At its core, a journaling game is a themed, multi-stage storytelling challenge fueled by your imagination and guided by structured randomness. In simpler terms, it’s blogging through a make-believe character.
Unlike a team sport, video game or card game which have official rules, journaling games have guidelines—more like bumpers in a bowling alley. These guides help keep your storytelling on track and usually lead toward a natural conclusion.
Here are some common practices used in journaling games to guide your fantasy blogging adventure:
1. You Are Playing a Character
You take on the role of someone else—or an alternate version of yourself in a completely different life. Without this, it would just be regular journaling.
2. Setting the Stage
Most journaling games start with a setup phase where you define who you are and what you’re trying to accomplish.
3. The Journaling Loop
This is the core of the game—the part where you spend most of your time. Each day (or session), a random prompt shapes what happens. This randomness can come from rolling dice, drawing cards, or another method.
For example, in a superhero-themed journaling game, your daily prompt might determine:
- The time of day
- How many villains you encounter
- What they were doing
- Whether you stopped them
- If you found any clues for a bigger mystery
Once you generate your day’s events, you write about them from your character’s perspective.
4. Writing the Entry
There are no strict rules here. Your journal entry might be:
- A detailed report, like an official log
- A stream-of-consciousness ramble
- A mix of thoughts, sketches, and random notes
You could even include grocery lists or personal reflections, blending reality with your character’s world.
5. The Ending
Many journaling games have a finale—a showdown, a big event, or a turning point that wraps up the adventure.
For example, if the game were set in the Star Wars universe, the last entry might describe your perspective on the Death Star trench run—did you succeed, fail, or barely escape?
No Rules, Just Themed Structure
As you can see, journaling games don’t have rigid rules—just a process that keeps your storytelling on theme while adding just enough randomness to inspire creativity. Whether you’re playing a lone adventurer, a detective, or an astronaut, these games give you a way to think, write, and imagine through someone else’s eyes.
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