10 Comments
Mar 15Liked by Rob Walker

My partner and I kept a ‘collaborative journal’ at the beginning of the pandemic. I wanted us to respond to each other, but we mostly wrote our own thing. It’s interesting to look back at it now.

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Fantastic newsletter this week, Rob.

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I had that feeling when reading The Glass Hotel too! I was mildly interested and then all of a sudden 100% invested and hours had passed. It’s a bit like entering a flow state, so maybe the missing word should be centred around the idea of flow? 🤔

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Mar 20Liked by Rob Walker

Just noodling "Missing Words".

Slipping between the covers of a good book.

Seduced by Story

Literary Vortex

Literary Trance

Lit Up

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It often takes me 60 pages to get into a “can’t put it down” state in a novel. I always think of this stage as Who are these people? What’s going on around here? Now I am committed to thinking of a short and snappy word or term for this phase of reading! Getting acquainted, situating myself, entering a new world...gotta get my whiteboard out!

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My sister when she was visiting me in the beginning of the year, she kept a 'collaborative journal' which she called 'double diary, with my partner. My sister has Down Syndrome and she is the most loving person I ever met. I thought it was the coolest idea! I haven't heard about this idea before.

So now I have one with my partner. We draw, make collages, write about our day, interesting quotes and notes to each other. It is being very rewarding. I highly recommend this idea!

Thanks for your newsletter Rob.

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Ah, I'm so glad Bernadette Mayer's prompts resonated with you! I agree that her journal ideas are really wonderful — "round or rectangular things, or other shapes" !!

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