But most of my journaling is done in the cloud these days. And creative writing note-taking...and story planning. And poetry writing. And private blogging/cathartic writing.
I was doing a lot of it on Google Docs until I read that Google like probably can read everything I write and maybe share my shit against my will with people I don't want to read it. Not fucking cool, Google.
So I searched on my Safari (totally safe Mac browser...as far as I know) for a private way to get my thoughts on the screen and into a space...before I share them in any other spaces (if I choose to do so).
I found penzu...the totally private and secure online web journalling experience.
The basic one journal with basic bells and whistles is free. But you can pay just a little bit more and get lots more features, including unlimited number of journals, covers and page and pad images you can change, extra cool fonts, etc. For me, it was worth it to pay for the PRO+ version, butt the free or regular PRO version will probably do for most. PRO+ wasn't that much more expensive than PRO and it has extra level encryption. (Even though I'm saving up for something else I might need later on that's kind of expensive but as a writer who wants to self publish, I will probably need eventually and I'm planning on taking my blogs to the pro level as well).
Below is a look at my Home screen with all my journals (so far)...
The penzu PRO+ Home screen layout
I'm not suggesting you buy the PRO or PRO+ version. I happened to get it when it was on a deal where they threw in another year for half off, so it was a good deal. You can add images and tags to your posts just like a blog and you can also privately share links to it with people...if you want to do that.
I chose to do PRO because my first journal I made in there, 'wandering starseed,' is where I'm pre-writing some of the more sensitive personal posts of my dealings with weird phenomenon that I normally post on my other blog... "reo_k's weirdworldview" but these are really sensitive posts and will not get posted to the main blog, but to private content pages of that blog once I have that part of the blog up and running. For discreet and special eyes only.
The page layout is simple to use and you can also time-stamp your entries if you want to keep track of when you started writing them. That's helpful for me...lets me know when I'm taking too long on something and need to get my ass in gear.
Below is a view of the writing area layout:
It looks pretty much like any other blogging app but there are some extra cool features. That light bulb in the upper right? If you are stuck for something to write, in total writer's block hell, you can click on that for prompts. How awesome is that? And everything is100% private, unless you choose to share it with someone.
File under..."Cool Tools for Writers, Bloggers, and Journal-Keepers".