A Decade in Journals – Goldeen Ogawa

A couple weeks ago l started a new journal. I do this regularly. I typically have three journals running simultaneously: my Writing Log, where I record how many words I’ve written and for what story; my Adventure Log, which is a personal diary of my physical exploits; and my Miscellaneous Log, which is for all my doodles, sketches, cover thumbnails, and more. The Miscellaneous Logs are where all the content for my Sparks Gallery—which I’ve been sharing with Patrons and CSA members since 2017—comes from. Since May 2013 I’ve been keeping it in a succession of Paperblanks Midi journals, and this month I started on the 11th installment.

A decade in journals, with the current edition on top.

Properly, these journals are a continuation of the sketch dairies I’ve been keeping most of my life. From 2001-2013 I used 8.5″x11″ spiral bound sketchbooks, but as my life progressed I found these too cumbersome to carry around, and thus they were neglected. The switch to Paperblanks was inspired by… well mostly by the books themselves (I mean look at them!) but also by the convenience of the 5″x7″ size, plus the handy memento pouch, I could now take my journals everywhere. Collectively, these books have accompanied me to a dozen different states (one even traveled as far as Berlin!) and averaging one journal per year, it adds up to quite a collection.

Top left to bottom right: 2013-2023 in Paperblanks Midi journals. Bottom center: 2023-? journal.

In this very special installment of the Sparks Gallery we’ll be taking a closer look at all these journals, and a tiny peek inside each one. Let’s get going, starting with…

Safavid Binding Art

May 24 2013 – July 9 2014

The one that started it all! Year of the Godfox thumbnails, AnthroCon 2014, and I believe the first incarnation of DinnerCon.

Bukhara – Amber

July 10 2014 – July 18 2015

The one that went to Berlin… and before that, Edinburgh, Callander, and London. It also records the death of my horse. My, that was a year that… was.

Old Leather – Foiled

July 20 2015 – May 15 2016

Perisian Mosaic – Safran

May 16 2016 – June 3 2017

Lots of people have bad feelings associated with the end of 2016, but for me those are somewhat overshadowed by what happened in September: I moved from Central California to Central Oregon.

Rose Garden – Holly Rose

June 13 2017 – February 13 2018

The Rose Garden journal covered my first AnthroCon traveling from Bend, my first drive from Bend to San José, and a lot of the writing of *Driving Arcana Wheel 3.* It also went to Helsinki (WorldCon 2017) and Reykjavik (my 30th birthday).

Venetian Mornings – Fiamma

February 14 2018 – April 21 2019

Exotic Marquetry – Mother of Pearl

April 23 2019 – September 30 2020

Ah, 2019. My last BLFC, my last AnthroCon, perhaps my last FurtherConfusion… though I didn’t know it at the time. Also the end of Chaos, which was rough. But the beginning of a whole lot of writing and art.

Golden Trefoil

October 1 2020 – December 8 2021

So many mixed emotions from this time. A great revitalizing of my artistic process, centering my work and prioritizing art and stories. But the loss of Aether, a few dark and smoky months… and then we welcomed Theory.

Voltaire’s Book of Fate – Destiny

December 8 2021 – June 16 2022

Perhaps the best Christmas I’ve had. Pool Job shut down. Unemployment came through—as did WoMo and brother and a snow storm. And, at the end of it all… embarking on the great Season Three illustration journey!

Aurelia

June 18 2022 – July 12 2023

Some struggles in this one (successive infections culminating in COVID) but also victories (recovering from COVID!) and over 52 Saturdays of blue horses. And, at the end my first BwP Con, and my first real convention (even if it was a mini one-day event) in over 3 years. The idea-sparks keep flying, and so will I.

And now…

Safavid Binding Art – Indigo

July 14 2023 – ??

With this one for the first time I’m returning to an old design—Paperblanks recently rereleased their Safavid Binding Art in a beautiful new colorway, and I chose it to commemorate starting a new decade in journals.

If you want to see what goes on inside these journals, be sure to subscribe on Patreon or Ko-Fi, or buy a Digital CSA Share. You can also get free updates (like this one!) by joining the Heliopause Email List. And if you’re already part of the CSA family: Thank you! The best is yet to come!

Here’s hoping for another beautiful decade! But for now, take care… of yourselves, of your loved ones, and of your world.

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