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How to Keep a Book Journal (Patreon)

Published:
2021-07-16 10:58:15
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2026-06
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Content

Today we're going deep into how to create your own journalling practice.

How do you write about the Great Books?

I agree with Oscar Wilde who said that art criticism is the highest and most civilised form of autobiography because it's a record of one's soul.

So let's talk about how to journal, how to reread, how to approach marginalia, how to remember quotes, and what my personal process looks like.

This is a long audio, so if you're short on time you may wish to jump to my bolded timestamp (~34 mins in) where I break down my personal process for journalling, using Proust as an example.

Audio Timestamps:

  • 0:00 introduction to journalling
  • 3:00 my personal journalling set-up
  • 5:00 the history of my journalling
  • 6:00 deep work and digital vs analogue journals
  • 8:00 journalling as positive habit creation
  • 9:00 journalling as you-time
  • 10:00 the period of no journalling
  • 11:00 a journalling experiment you can do right now
  • 12:00 the benefit of lived experience
  • 13:00 your obligation to journal
  • 15:20 journal collecting
  • 16:00 how to be a better leader
  • 19:00 why everyone should journal (personal story)
  • 20:00 how to journal upon practical wisdom literature
  • 20:30 your journal is your companion
  • 21:30 you don’t know what you think until you write about it
  • 22:00 what to do if you don’t know what to write about
  • 22:30 how I helped a Computer Science PhD student get a first
  • 24:00 can journalling and deep-reading improve your IQ and empathy?
  • 25:00 journalling on the themes of Crime and Punishment
  • 26:00 downloading the themes of a book into your soul
  • 26:30 the effect of lockdown and coming to the Great Books
  • 27:00 famous men and women who kept a journal
  • 27:00 the Proustian idea of putting your soul into your journal
  • 28:00 don’t write and edit simultaneously
  • 28:30 pivot into the frivolous and connect with your childlike sense of wonder
  • 30:00 it’s all about the journey (the journey of journalling)
  • 30:40 the process of journalling, rereading, scheduling, place, and habit creation
  • 34:00 my personal rereading and journalling process (for Proust)
  • 34:30 an update on the book chat with the lady who couldn’t get into Proust
  • 35:00 slow vs fast reading with Proust
  • 36:00 art criticism as highest form of autobiography (and dating your entries)
  • 37:00 following one’s bliss and journalling alongside it
  • 37:40 how to reread and handle quotes
  • 40:00 how to treat your first read-through
  • 42:00 how journalling helps my lectures and writing
  • 43:00 personally expressing my gratitude for you
  • 43:30 how I approach marginalia
  • 44:00 how to remember quotes you fall in love with
  • 44:30 how to explicate literature (exegetical analysis)
  • 45:30 what to do before and after you embark upon a book
  • 47:00 how to create an index and start collecting scenes
  • 48:00 how to have themes for your reading and book projects
  • 48:30 how my Oxford tutor kept his reading journals and notebooks
  • 49:00 exciting ideas for different book journals you can keep
  • 51:00 what went into my Proust journals
  • 52:00 making your journal into your own work of art
  • 54:00 one page is enough, one line is enough
  • 55:00 share your journalling practice

If you have any questions about journalling, just let me know in the comments and I would love to answer them for you.

We would love to hear your personal journalling approach, or how you may approach journalling from here on out. So please do share so we can crowdsource the different approaches.

Happy journalling, folks!

Files

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Comments

Harold H Fain

Hi Ben, I just joined HLBC, after many months of listening to your other videos. I've started doing your free Oxford education and I've been writing personal book reviews on each book I've read and it's amazing! However, I love the idea of a book journal, but isn't doing a book review similar to what one would write in a journal? That seems redundant to me, though I'm open to trying journaling for other books, but should I do journaling in lieu of a book review, or vice versa, to save time? Thanks for all you do.

Kristina Alessa

I just started my first book journal. As an avid prayer journaler, this was enlightening. I already use Lectio Divina to meditate on Sacred Scripture. I never considered applying the method to literature! Now I have another meaningful way to bring God into my pastimes and everyday life. :)

Rian Floyd

Great journaling ideas you’ve shared, Ben. Since journaling is one of those activities that’s so uniquely tied to the individual, I thought I would share my 3-notebook system (after years of refinement) to spark some ideas for others to discover their own ideal system. 1. Field Notes pocket notebook for daily capture (thoughts, ideas, task lists, reading notes, etc). The idea is to eliminate friction about where I should capture a piece of information; everything starts in here first. It’s my brain’s external storage that travels with me everywhere and is reviewed each evening and then again weekly where I might want to copy some of the info elsewhere. I date each entry and use a Bullet Journal style key to differentiate notes from tasks from events.
 2. A5 Leuchtturm1917 as a ‘thinking on paper’ journal or commonplace book. Whenever I sit down to write and reflect on what I’ve read and how it relates to my life, this is where I do it. All the points Ben raises in this podcast are relevant here. If something is important and I want to find it later, it goes into the index. There is no strict structure, but each entry is dated. Ideas and pages can be linked together with an arrow forward or back to the relevant page, and by adding it to the index. Many blog posts and essays begin from journaling in here.
 3. A6 Stalogy 365-day notebook as my wisdom or quotes journal. My memory is awful, so my goal with much of my reading is to commit quotes and meaningful passages to memory, which means writing them out and having them in a place I look at frequently. This notebook often travels with me, and I’ll flick through it and ponder, or add quotes to it that connect with me in some way. I got this idea and the layout for it from Parker Settecase on YouTube (ParkNotes and Parker’s Pensées) I don’t currently have dedicated journals for specific collections (great first lines, specific topics or authors, etc), as I use digital tools for these tasks since the search function is too valuable to give up. If any of this sounds too elaborate, I assure you it’s not. Like everything in life, the key is consistency and forming a habit around it. I’m at the point where I no longer have to expend mental energy figuring out where a certain piece of information should go, nor what I should write about since a thought I captured during the day in my pocket notebook will often be a jumping-off point towards a worthwhile written reflection. Hope this helps someone out there struggling to find a system that works for them! Thanks for your insight, Ben.

Emma S.

I really enjoyed listening to this today as I was doing a New Year 'spring' clean. I have three beautiful blank journals waiting for me to write in them, and this has given me so much inspiration. Thank you Ben.

Marvin Beltre

Wonderful, Ben. My journaling is sporadic; hence, the practical tips in this video are helpful. I love the idea that our journals are works of art as well as autobiographies. Another insightful video as always.

Stephanie Jeannette

Second time listening to this lecture. I still haven't started to journal. Need a big push.

NicoleA
>>123714979

I find this very helpful thank you! I think my struggle is that when I have so many notebooks or journals my mind becomes overwhelmed with not knowing how to find anything again.

NicoleA

I love the idea of having an index. I think I have struggled with maintaining a consistent journaling practice because I feel overwhelmed by the idea that I need to remember where all the information is if I need to recall something. Thank you!

Berta Kienle

Since I joined HLBC and became a book scholar:) I started journaling. I don’t like to write in my books and I have my journal handy while writing. Whenever I continue reading the book a go through my remarks. At the end of the book I write a review. I have grown so much as a reader. Thank you Ben for this wonderful program

Renee

Greetings. This is my first post as I’m very new to this bookclub. I’ve considered joining for a while now and 2026 is the year! I’m looking forward to starting with Lonesome Dove- it was actually under the Christmas tree for me this year before I knew it would be my first book in this bookclub. I took that to be a good sign. I’m organizing myself and considering journaling as part of my reading journey here. At the beginning of this video Ben mentions that he was planning to create a video of his journals- to show how they actually look. Does anyone know if that video was created and where I could find it?

Jason Tucker

I've journaled before but it's been decades and not a dedicated reading journal, but today I wrote down my first entry in my first reading journal. It was actually a lot easier than I expected, but doing it longhand, I'm wondering how decipherable it'll be in a few years. Part of that entry talks about how I ready hardly anything in 2025, and how I hope that joining the book club and journaling will help me avoid repeating that in 2026.

Josh Freeman

I would like to hear your opinion on self help books and the self help industry. The line between a ‘self help addict’ and someone just trying to improve there life. People get caught reading self improvement material that they forget to improve themselves. I don’t see much on YouTube about how to implement ‘self help books’ into your life could be one to consider

Josh Freeman

Great video. Makes me want to jump on a random train with a suitcase full of books. Admittedly last night around 2pm I had the idea to jump in my car with some books and my diploma workbooks and drive to a secluded beach and spend all day reading and studying by the beach for about a week. I’m not bragging, but being in a point in your life with little responsibility is a perfect time to partake in such activities. I would recommend a book called ‘A right to write’ great book on why and how you should journal Thanks for the video

hardcoreliterature
>>63875765

I could definitely go into that. Self-help books are great when one works to apply them. I've found myself influenced by some of those books focused on character ethics - writers like Stephen Covey and Dale Carnegie, for example. A lot of the self-help stuff online (discussions, articles, videos) can be really popular I suppose because it gives one the false impression that they are doing something productive towards their goals. I'll speak about this in-depth soon, because practically applying these works is a key part of the puzzle :)

hardcoreliterature
>>63876558

Sounds like a great idea to me. I often have the exact same fantasy - although swapping out the beach for a forest or snowy mountain chalet would be my preference. Thank you for the book recommendation, Josh. Julia Cameron! Have you read her 'Artist's Way'? I followed her creativity programme a few years back and found the experience challenging but rewarding :)

Jetzabel Peniche

Hello Ben ! Your audio was very insightful and helpful. I am a messy journal writer . I write everywhere and then stick them in one place and you are very right , it can get very messy. I don’t journal every day . It just depends on my mood but I think that it is an excellent idea to do it daily and try to write a page , a phrase or a sentence just to get your thoughts moving. Sometimes, I get an idea of a story that I would like to write and sit for awhile and just write till my mind breaks but I tend to write those on my chrombook than on paper. Sometimes , I wish I hand written them in a journal to keep them in one place but I think I will start doing that. It’s funny but I was writing my notes for AK and CP in one notebook and it’s really messy. I like that idea that you said a journal for each book and making it your artwork. I will start doing that. Thanks again for your splendid audio and ideas. This is amazing how you can learn new things from others. Thanks Ben :)

Fiona Wang

For those who are intimidated by keeping a book journal (like me), I recommend starting with short notebooks (~90 pages) instead of the regular-sized (~270 pages) journals. This just makes the task seem less daunting and more approachable. Here's the one I purchased: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XVMPL6F/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Ben, thanks so much for this audio. This is my second week of Proust journaling and your audio serves as a perfect reminder to keep going. Marginalia is something I have been practicing since Anna Karenina but keeping a book journal is entirely new to me. I am planning to journal with Siddhartha as well, which leads me to my question for you: Do you keep to the same journaling schedule (weekly) for all books you read? If you are reading multiple books at once, do you journal about all of them on that same day?

Paul Bernal

I’ve been looking for an excuse to join the Proust tier and this video was it. This afternoon I started rereading & taking notes on a nonfiction work called the Authentic Gospel of Jesus. It was written by a historian rather than a theologian. As soon as I started taking my notes I felt joy and started smiling.

hardcoreliterature
>>63916454

Thank you, Paul :) Very warm welcome to the Proust tier. We're so happy to have you here. I've really been enjoying the deep insights you've shared on the YouTube videos! The Authentic Gospel of Jesus - that sounds like a good one. I'll check that out. And journalling always brings me joy too!

hardcoreliterature
>>63895474

That's such a great tip, Fiona. I used to do something similar, and actually do still have slim/pocket notebooks for poetry. To be honest, I don't keep to a tight schedule anymore regarding specific books, but rather journal upon whichever work I've been living the most/enjoying the most. That typically looks like the current Big Read I'm making my way through. For Proust I had a fixed schedule every Sunday evening, but for other books, short stories, things like poetry, I would just slot in some time when the mood took me. I sat down the other day with a coffee and journaled upon Crime and Punishment for twenty minutes despite having not picked it up for a while. Also - as I'm compiling lectures, I find my journalling can look a bit eccentric and all over the place.

hardcoreliterature
>>63890994

Thank you, Jetzabel :) I'm glad I'm not the only messy journal writer! Maybe it's an artistic thing? But I never personally liked when teachers told me to be neat and colour within the lines. As a practice, having a regular journal slot each day, even just for a few minutes, is quite calming. Ah, yes, I write stories on my computer too - Apple Mac with the Scrivener word processor app. I'd love to hear how you get on with your journalling going forward :)

Caroline P

Your podcast reminded me about Irving Finkel, a curator of the British Museum. I enjoy his enthusiasm about history (he does a good video on YouTube about the Lewis chessmen and many other things like that). Anyway, he started up a museum in London to preserve peoples diaries and journals. Not the grand important people, but everyday people writing about their everyday lives and thoughts. He says how interesting it would be if we had diaries of people living in Shakespeares times..for example…what insight we might get. So when I die I might send my journals to that museum..and what people in the future will make of my drawings, thoughts and musings is better not pondered on or I will never journal again. Anyway, Irving talks about the museum of diaries here…if you get to watch it any time I defy anyone not to smile and feel their lives and thoughts and ponderings are not worth journaling about. https://youtu.be/X0hi2Q3TAK8

hardcoreliterature
>>63951074

Irving Finkel! What a tremendous recommendation. I've just subscribed to his channel/the Arts Society. His enthusiasm certainly is infectious. I'll definitely give this video a watch, and fingers crossed for a visit to this museum in the near future. When my grandmother died, finding her diaries and poetry was like finding treasure. I've been quite fascinated by memoirs for a while, particularly those of everyday people. I also had an idea to do a reading of Anne Frank's diary over the long-term, reading her entries on the date in the diary she wrote them :)

Marion Knell

I haven’t got anything clever to say, only that I really enjoyed this podcast. I found it insightful and inspiring.

Florian Pesantes

Ben, I shall write this quote of yours on page one of every new journal I shall start from now on: “Make it beautiful! Because: Why not!” Hilarious and true. I particularly liked this: your rather Shakespearean pun at minute 3:41: “…very tactile experience, very pleasing to hold the pen, - to have things come out of the pen” I’ll keep that in mind, it helps to make the hard work easier! You gave us the freedom to be frivolous at time so I allowed me to pick up on this. Although I’ve noted a lot of very helpful more serious advice. Thank you as always.

Dawn

hardcoreliterature
>>64372197

Thank you, Dawn :) Your journalling system looks very similar to how I wrote during finals exams. I used a bullet journal with graph paper and had a three pen colour system that used a similar philosophy too. Blue for direct quotes, red for secondary material, black for my person thoughts/notes. That also sounds like a great idea regarding pronunciation. I mispronounce things and foreign names all the time so I should make efforts to do the same :)

Aaron Madewell

Ben, did you end up making a video on journaling? Is it in one of the higher tiers? Thanks!!

Jamie Newman

This was really inspiring. I've always journaled for mental health reasons, but have always felt like it was sort of...I don't know, drivel. It has always seemed like it has never done anything other than helped me gain some perspective. The idea that I can tie it to my reading so that I can both remember, masticate, and grow is exciting. Currently, I've been using the Remnote app as my Commonplace book. It helps that I can search the quotes, hyperlink the keywords etc. It keeps it from being a mess! Thank you for this.

hardcoreliterature
>>97379185

Thank you, Jamie! Great recommendation with the Remnote app. I'm going to download that one and check it out myself!