More Than 1064 Journal Writing Prompts

IN THIS POST: Looking for new writing journal prompts? This post has exactly what you need, with enough journal writing prompts to keep you writing for years. Plus, grab a printable list of 30 prompts to get you started immediately.

The fantastic thing about writing for yourself — a.k.a. journaling — is: There Are No Rules! No editing, no critiques, no deadlines. It’s just you with your thoughts & ideas — a way to get out of your head and get on with life!

Let’s talk about:
1. Why you should journal
2. How to find time
3. Different ways to journal
4. Where to find the best journal writing prompts

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The best thing about journaling is: There Are No Rules! #writing #journaling Click To Tweet

Why Should You Journal?

Writing gets your brain working. The process of moving thoughts from your brain to the outside world (paper, computer, whatever) stimulates creativity and the ability to think clearly.

Journaling is like a brain dump with purpose. Get all of that extra stuff out of your head so you can be more organized, productive, and present. While a brain dump is often just a list of tasks, journaling ventures into the areas of thoughts, dreams, and stuff we might hesitate to put on a task list.

Sometimes you think your daily writing will go in a certain direction, but midway through it takes a 90-degree turn into something you didn’t expect. And that is absolutely perfect, because it means you are really letting go of the junk in your head.

Just this week I wrote a couple of responses to daily journal prompts that ended up having nothing at all to do with the original word prompt. At first I tried to bring myself back onto the topic, but then I just let go and let everything out. Wow, talk about a revelation!

Sometimes you don’t even know what’s in your head until you read it on the page in front of you. Is that good or bad? Well, it’s good, but it can be a little scary.

Just because you wrote about a situation that you have strong feelings about doesn’t mean you HAVE to do something about it.

However, if you find yourself repeatedly writing about the same situation, it’s a good indication that you SHOULD consider making some changes in your life.

Those could be major changes, so before you jump in and change everything, explore those feelings with more writing.

Sometimes you just have a bad day and write about it. That doesn’t mean you should run away and start a new life. But if you have a LOT of bad days, then listen to yourself.

If your writing begins to frighten or confuse you, seek out a professional to help you make sense of it. Find a professional to help you work through those feelings and get perspective.

Finding Time to Write

The most common “directions” say to write for about 15 minutes or 500 words. When is the best time to write? Well, whenever works for you!

If you’re a “regular” writer or blogger, try beginning your day with a writing session sparked by a creative journal writing prompt. Spend 15 minutes or so writing as quickly as possible about something that may have nothing at all to do with what you’re planning to write for “work.”

I like to brain dump task lists at night before bed, and then do a 15-minute writing session on the computer in the morning. It REALLY gets my brain moving.

Some people prefer to write at night, giving them a chance to reflect and process the day.

Try both and see what works best for you!

Sometimes you don’t know what’s in your head until you read it on the page in front of you. #writing #journaling Click To Tweet

Find Your Perfect Journal Writing Prompts

Choose whatever works for you: word, phrase, quote, photo. You can find prompts online or from a book.

If you’re stuck for inspiration and prompts, here is the list you need!

You’re sure to find a writing prompt here that will spark your imagination and get your words flowing.

There are more than 1064 prompts on this list, including several sets of printable journal prompts for adults. (Yes, I counted. 😉 )

Personal Journal Prompts

If you’re looking for personal writing prompt ideas for adults, you’ve come to the right place. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• 20 Brilliant ‘What If’ Journal Prompts For Adults

These ‘what if’ journal prompts are perfect to jumpstart your goal-setting, explore intentional living, and keep your journaling habit fresh. They’re meant to inspire some introspection, reflection, and even positive goals and changes!

• 38 Calming Journal Prompts For Difficult Days

When you’re feeling stressed, it can be helpful to sit down and do some writing. Not only is journaling a great way to get your thoughts out of your head, but it can also be incredibly calming. The next time you’re feeling overwhelmed, try some of these calming journal prompts. 

• 28 Confidence Journal Prompts to Improve Your Self-Esteem {Free Printable}

If you’re not a naturally confident person, building your self-esteem takes intentional, conscious work. But it IS possible. Use these confidence journal prompts as a step to help you stop comparing yourself to others and, instead, revel in your uniqueness.

• Journal Prompts For Women: 20 Essential Questions

As women, we often carry a lot of baggage around with us in our heads. Use these journal prompts for women as inspiration for practicing self-care, self-reflection, and personal growth.

• 32 Journal Prompts for Self-Discovery and Clarity {Free Printable}

These journal prompts for self-discovery are meant to motivate you to connect with your inner strength and change your personal story from thought to action.

• List Writing Prompts: 20 Lists to Make for This Year {Free Printable}

These list writing prompts will have you making lists you’ve never thought of before, establishing a writing habit, and changing the way you think about… well… everything.

• 30 Journal Prompts for a Positive Body Image

If you’re looking to improve your body image, start by writing down your thoughts! These journal prompts for body image will help you work on building acceptance and positivity when it comes to body confidence and your self-love journey.

• 22 Fantastic Gratitude Journal Prompts You Need Today

Gratitude journal prompts are one of the best ways to begin improving the positivity level in your life. 

Taking time each day to actually WRITE about something you’re grateful for helps you focus on the good. In turn, this eventually can change your basic thinking and reactions to almost any challenge. Give it a try!

• 9 Nightly Journal Prompts To Bring An Intentional End To Your Day

Journaling is an amazing way to promote self-awareness, gratitude, and positive thinking. Use these nightly journal prompts to help you build the intentional life you want. Each prompt should take only a few minutes, and you may even sleep better after setting aside your worries of the day. Make space in your bullet journal, daily planner, or dedicated bedtime journal and give these evening journal prompts a try!

• 30 Printable Journal Jar Prompts to Inspire Reflection

These thought-provoking journal jar prompts could keep you writing for hours. Whether or not you store them in a journal jar is up to you, but it’s a fun way to add an element of surprise to your daily writing sessions. 

• 30 Important Journaling Prompts for Adults

Haven’t touched a pen to journal paper in years? You’ll love these journaling prompts for adults, which include a mix of life reflection, future dreaming, and fun. Start writing today with these free printable prompts and make more progress on your intentional living goals.

• Journaling Is Great Exercise: Here Are 25 Journal Prompts To Motivate You

This is a great prompt collection from Forbes.

Seasonal and Monthly Journaling Prompts

Seasonal or monthly journal prompts can be a great way to get started with journaling or add some variety to your existing practice. From monthly single-word writing prompts to seasonal reflection and goal-oriented prompts, you’re sure to find plenty of ways to fill your journal with this list.

• 20 Fabulous Fall Journal Prompts: Get Creative and Reflective

The autumn season provides so much inspiration, with the changing leaves and cooler temperatures. And what better way to reflect on the past and set intentions for the future than by journaling with these fall journal prompts? So grab a cup of tea and a cozy blanket, and get ready to journal your heart out!

• 30 Daily June Journal Prompts {Free Printable}

Loosely-themed single-word prompts to capture the essence of early summer and spark your creativity. With these June journal prompts, you can explore your thoughts and feelings about summer, or connect with your creative side… whatever strikes your summer fancy!

• 31 March Daily Journal Prompts {Free Printable}

March can be a tough month, with the last days of winter dragging on. These one-word March journal prompts can inspire you to keep going and celebrate the arrival of spring. Use them as straight-up journal prompts, free writes, or even as prompts for artwork or photography.

• 30 April Journal Writing Prompts {Free Printable}

Spring-themed April journal prompts for adults. Get creative with your journaling and writing during April with these one-word prompts.

• 20 Spring Journal Prompts for Reflection and Seasonal Goal-Setting

These spring journal prompts are meant for reflection, inspiration, and positive goal planning during the spring season… perfect motivation for intentional living. Need a printable version? Click through to the post to have a copy of the printable spring journal prompts sent to your email.

• 31 January Journal Prompts {Free Printable}

The dark, cold winter mornings of January are perfect for journaling. Here’s a great list of single-word January journal prompts to get your mind and your pen moving every day of the month.

• 28 February Monthly Journal Prompts {Free Printable}

Oh, February… when it feels like winter will never loosen its grip. These one-word February journal prompts will help you express your feelings about winter and still focus on the good things that happen every day.

• 31 October Daily Journal Writing Prompts {Free Printable}

These single-word October daily journal writing prompts are focused on autumn. But look at them closely, and you’ll find more than one meaning for most of the prompts, giving you several creative options for your daily writing sessions.

• 30 November One Word Journal Prompts {Free Printable}

Daily November journal prompts to celebrate thankfulness and settling in for the turning of the seasons. Get creative with your journaling and writing during the month with these one word prompts. 

• 31 December Journal Prompts {Free Printable}

Don’t let the last few weeks of the year send you into a spiral of stress and exhaustion. Take care of yourself during the hectic winter days by spending quiet time using one-word December journal prompts. These bright and shiny writing prompts are sure to keep you journaling strong during December.

• 33 Deep Winter Journal Prompts For Adults {Free Printable}

There’s definitely more to write about during the winter than monthly-focused prompts. These unique winter journal prompts will have you writing about subjects more deeply than you might expect. But don’t worry, there’s also some fun stuff in there!

Creative Writing Journal Prompts 

If you’re feeling stuck in a creative rut, sometimes the best thing to do is simply start journaling. It can be helpful to choose journal prompts that are specifically tailored to blend journaling and creativity. Here are some great ideas to get you started:

• 20 Marvelous Creative Journal Prompts for When You Just Don’t Know What to Write

At a loss for creative writing journaling ideas? These creative journal prompts will help you get started writing and kick-start your imagination. Conquer the blank page with these prompts, inspiration, and motivation for your daily journaling practice.

• 14 Creative Things to Write In a Journal

Ready to spark your creativity and get your pen moving? This list of creative things to write in a journal will inspire you to just that! Don’t think you can write creatively? Try these creative journal writing ideas for adults.

If you’re looking for a way to transition from journaling to creative writing, prompts can be a great starting point. They can provide structure and guidance, while still allowing you the freedom to express yourself creatively. You can even use prompts to base stories on events from your own experiences and feelings. 

However you use them, prompts can help you tap into your creativity and explore the world of writing. Here are some great starting prompts:

• 365 Creative Writing Prompts

This is a huge collection from ThinkWritten… enjoy!

• 25 Creative Writing Prompts About Love

We all want to know what love feels like. These creative writing prompts about love that will help you write some great journal entries or your next romance novel, short story, or script.

• 50 Creative Writing Prompts For Adults

Adulting is hard, but it’s never too late to start writing! You don’t have to be an artist or have artistic talent, you just need the desire to create. So why not use this list of 50 imaginative creative writing prompts for adults as inspiration to relieve stress and have fun!

• Creative Writing Questions: 25 Prompts to Unlock Your Imagination

In the mood to write but have no ideas? This collection of creative writing questions will give you plenty of inspiration and prompt topics to get your creativity flowing. 

You’ll love these question prompts if you’re experiencing writer’s block, want some new idea starters, or just need something… different.

Here are even more creative writing ideas and exercises to keep you writing as an adult. These activities will inspire you to explore new possibilities, conquer writer’s block, and get the words flowing so you can create beautiful pieces of writing. Give them a try today!

Fill in the form below to get a list of printable journal prompts for adults sent right to your inbox:

Altogether, there’s plenty to keep you writing every single day!

Still not enough? You’ll love this writing prompt generator that gives you a new random 3-noun prompt set every time you click a button. It’s so much fun!

More Writing Prompt Collections in Book and Kindle Form:

• 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts for Seasons: Ideas for Blogs, Scripts, Stories and More (by Bryan Cohen)
• 5,000 WRITING PROMPTS: A Master List of Plot Ideas, Creative Exercises, and More (by Bryn Donovan)
• A Year of Creative Writing Prompts (by Love in Ink)
• 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts Box Set: Five Books, 5,000 Prompts to Beat Writer’s Block (by Bryan Cohen and Jeremiah Jones)

If you don’t feel ready to sit down and bang out 500+ words every day on the computer or write until your hand hurts, check out these books with more creative ways to journal:

• Start Where You Are: A Journal for Self-Exploration (by Meera Lee Patel)
• Present, Not Perfect: A Journal for Slowing Down, Letting Go, and Loving Who You Are (by Aimee Chase)
• True You: A Self-Discovery Journal of Prompts and Exercises to Inspire Reflection and Growth (by Dr. Kelly Vincent)

Ways to Use Journal Writing Prompts

You don’t actually NEED a prompt or anything fancy to journal, but they can help. Turning your journal time into a bit of a ritual gives it importance, makes it something you can look forward to doing for yourself.

Pen to paper – Whether writing in a formal journal or in a simple notebook, the hand-eye coordination required to write by hand can be an important part of the writing process for some people. Plus, it’s ultra-portable.

Check out my top 6 picks for best journals for writing.

I’ve found that when writing by hand, it REALLY helps to use a pen that writes smoothly — pens that scratch or skip drive me crazy. My favorites are Pilot G-2 07 for a bolder line and Pentel RSVP Medium for a finer line.

Computer – This is my favorite because I type MUCH faster than I write by hand. It’s so easy to open a Word doc or Google doc and just start letting the words fly. The only drawback is that I prefer a regular keyboard, which means no journaling on the desktop when I’m out and about.

Speaking – You can use a speech-to-text program to speak your thoughts and then save them as writings for future review. My favorite app is otter.ai, which syncs across all of my devices and is easy to copy/paste into document form.

Not a writer, but still want to journal?

Here are some fun posts about alternate ways to journal:

• How to keep a photography journal – The Clickin’ Moms Blog
• Photo Journaling Can Help you Become a Better Photographer – Digital Photography School
• Art Journaling – Create Mixed Media

More Journal Writing Inspiration

Easy Journaling Ideas For Beginners To Get You Started Today

How To Write A Daily Journal Even If You’re A Total Beginner

Creative Ways to Journal: 10 Creative Journal Ideas for Adults

27 Powerful Quotes About Journaling That Will Inspire You to Write

Creative Journaling Exercises, Prompts, and Ideas to Keep You Writing

My 500 Words: A Writing Challenge — This is a one-month challenge by Jeff Goins with a daily writing prompt sent to your email.

Remember — Your Journal is YOU

Your journal becomes a record of your history.

It’s not necessarily like a diary, describing daily events, the weather, or things like that. Sure, you may have free write days where those things come out because you simply can’t think of anything else to write. And that’s okay, it still gets your mind moving.

Or, if you’re doing a directed challenge, you may believe that writing a short story in response to a prompt has nothing to do with your real life. But it does.

Part of YOU ends up in every journal entry, every piece of writing. Embrace that, let it all out.

Are you afraid to journal? Are you afraid someone will read your writings? Write anyway, even if you have to do it in a password-protected document. That way, your thoughts remain safely tucked away, accessible only to you.

Here are some suggestions for how to keep a private online journal.

Or — although it hurts me to even suggest this — write it out and burn it. Let the bad stuff go.

Part of YOU ends up in every journal entry, every piece of writing. Embrace that, let it all out. #journaling #writing Click To Tweet

Remember to periodically go back and read some of your writings.

Trust me, you will forget some things you’ve written. Reading about them again will make you laugh, cry… or it could even make you relieved and proud that you survived a crazy time of life.

Now, go write! Discover yourself as you Build Your Best Life!

Don’t forget to grab your free printable journal writing prompts!

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First published February 3, 2017.
Updated May 7, 2022.