Journaling Questions & Answers

Q&A: “How Many Words Make a Decent Journal Entry?”

JournalTalk Q&A Julia Cameron suggests 3 pages. Jeff Goins recommends 500 words. Some popular websites say 600 or 750 words is the goal. WHAT’S THE STORY HERE?

Co-host Jayde Gilmore and I both agree that having a mental marker can help with the consistency and depth of your writing practice. But being overly concerned with word count can backfire also. In this episode, learn some principles about that balance between the two. We answer a listener’s question, “What is the minimum number of words to write each day that yields the best results of journal-writing?”

Fuel the dialogue: Do you use a word counter to determine how much to write in a given session? Can you make a great journal entry in less than 10 words? What standards or goals have been helpful, and when do you change them? Post your responses at the bottom of this webpage, in the comments section.

You may email your own journaling question to be featured on a future episode of JournalTalk. Or, pick up the telephone and leave a voicemail with your question at 1-805-751-6280 (only normal toll charges may apply). If your question is featured, we will send you a thank-you gift for sharing your voice! (JournalTalk Q&A, Episode #23, February 10, 2015)

Credits:
Audio Editing: Netrix Marketing
Music: Pond5.com
Voiceover: Thomas Gerrard

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5 thoughts on “Q&A: “How Many Words Make a Decent Journal Entry?”

  1. Randall

    Julia Cameron’s 3 morning pages work like magic for me. Maybe it’s my imagination, but at the bottom of page 2 I always feel a little bit of resistance, like I could easily stop there. But if I push ahead to that third page, I don’t necessarily reach any other grand conclusions, but I do have a feeling of having stretched myself in a beneficial way and of having flexed my writing muscles.

    Reply
    1. Nathan Ohren Post author

      Hi Randall, I enjoyed Julia’s “Artist Way” several times, and always remember fondly the week of “No television”. It was a real breakthrough in time management for me! I agree that 3 pages often feels like a good measure, and it sounds perfect for you, if you’re feeling that it forces you to give that last extra push. Thanks for your comments. Keep on writing!

      Reply
  2. Kyra Oshier

    Thank you for the number of words for a journal entry i have been looking for hours for the right answer and now i have found it so thank you!
    P.S. I found the answer on your blog right away so thank you!

    Reply
  3. Kyra Oshier

    Thank you for the help that i needed i have now finished my journal entry so thank you it took along time to find this blog and this answer that i needed because no other site would tell me the answer i needed to finish my journal entry so thank you!

    Reply

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