep the story alive.

This is my first entry| Dear characters ( for now a boy, a girl, and a mother) I don’t know your names yet but I am so happy you showed up even though a cruel destiny awaits one of you.

This gathering of story elements feels like an adventure. Perhaps it will take me to the sky and back again and all within the space of the blank page and the cover of a new journal.

Do you have any experiences with journaling about your writing project in progress? I would love to hear about in the comments.