I look at the pile of notebooks on my desk. In the cabin below I storage, all the written up ones. The ones on my desk are all kinds of sizes and colors. Some are lined and others are blank. I am about to choose a notebook to be my loyal companion for the next month or so. 

But which notebook to pick?

First of all, I remind my inner perfectionist that there are no right or wrong answers. Instead, I ask myself two questions. Does it help me write and does it bring me joy? 

The answer depends on the writer.

I prefer no lines, a size a bit smaller than A4 with a softcover, or an A5 horizontal spiral one with a hardcover. 

And if you don’t know yet don’t worry. Pick one you like and after a while ask yourself what you like and dislike about it.

In front of me on the desk, I see all sizes and front covers. And each one of them makes me excited. I somehow feel that if I am to justify my next buy, I should probably choose to write in one that I already own. 

For many years I used the Moleskine Cahiers. Besides the quality, they felt less intimidating to use as opposed to the more pretty ones. But recently I started to fill in the beautiful Paperblanks. I had to get used to the size but I love the thick paper. 

Both choices are a bit expensive so I also have a bunch of  notebooks from discount stores. When I find one I like I buy 3-5 of them.

The first kind of notebooks I fell in love with was the kind handed out in school. I remember the first story I ever wrote to be a Christmas thriller which filled up two notebooks. 

When I look at old notebooks, it has the same effect on me as some songs can have. As with special songs a particular notebook reminds me of a specific event or year. 

Heading into fall, I want to pick a notebook I can curl up with on the couch. So back to the two questions.

Will this notebook make me write? 

Does this notebook bring me joy? 

The safe choice will be to go back to the black Moleskine cahier. Instead, I choose a partially filled-up notebook that I didn’t finish because I wanted to use it for a specific project which meant I forgot about it. I love this notebook. It was a present from my sister, and it has a lock and owls on it and really good paper quality. It is not too big. And it reminds me of the coziness of fall.

I have found my new companion.

I would love to see an image of your notebook. Let’s meet on Instagram and use the hashtag #fillyournotebook @writingdates

If you don’t yet own a lot of notebooks, I envy you because that means you can go looking for a new one. Thinking of it,  I need a notebook for next month. . .

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