How I Started Art Journaling (And Making Altered Books)

Imagine yourself at eleven or twelve. Gawky, dreaming of boys, giggling at school with a group of girls and practicing your first kiss on the back of your hand. Well, that's when I got my "First Diary" and started to record those secrets and early infatuations. A few years ago I saw this journal at a Starbucks and snatched it up. What a score! It reminded me so much of my "First Diary" (plus it had ponies on it and a real lock!). Now -- I don't have that first diary anymore -- somewhere along the line I lost it and its handwritten prepubescent dreams and desires. Most likely it landed in the trash can a short while after I grabbed  hunky John Hummel's shirt loop in the cafeteria line. We must of been around 11 or 12. The entire back of his shirt ripped right down to his pants. Talk about a one-of-a-kind humiliating, don't ever look at me again experience! No way was I going write about it in my diary! What is it about boys(men), first love, second love, third love....and writing about it PROFUSELY and TERRIBLY in a journal? Maybe it's because I'm a Libra? Sad to say, but this was a habit I didn't entirely get rid of until my thirties...or later....

MY FIRST JOURNALS 1970-72

My next, and perhaps most profoundly illuminating experience that sent me on my creative journey happened in my high school journalism class. I did well in English, grammar, literature etc. I wanted to know more about writing and if a career in journalism was in my future, so I took a journalism class my junior year. God Bless Mrs. Julia Cameron and her life changing first assignment and instructions: "Write about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that grabs your interest. Tell me what you like about something, tell me what your feelings are, and don't try to censor your words. And while you're at it glue or paste ANYTHING you want into your book. This is your inspiration book -- just write!!!!" This I loved -- although in those early years I was a bit timid -- I was drawn to the physicality  of gluing stuff into my journal: cartoons, magazine images, TV guide articles, string, flowers, gum wrappers, etc. I even managed to scribble a few terrible drawings on the pages. Altering a hardbound journal or book was born into my life. Boys (men) still graced the pages through the years, but thankfully weren't the main focus anymore -- Life was!

So,  Reader, those were the beginning seeds of my passion for altered books and journals -- if you want my advice on art journaling follow Ms. Julia Cameron's: "Write about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that grabs your interest. Tell me what you like about something, tell me what your feelings are, and don't try to censor your words. And while you're at it glue or paste ANYTHING you want into your book. This is your inspiration book -- just write!!!!" 

Various Volumes from my Daily Journal Page Challenges (40+Journals)

This article was originally published as a blog post, "From Diary to Art Journaling", for the blog How2ArtJournal. I will be contributing a monthly post on journaling to this blog.