Why Memoir Writers Should Journal (and 4 Types to Try)

 If you’re writing a memoir, you’ve probably heard it before: “You should keep a journal.” But you might be wondering—why bother? Isn’t my memoir already doing the work of recording my life?

Not quite.

A journal isn’t a rough draft of your book. It’s something different entirely—a private space to process your thoughts, experiment with ideas, and capture the raw material of your life without worrying about structure, theme, or how it will read to anyone else.

Journaling and memoir writing share common ground—they’re both ways of processing life, capturing moments, and exploring meaning. But they serve different purposes. And for memoir writers, journaling isn’t just a warm-up exercise; it’s a creative partner that can help you write a better, richer book. 

How Journaling Is Different from Writing a Memoir

A memoir is a crafted story. It’s built with structure, shaped by themes, and written with a reader in mind. You choose which stories to tell, which details to include, and how to frame them so they land with meaning. Memoir is selective. It looks back at your life with a certain lens and invites the reader into that curated experience.

Journaling, on the other hand, is private. It’s not about the reader. It’s not about crafting the “right” narrative arc or worrying about whether your sentences sing. Journaling is raw, immediate, and uncensored. It’s where you can dump the mess before you sort through it for memoir.

Think of journaling like a backstage dressing room—the place where you can try on costumes, play with makeup, and experiment with roles before stepping out onto the memoir “stage.” It’s not for performance. It’s for you.

And here’s the good news: keeping a journal while writing your memoir can free you up creatively, help you process the hard parts, and spark new ideas you might never have uncovered otherwise.

4 Types of Journaling that Are Ideal for Memoir Writers

There’s no “right” way to journal, but if you’re looking for fresh approaches, here are four types of journaling that can open up new creative pathways for your memoir work:

1. Freewriting Journals: The Morning Pages Approach

Popularized by Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way, “morning pages” are three pages of whatever comes to mind, written first thing each day. No editing. No censoring. No agenda. I've been writing Morning Pages for years.

This style of journaling is like clearing mental cobwebs. It helps you unload the chatter in your head—your to-do lists, your worries, your random thoughts—so you can approach your memoir pages with a clearer mind.

Try this: Commit to seven days of morning pages. Don’t worry if you end up writing things like “I’m so tired” for the first half-page. Keep writing. You might be surprised by what surfaces once your brain warms up.

 2. Prompt Journals: Questions That Unlock Memories

Sometimes your mind goes blank when you sit down to journal. That’s where prompts come in. Prompt journals give you a starting point—a question, a sentence to finish, a memory to explore.

Prompts are especially useful for memoir writers because they can jog memories you didn’t even realize were waiting.

Try this: Once a week, respond to a prompt like:

• “The smell that instantly takes me back is…”
  
• “The last time I felt truly safe was…”
  
• “If I could go back and tell my younger self one thing, it would be…”
  

Ready to get started with writing prompts? Download my free guide, 31 Memoir Writing Prompts. You might stumble onto a scene or emotion you’ll later weave into your memoir.

3. Reflective Journals: Writing to Make Sense of Life

Reflective journaling is about pausing to process what’s happening now. It’s where you capture how you feel after a hard conversation, a good book, or a personal breakthrough.

This kind of journaling is especially powerful when you’re writing about trauma or transformation in your memoir. It helps you stay connected to the emotional “why” of your story and notice the threads of growth in your life as they unfold.

Try this: Each evening, write one page answering: What did I feel most deeply today? What does it teach me about who I’m becoming?

4. Dialogue Journals: A Conversation on Paper

This might sound odd, but one of the most liberating forms of journaling is writing a dialogue—with yourself, with someone from your past, even with God.

When you write as if you’re having a conversation, you often uncover thoughts, hurts, or questions that don’t surface in regular journaling. It’s raw. It’s vulnerable. And it can reveal a depth of insight you can later shape for memoir.

Try this: Write a letter to someone you’ve been carrying unfinished business with. Don’t send it. Just write it. Or have a “conversation” on paper with your younger self, asking what she needs you to remember. 

Why This Matters for Your Memoir

Your memoir will only be as honest and layered as the work you do behind the scenes. Journaling gives you the freedom to explore your story without worrying about structure or audience.

Some journal entries will never see the light of day—and that’s exactly the point. They give you a private space to wrestle, dream, vent, and reflect. And from those pages, you’ll find the moments, themes, and insights that belong in your memoir.

So, if your memoir feels stuck, or if you simply want to deepen the richness of your writing, grab a notebook. Start scribbling. Play with prompts, freewriting, reflection, and dialogue.

Your journal isn’t your memoir. But your daily writing can be an instrumental way to shape the stories of your life. It might just be the secret ingredient that helps you write the memoir you were meant to tell.