Bullet Journal to Organize All The Things

Traditionally, planners don’t work for me.  There are sections I don’t use, sections not included that I could use, and the most common problem of forgetting to use it altogether.  Some writer friends of mine started posting about their bullet journals, or bujo, and I wanted to know more.

So I asked them about it and went to YouTube and found this very helpful video.  I was interested in a planner because when I had free time, I’d sit down and couldn’t think of what I needed to do.  I’d been making lists on post it notes at work, but they’d get left behind so when I had a moment at home, nothing got done.  So I grabbed a note college composition book and got started!

I followed the video almost completely and I’ve got yearly and monthly calendars and a simple weekly.  But I added a writing goals section.  Left is a yearly calendar which I highlight with what I did most of the day.  It’s hard to see but some days are split half half.  And on the right is the projects I want to complete this year with little check boxes at different stages.  Once I stuck with the journal for a few weeks, I commissioned a cover from a friend and asked for rainbow sparkle unicorns.  She did not disappoint!

So now my journal has pockets and looks super fabulous.  The pens are Pentel R.S.V.P which I already had on hand.  I might replace the book mark with a small ruler for adding pages on the go.  I’ve been using it since the beginning of the year and if I find myself with unexpected extra time and can’t write, I refer to this baby and check something off my to do list.  And I use it for more than writing.  I keep a log of active yarn projects too.

Now when I watch TV or netflix, I can keep my hands busy while I unwind.  My next step is to create a bujo for a project as a series bible.  I anticipate to write several series so keeping a series bible will be helpful and digital record keeping isn’t my thing.  So that’s my next mission, adapt the bujo to a writing resource.

Do you use a planner?  What works for you?