• quotes and copywork. when reading, if you find something you enjoy, just copy it into the notebook. you can copy a whole chapter if you wish, highlighting what caught your attention the most.
• definitions. look up on a dictionary and copy it. you could write your own dictionary as well, making up definitions for words.
• lists. a classic, write movies to watch, books to read, the playlist of the month or just the groceries you have to buy.
• maps. when going somewhere, you could draw the route you took or just a map of the place itself. just look up the place on google maps and copy it. you can draw a little map of all the places you have lived or the schools you have attended as well.
• photos
• take “notes” as you watch movies / documentaries. write down phrases that caught your attention or doodle.
• illustrations and clippings. if you see an image or piece of art that you liked, put it in your journal. if it’s from a book or from a magazine I would recommend scanning it, tho’. it will serve as a record of what kind of art you enjoy through the years.
• newspaper clippings from the day.
• tickets and pamphlets. from movies, museums, transportation.
• postcards
• records. you could record for a month what the temperature was when you woke up and when you went to sleep. if you do that for a year, it gives you a better notion of the passing of seasons. you could record rainfall and other seasonal changes as well. you could choose something (an animal, a plant, an item or object) and write down every time you see it.
• rubbings of leaves, coins, landmarks.
• count. there’s a scene in the movie Coraline (2009) where Coraline’s dad tells her to go count the windows. you could do the same type of counting game if you are bored and write down.
• mindmaps/sketchnotes + timelines of books, movies, music albums.
• collages
• pressed leafs and flowers
• your collections. if you collect anything you could write down an inventory or maybe try to draw the items.
• recipes. write down recipes and give it a score every time you try it. you could do the same for drinks you try out.
• stickers
• comic strips. you can find a bunch of it online, glue your favorites in your notebook.

“Some days in late August at home are like this, the air thin and eager like this, with something in it sad and nostalgic and familiar.”

“In the beginning was the sea—we heard the surf in our breathing, certain that we carried seawater in our veins.”