“Researchers from the University of Exeter have launched a new study to examine collections of 15th to 17th century spell books and grimoires that gave instructions on how to summon and conjure fairies, demons and other spirits. Researchers will start with ancient spell books up to 600 years old.”
Look, I’ve loved notebooks since I learned how to write. I hoard empty journals and filled ones, I’ve kept diaries since I was six, I’ve used various types of bullet journals since before the term was invented; I’ve done it all.
And if there’s one thing I’ve learned about keeping the joy in journaling, it’s this:
LET. IT. BE. MESSY.
I mean, let’s be honest, how many of us have held onto a gorgeous notebook that we’ve been dying to use for way too long, never writing in it because we were terrified of not being able to fill it or live up to the aesthetic we dreamed up?
I know I have.
Nothing will kill your journaling experience faster than that kind of pressure. Besides, aiming for that kind of rigid consistency with a grimoire just seems bizarre to me, because your grimoire reflects your journey. So of course it will change as you do!
Variety is beautiful, so let your book be wild. Let one day be a freewriting journal entry, and the next be a Pinterest worthy spread with watercolour and washi tape. Write ten pages one day and ten words the next. Use different pens, switch colour schemes, switch between cursive and print. Draw cartoons, write notes in the margins, paste things in!
It becomes so much easier to record things regularly when you don’t have the pressure to live up to a certain standard or commit to a certain format each time.
It gives you permission to have different moods and styles. It gives you permission to evolve.
Don’t tie yourself to the ideas you had when you started. They’re good ideas, but they’re not the only ones.
while it can definitely be a fun and motivating way to get in touch with your craft, your grimoire does not have to be full of watercolors or biologically correct doodles of herbs. for a long time i was ripping pages out of my grimoire because they didn’t look perfect, rebloggable – and it kept me from the grimoire’s true purpose, to record information for later reference and use. your grimoire is yours for the making. it can be a word document, a collection of quick notes on the backs of receipts, a notebook previously used for science class, a full-scale art book. as long as it helps you learn and grow closer to your practice, it is the perfect grimoire.
Spitfire Alice A Gra 