New Thing: the "Just Draw" Journal
The de-special-ed sketchbook.
The Sketchbook Problem
Hey kids! Did you ever get a hankering to draw, sit down with your sketchbook and art supplies lookin’ for some F-U-N, get ready to feel the magic of drawing—and then get hijacked by the thought “THIS BETTER BE A MASTERPIECE”?
Hate it when that happens. But happen it does; I’ll feel that wonderful desire to lose my too-much-thinking self with a pencil or marker or brush taking that relaxing walk on the page, just seeing what happens… And then get stopped by thinking I have to draw something specific. And that it has to look good. And maybe I should post it here or on social media. Now it really has to look not just good, but great. Awww… The good feelings are gone, my hand and line get tight, and oh, forget it! I’ll go do something else—like scroll social media and see what OTHER people have drawn, and feel the jaundice of envy over their perfect drawings. Yuck.
Because we sit down to sketchbooks and think we have to make a really good drawing, it’s really important to be able to draw ANYTHING you want, any way you want, and know it doesn’t need to be perfect. So how, how, how do we do that??
The Solution: The “Just Draw” Journal.
Today, I had a Zoom chat with my friend
, artist, author, and amazing art teacher. She and I were talking about that sketchbook—you know, the one that looked so glorious, with that fancy paper that you were going to create all the masterpieces in, the one you grew to dislike intensely (where did the love go??) and that now sits alone, unused, unhappy. Yeah, that sketchbook. We all have one of those. Maybe more than one.Guess what: that’s your new “Just Draw” Journal.
What on earth is a “Just Draw” Journal? It’s the sketchbook you keep on your nightstand, your desk, your coffee table, even (dare I say it) in the loo. It’s the one that goes with you as you go about your day. It’s the sketchbook that’s about to change from your least-liked and -used to your new best friend. How? By de-special-ing it.
To de-special a sketchbook, you simply call it your “Just Draw” Journal (waving your hand à la a magical person optional), and you reclassify it for doodling. Scribbling. Drawing things that aren’t related. Drawing a face, seeing that something’s off, crossing it out—gasp!!—and trying it again. Adding notes to pages, writing down shopping lists, any dang thing you want. This previously too-special to actually use sketchbook has now become a free space.
Do what now?? Why?
“But,” you protest, “that sketchbook was so expensive! The paper was made from pure fairy-farmed gossamer, and it’s used by professionals whose every drawing is perfect!” Great—turn to a fresh page and pour a coffee stain on it. Make swatches of watercolors and colored pencils in it. See if your Sharpie bleeds through the pages, and if so, how many pages, heh heh. And draw—draw anything you like, knowing this ain’t no place for masterpieces.
Why is this a good thing to do, to “ruin” a perfectly good, too-perfect-to-actually-use sketchbook?
Because it exists to be used. An unused sketchbook is an unhappy sketchbook. Plus I feel guilty when I have stuff around that I’m not using. Ugh.
If you like drawing, it’s good to, um, draw. It’s also good to practice. It’s good to doodle, to sketch, to scribble, to keep your hand moving. How do you think people get good at drawing? They draw.
This is your laboratory, and you are the brilliant scientist playing around. This is a playground, and you are re-connecting with the little kid within you that used to draw without thinking about silly things like “good” and “posting on social media.” This is your incubator, where ideas grow.
It’s FUN. It is SO super-fun to have a sketchbook that is just for junk. And honestly, there’s something a little extra fun about using a fancy sketchbook for un-fancy drawings.
This also works with sketchbooks that are not great, not fancy, not perfect, and that’s why you don’t like or use them. Any sketchbook that you’re “meh” about can be transformed into a “Just Draw” Journal! ‘Tis magic, I tell you!
“Just”: do it!
Yeah, you see what I did there. Anyway, start using your “Just Draw” Journal ASAP, a.m., p.m., and in between. Tonight, while you’re watching TV, do quick sketches of what you’re watching. Under those, write your review, or some lines from the movie or show. Tomorrow morning, when you wake up, do a quick drawing. In a Zoom meeting, draw the other participants. While you’re eating, do a little sketch of your lunch, just a quick one, nothing fancy! Use your JDJ as a diary, sketching and writing about little moments of your day.
All right! Go to your art supplies, pick your dustiest, least-likely-to-be-used sketchbook, and turn it into your “Just Draw” Journal. You’ll be drawing more, and angst-ing about your drawing less, and that’s a happy, happy thing indeed.
Do you have a pristine, perfect sketchbook, or a junky sketchbook? Do you actually use it, or are you going to re-purpose it as your “Just Draw” Journal? (Hint: second part! Second part!) Have you done this before? What happened? How is your day going? Tell all…
This also makes me think of one of my Patrons on my Patreon Page, who had a sketchbook withholder she hates and had abandoned.
After a while she picked it up again, to try some stuff in. Collage experiments, and also gelli plate textures, mixing media.
She started to have so much fun in “TTS”, The Terrible Sketchbook, and learned a lot from all the “I don’t care for this sketchbook so I’ll just do whatever” experiments.
The sketchbook was revived and filled, and it gave her so much joy (and us, in the Patreon community too, because she shared her experiments as she went).
I love it when you can really turn things around like that, just like the JDJ!
It’s like you’re in my head!! Scary! How did you know this is exactly how I feel? 🤪 You’ve inspired me and I’m starting my JDJ today. ⭐️💕