I'm going to steer us away from etiquette today and onto the subject of writing to mention Samara O'Shea's latest book, Note To Self: On Keeping A Journal And Other Dangerous Pursuits. O'Shea offers lots of advice on how to have one of the most important conversations--the one with yourself. Her website, Letter Lover, has more insight into the written word. Note To Self makes a lovely gift to yourself, or the perfect birthday present for a friend (perhaps paired with a nice pen and hip journal, like any of these from See Jane Work or World of Journals).
As a writer of books and blogs and columns myself, I've come to recognize how important it is not only to practice writing regularly, but to allow yourself more than one kind of voice. Both of these habits help to keep your writing fresh and flowing off the pen (or keyboard). In my humble experience, I've found blogging to be a sort of journal, but one more about my personal reflections on points of interest that come up in my professional life. To date I've only kept a personal journal when traveling, to be sure I wouldn't forget any details in the onslaught of foreign sites and sounds and tastes. But O'Shea's book has encouraged me to take another stab at keeping a daily personal journal. And after you see her book trailer you'll see why it's also encouraged me not to let anyone else peek at it!
