How to start and keep and illustrated journal

For years I've been searching for an "art style", but my illustrated journal was the key to finding one

While some people meditate and others go for long walks with their dogs, for me the deepest and most fulfilling type of self-care is when I sit down to draw in my journal.

It’s a practice that helps me remember the things I would otherwise forget, it helps me figure out what’s been going on with me (feelings, you know) and it even helped me figure out the kind of illustration that’s closest to my heart.

But what’s even better than all of this is that whenever I draw in my journal, it reminds me that I’m a human being and that that’s enough.

You don’t need to be an illustrator to keep an illustrated journal, you don’t even need to be super artsy to do it. In this post, I’ll break down the few simple steps you need to start and keep an illustrated journal yourself.

Here’s what we will look at:

• tools

• what to draw

• how to turn drawing into a habit

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My original inspiration to draw in an illustrated journal came from a Dutch artist called Anna Denise Floor. Here is my first ever illustrated journal spread from early 2012. (I’m gonna close my eyes now but you can look…)

My first ever illustrated journal spread.

During the last thirteen years, I explored different tools and ways of drawing until I finally settled on what I do these days.

And with that, let’s get to it.

1. Tools for your illustrated journal

In terms of tools, I think it’s best to keep a balance between simplicity and exploration. Especially if you are starting out with your journal, try sketchbooks of different sizes, different pens, pencils, markers (I used aquarelle pencils when I started in 2012), anything that you might like.

But avoid having too many art supplies because that could cause analysis paralysis. Just have a few things and start drawing.

Here is my setup:

• Leuchtturm 1917 A6 sketchbook (this size has been discontinued I think, unfortunately)

• Pentel Graphgear 0.9 mm pencil

• Neuland fineliners (you can refill them!)

• Stabilo 68 orange pen

• Kneadable eraser (the one that’s like chewing gum)

This is a drawing of my old setup back in 2018 with all my illustration gear.

A note on sketchbook size:

Some people find larger sketchbooks intimidating, me included. But others love them. There is no “good” size for a sketchbook, but if you are just starting out, I think a small one is a great choice. You can bring it easily with yourself, and you also finish it sooner, which always feels nice, especially because then you can start a new one.

2. What to draw

There are a lot of art prompt lists and also great accounts on substack who can give you ideas on what to draw, such as Adam Ming or Beth Spencer but I always preferred to go back to one of these two prompts:

• What’s been going on with me recently

• How am I feeling

The way I use my illustrated journal is like an actual journal or diary, and I try to draw in it weekly, so most often I just look back on the past week and draw the few things that stood out the most.

Or sometimes, when I’ve been feeling a particular feeling (often it’s meh) I’ll go deep into that feeling and try to understand where it’s coming from. The point is not to make the feeling go away, and sometimes it’s not even to understand it. It just feels so good to take the time to look at the feeling, draw it out, and then let it rest.

Other things you might want to draw:

• movies you’ve seen recently

• books you’ve read

• a map of your neighborhood

• a drawing from a recent trip you took

• a problem you’ve been trying to solve

3. How to turn drawing in your journal into a habit

I have only recently cracked the code of having a weekly drawing session: doing the thing every week at the same time, at the same place.

For me, it’s every week on Wednesday, when I take my kid to her gym class and then I sit at my favourite coffeeshop and draw for an hour. Honestly, it’s the highlight of my week!

Could you also find some pocket of time to be your dedicated drawing time of the week (or day)? What makes it easy for me is that in my head it’s linked to a weekly repeating thing, so I basically do it on autopilot.

Other ideas to turn drawing in your journal into a habit:

• you can draw while having your morning coffee

• if you write morning pages, maybe you could illustrate those if that feels right

• you can take your journal with you and draw during your lunch break

• you can draw while your baby is napping at home

• you can draw for half an hour before watching a show with your partner

I hope you’ll give illustrated journaling a (second) try. To me, it’s the longest running, most meaningful hobby I ever had. Good luck!

Zsofi