#digital diary entry right here

[youforgotmyname]

my brain this summer has sounded like every single alex g song overlapping

[validfemale]

` a girly guide to journaling .𖥔 ݁ ˖

keeping a diary is honestly the ultimate girl power move—it’s not just fun, it’s like therapy but cuter and all yours. keeping those pages full is how i keep my mental game strong and my girliness on point.

i’ve been doing this consistently for years now, so trust me, i know all the hacks. here’s the tea on all my fave diary tools, inspo, and tips to keep your diary flourishing like it deserves.

✦ — WHY KEEPING A DIARY IS EVERYTHING?

having a diary is like creating your own little world where all your thoughts, dreams, and random brain dumps live. every time you flip back, it’s like chatting with an old friend (who just happens to be you).

nothing beats that feeling of re-reading your own wild thoughts, laughing at old jokes, or realizing how much you’ve leveled up since then. plus, a diary is a no-judgment zone. it’s therapy with glitter pens��just you, your thoughts, and all the space you need to rant, rave, or reflect without anyone intruding. think of it as your self-love sanctuary.

✦ — MUST-HAVE GOODIES FOR YOUR PHYSICAL DIARY!

♡ color-pop pens: pastels, metallics, and scented inks make writing more fun. pick pens that scream you.

♡ cute stickers & washi tape: because every page deserves a mini makeover. get stickers that match your vibe—flowers, stars, or maybe a lil’ sparkle.

♡ scrap-worthy bits: magazine clippings, instant photos, pressed flowers—whatever you want to glue down to capture a moment. treat your diary like an art journal, too.

✦ — STUFF TO STICK IN FOR EXTRA PERSONALITY!

♡ decorative inserts: think vintage paper, glitter accents, and ribbons to add layers. let your pages be as fancy or minimal as you like.

♡ pretty diaries: invest in a diary that feels good to hold. go for soft covers, plushy textures, or fun patterns that make you want to pick it up and write.

✦ — DIGITAL DIARY ESSENTIALS!

♡ digital notebooks (like Notion): for an organized, clean look. play with templates to match your aesthetic.

♡ header graphics + mood photos: make each section extra with dreamy visuals. pinterest is the ultimate treasure trove for this.

digital diaries are perfect for on-the-go thoughts. you can switch things up, add GIFs, or create cute collages with zero mess.

✦ — WHEN IT COMES TO WRITING!

diaries are a vibe, so make your entries match your mood. some days, you’ll have full-on storytime entries; other days, it’s all about the little things. start with “hey love” if you’re feeling sweet, or just dive right in. treat it like your cozy space for everything you wish someone would ask about.

i like to write twice a week to keep it consistent (but no pressure). some entries are just life recaps; others are random lists or things that make me smile.

[amiiancasselmanyet]

Fix Me is a Mid 2000's Classic, You're Just Not From Canada

before I start this essay series, I would like to clarify that this is NOT a series of reviews but just me genuinely expressing my feelings I have towards the albums in question because I’m a highschool dropout…bon appetite or whatever

also tw for eating disorders, self harm, general mental illness and addiction but this is fix me, you probably knew that

When most people think about early to mid 2000s rock albums that became staples and bands that became household names, there's a few that genuinely come to mind. Let’s get the “emo trinity” out of the way; From Under The Cork Tree was Fall Out Boys sophomore album from 2005 that is still widely loved for good reason. The songs are good and the lyrics hit when you least expect it. Every. Single. Time. Then, of course, we have The Black Parade. I cannot express my love of this album enough, it is quite literally my all time favorite and while Three Cheers has a more solid concept (man kills other men to try and get his lover back, homosexual antics ensues), there's a reason it’s arguably their most well known and beloved by the kids who used to bully you in middle school. Of course we have A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out coming in right after this, there’s not much I can say since this album truly deserves it’s own essay that I won't manage to write (Ryan Ross please come back the kids and I miss you) but, like the other albums, it's a STAPLE at Emo Nites and Emo Nite knockoffs (shout out to Sneaky Dees in Toronto). There is, however, an album among them that's a hidden gem due to the fact that . Fix Me was the debut studio album from Marianas Trench, arriving in 2006. This album stands out from the others in a lot of ways, its sound, its vulnerability and its general lack of a concept. This album was a shot in the dark and a testament to taking chances. Let's talk about it. 

If you’re even a little bit familiar with Marianas Trench (you definitely are because you are on a blog dedicated to the drummer, my beloved bias Ian Casselman), the sound you’re used to most likely isn’t here. This album is gritty, it’s production is grungy. When you look at the other albums at face value, it stands out as nothing like the rest. If you dig deeper, however, you realize that this album truly was the foundation of what was to come. The guitar heavy sound continues throughout the discography, even if it feels less clean than its successors. It adds to the aggression a lot of the songs have, it makes the lyrics hit harder. It was too rock for the pop charts but too pop for the rock charts.(I’m pretty sure Josh said that but this thing isn’t getting a bibliography, this is a more sophisticated shit post on a blog that, again, focuses on the silly drummer with mutton chops) While the sound is incredible, the true core of the album lies in its vulnerability.

Fix Me is essentially an auditory diary, with each track feeling like a new entry. There are themes focusing on the actual struggles Josh Ramsay dealt with at the time. There’s a lot about addiction (specifically heroin), self harm, eating disorders (specifically bulimia) and general depression. It's angsty. It's difficult  to hear at times. You're not supposed to get personal during essays but this is literally on a blog where I refer to the followers as “casselman nation”, it’s a lawless land and fuck you I’ll do what I want. This album, at its core, felt like it was almost a diary entry from a younger me. 

14 year old me was very different from the current me, I had a different name entirely, a different outlook on life and a lot of things that shaped me today had not happened yet. I was unmedicated and everyone else's problem. If you ever scroll down on the personal tag of my main (you WILL NOT, you DO NOT need to see my digital footprint and angst), you'll notice that there's a lot of themes on this album that pertained to me at that time. I was VERY depressed, undiagnosed bipolar 2, bulimic and…doing things in school bathrooms I shouldn't have with items from my art class I shouldn't have had access to in that state (not going to elaborate, I’m sure you get where I’m going). When you deal with those things head on, you tend to, from experience, seek out public figures, whether it be musicians or celebrities or youtubers (shout out to Dan and Phil lmao) who have similar experiences that you had. For me, a big one from the get go was Marianas Trench. There’s something oddly comforting in not only knowing you’re not only alone but that you’re ALSO going to survive. I truly wish I was able to hug 14 year old me but I also know that they’d be proud that I DIDN’T do the thing I wanted to do before I turned 17.

There’s another reason Fix Me is truly removed from other albums and it truly feels like the biggest component; there's no concept. Fix Me has its own identity but it's not through a story or through successful singles, it's through the fact that it has none of it. It shines through its simplicity, its impact is through the way it can stand alone. It’s an album by the band that could be, and should be at times, put on shuffle. It’s an album where you can pick any song, off the top of your head, and listen to it when you’re feeling angry or sad or full of unbridled angst. Sure, you CAN listen to other songs on other albums one at a time, Masterpiece Theatre is the first on I can think of off the top of my head, however, would you want to? Would you want to listen to The End of An Era and have it followed up with a song like This Means War? It 100% kills the immersive nature that the band has carefully crafted over the last 20 years. (yes they’ve been a band that long considering the fix me bsides are from 2001, yes it makes me feel geriatric) I think the biggest reason that it personally hits every mark imaginable for a grungy punk record is the fact that there is no secret meaning hidden in each song, its open and honest from the get go. It’s raw, real and does exactly what it needs to do.

Through its sound, its ability to be honest and vulnerable in its writing and the easily accessible material, it's a staple. Shake Tramp belongs in an Emo Nite just as much as something like Sugar We’re Going Down and more than Welcome to the Black Parade (I love that song but it doesn’t fit the vibe as well as House of Wolves or The Sharpest Lives, Emo Nite is just catering to the normies and preps). Decided to Break Its video should be as beloved as I Write Sins Not Tragedies. Marianas Trench deserve their flowers for being such a staple in the lives of canadian teens who are struggling, the adults who want to comfort their inner teen selves and those who, in general, are feeling small.

[cinnacozy]

A L L I N F O !

P O S T S ! ! ୨ৎ

୨ৎ things i'll do here !

୨ৎ creative stuff

୨ৎ banners

୨ৎ profile layouts

୨ৎ paci edits

୨ৎ dni banners

୨ৎ (almost) daily headcanons

୨ৎ moodboards / stimboards (maybe, not definite yet)

୨ৎ personal stuff / misc

୨ৎ diary entries

��ৎ account promos

୨ৎ silly little reblogs

୨ৎ following back, almost always ^_^

୨ৎ things i won't do here !

୨ৎ creative stuff

୨ৎ art posts / requests (go to my art blog for that ! @peppersbabyartblog !!)

୨ৎ personal stuff / misc

୨ৎ post my face, or anything with my body in frame

B Y F / B Y I ! ! ୨ৎ

୨ৎ few things you might wanna know !

୨ৎ i block freely ,,

୨ৎ i have the right to deny or delete anything in my inbox , please do not dispute this , and instead , you may ask me why i made this choice . thank you :-)

୨ৎ it is your choice whether you interact with my posts . it is my choice to post what i want . age regression is not always the pure, pink, happy stereotype . i MAY post vent posts here . they will always be under a read more tag , and it will be your choice whether you read it . if you don't want to see it , do not read it .

୨ৎ under my headcanon posts , i completely encourage friendly disputes and differences in headcanons ! key word here is 'friendly' , please don't be rude about it ,, (⁠´⁠;⁠︵⁠;⁠`⁠)

୨ৎ please don't be shy to interact with me ! ( ’’ ´⁠∀`)

୨ৎ when making a request , please specify exactly what it is you want ,, i won't be sure otherwise (⁠*⁠﹏⁠*⁠;⁠)

୨ৎ that's pretty much it !!

R E Q U E S T S ! ! ୨ৎ

୨ৎ fandoms

୨ৎ i will accept requests for most fandoms !

( fandoms i'm in listed below !! )

୨ৎ five nights at freddy's

୨ৎ once upon a witchlight

୨ৎ uprooted: dimwits of the dimwood

୨ৎ storybots

୨ৎ yonderland

୨ৎ project sekai

୨ৎ sesame street

୨ৎ what we do in the shadows

୨ৎ splatoon 2 / 3

୨ৎ my singing monsters

୨ৎ night at the museum

୨ৎ don't hug me i'm scared

୨ৎ welcome home

୨ৎ undertale

୨ৎ deltarune

୨ৎ the amazing digital circus

୨ৎ rocky horror picture show

୨ৎ trolls

୨ৎ ride the cyclone

୨ৎ falsettos

୨ৎ doki doki literature club

୨ৎ requests are not limited to these , btw !!

୨ৎ vocaloid

୨ৎ beauty and the beast

୨ৎ blacklist ( sorry if your fandom is on here (⁠・⁠_⁠・⁠;⁠) )

୨ৎ hazbin hotel / helluva boss

୨ৎ my hero academia

୨ৎ there's nothing wrong with these , i just don't want to do them ,,

THIS IS PRETTY MUCH ALL I WANTED TO ADD HERE ! ! ୨ৎ

୨ৎ hope this wasn't too much ,, (⁠〒⁠﹏⁠〒⁠)

[nohoperadio]

Over the past two months or so my tumblr usage has shifted: for a lot of years now it was something I scrolled through on and off almost entirely as a lurker, reblogging stuff sometimes but only truly Posting a single-digit number of times per annum, if that. But suddenly I'm using it more often and mostly actually saying stuff when I'm on here, whether that's just adding silly little tag comments to things or writing actual posts about stuff that's on my mind or even sometimes, like, talking to people, which is not usually something I'm naturally inclined to do (even in low-stakes online spaces) unless I'm basically forced to. Not like a ton, but some--I haven't really done the socializing online thing since I was around 15, we're talking like 2007-era Invisionfree and ProBoards forums, and dipping my toe into it again here in small ways has felt Right to me, I didn't really notice how much I missed existing online until recently. (Man this post is getting weird maybe idk.)

I say this happened suddenly, but I wouldn't say mysteriously, I'm pretty sure I know the proximate cause: I started keeping a daily personal diary in January as a new year resolution and this unexpectedly became a habit I not only kept up(!), but enjoyed, and it seems to have unclogged some part of my brain that craves self-expression in the written word. This impulse has spilled over into the way I use tumblr in that I am having more thoughts that are paragraph-shaped but not necessarily diary entry-shaped and this blog seems like the natural place to decant them. I guess the diary also lessened the aversion of "what if I put effort into writing a post but nobody interacts with it", because I'm already producing a bunch of words that nobody is interacting with or even allowed to look at so what does a few more matter? (I guess the B-plot of this post is that keeping a diary can be a positive experience and I encourage anyone who's ever felt curious about that to give it a try.)

Anyway. All I'm leading up to here is: I'm going to be really fucking sad if tumblr dies in the near-future. I didn't properly keep up with the stuff about the CEO being crazy or whatever because that's the sort of news story I deliberately avoid keeping up with, but it seems to have cast a shadow of uncertainty about the site's future for at least some people (I mean like more so than has been the norm across tumblr's history) and to whatever extent this is not baseless scaremongering: man, what! I was literally just getting comfy! I mean if they kill this place I'll obviously have less claim to grief than the people who have invested lots of time and energy into it for years, but, idk, I'll be pissed off in a very particular and sad and sore way is what I'm trying to say.

[hekateinhell]

Wait there is drafts we have of VC books??

How'd we get the Lestat & Louis XV draft?

You would have to go to Tulane University in New Orleans! Their Anne Rice collection contains many drafts/notes/outlines of VC, as while as her personal diaries, and it's all freely accessible in person — you just have to make an appointment in advance!

The unfortunate part is that all of this is on paper only, some it even in her own handwriting (which I needed my friends to translate for me) and nothing else, so it cannot be accessed online.

I did ask the very kind librarian that we coordinated with why all of this can't just be digitized for ease of access, and he said that they simply don't have the resources for a project like that right now — apparently there's 400 boxes of Anne Rice stuff in their collection (but if they let me sleep in the library, I would get the vampire shit done in less than a month free of charge, no joke).

So if you look on the Tulane Special Collections website, this is all that appears in the entry for Lestat and Louis XIV :(

I'm hoping to share more little stuff here and there, but also I want to be careful about possibly violating a copyright. So like I can share some quotes or a pic of a paragraph or a page, but I can't post the whole seven unpublished chapters of a novel. Ideally, I would love to transcribe it and email it to Tulane, and maybe they could share it on their site as a digitized document that anyone can access!

[kamidukki]

[TKRB] Random Diary Entry of Touken Ranbu Journey

Earlier I posted about my 9th year anniversary of Tourabu, in which I wrote that I looked forward to its and mine 10th anniversary next year.

The day after, a belated realisation dawned on me. Like, have I been playing the game that long? As soon as I thought of that, I was struck with a sudden recollection. No, I haven’t played TKRB for that long! I remembered out of the blue that I made a DMM account, started TKRB with said account, picked Kashuu Kiyomitsu as my starter sword, then left because I barely understood a single kanji. (In 2015, I suppose not even a single kana was understood to me).

That was it.

Then, I returned to play it again in… I didn’t exactly remember at first. Thankfully, the app gives out info on the date when a toudan is obtained/manifested (which I don’t think existing at the time it launched?) in the citadel. I went to see the list of my toudan, sorted by earliest date obtained and this was the result.

What… was that? Like, wait, wait, I knew I was gone for quite a long time, but that long!? Kashuu was obtained on the 23rd of June, which is exactly my anniv date, so yes, that info is right and my eyes aren’t deceiving me. And second obtained toudan right after him was Imanotsurugi. I have no doubt, he’s by far the easiest to drop/smith.

But that year… 2017??? And then Gokotai… Yasusada too… et cetera.

Does this mean I left Kashuu entirely alone in the citadel??? For nearly two years???

Talk about the worst saniwa ever… 😭

I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact. In a daze, I checked on my own #touken ranbu tags on here, and find the earliest post to date was a reblog from 2017, a matching year. It was a post consisting of screenshots from episode 10 of Touken Ranbu Hanamaru, posted on the 6th of December. Hanamaru aired its last episode on the 19th of December. I reblogged the post on the 29th of January, 2017. On that year, I also got into Toumyu somehow.

???

I don’t understand my own TKRB timeline. In my head, I always thought I watched/consumed all available adaptations because I loved the game. Looking at digital records, however, it is now clear that the opposite is true. It seemed like I liked the anime and musical enough that I decided to catch up with the original game. It’s the most plausible explanation, and yet, I can’t help but feel a little disconcerted because of how terribly wrong I can be in remembering things.

Well… Happy 7th anniversary to my citadel, I guess?

[pigeonwhumps]

Diaries of Eloise and Agatha Stanbury and Ira Waterhouse

Taglist: @painful-pooch (also @octopus-reactivated and @maracujatangerine since your actor pet post sparked this idea I'm tagging you too! Even though there isn't much acting whump actually in this, only the characters...)

Recently digitised diary entries of former pets Eloise and Agatha Stanbury, and their guardian Ira Waterhouse. All three were British pet liberation activists in the early to mid 20th century. These entries are from before they set up the Dockside Boarding House, commonly regarded as the first and longest-running safehouse in Britain.

[note from Calixte Văduva, Assistant Archivist to Raphael Fiori, Apprentice Digital Assistant: take out longest-running, you idiot. You want people to know where they live?]

1.7k

CWs: BBU, pet whump, film whump, recovery whump, broken jaw mention, non-con nudity (non-sexual) mention, PTSD, whipping mention, gagged mention, kidnapping mention, beating mention

Diary of Eloise Stanbury, January 1927 - August 1928

Related topics: Eloise Stanbury, Agatha Stanbury, Ira Waterhouse, Pet Liberation History, World Pet History, 1920s Britain, Social History, British Diaries

Transcribed by Calixte Văduva, Assistant Archivist at Rising Sun Bay Archive, Rising Sun Bay, ON

1st of January 1927

Dear Diary,

Agatha is teaching me to rede and rite, and as it is a new year I am of a mind to rite down sum of my thorts. I am asured this is entirely privat. We shall see.

Master's film studio went bankrupt last month. I cannot express how relieved I am. Surely now they will stop serching for us. I hope so. If we ar found we ar ded, I no this. The collaps has, however, stirred up my memories and the titeness in my gut again.

One of my strongest memories of the studio is wen we filmed propaganda during the Great War. It was the only time Agatha and I wer involved in filming for the war effort, but it was time enuf. Agatha and I spent ar time not filming counting the ways the film munishons factory treated pets differently to ar real one. And Agatha sumhow laffed so hard, she disrupted the paid crew and snorted thin gruel out her nose.

Then the camera operator broke her jaw so she culd not disturb them agen. It was okay, cos she did not need to talk and they only needed to film her back anyway, but then Master bete her later for showing him up, until she culd barely work. That part was wors.

My dremes ar confusing, full of fire and drowning even tho I was never in the fire. Ira ses it's cos I am so scared of fire. Agatha ses it's cos I almost drowned. I am not so sure of either. Maybe it is a punishment, for burning down the studio. Maybe I should not hav dun that. I am a free pet but a pet nonetheless, and arson is a crime.

Agatha's braver than me. She makes me braver too. I would never have dared laff before she was rented to Master, let alone run. I'm not sure the defians was always good for her tho. She has many scars, inside and out. I luv her, scars and all, but I don't no how she can be so brave.

There was a servis on Christmas for the local heros of the Great War. Mr Foster was mentioned. That scares me. He scares me, and I do not understand how Agatha is not scared. He was her owner for over a decade, after all.

She scoffed at that, wen I asked. She sed that there's no reason for her to be afrade, and she wuld like to find and thank the soldier who killed Mr Foster. She also sed he's not a hero. I think she should be careful. We didn't see the body. Wat if he comes back?

It's stupid. I no it's stupid. Even if he was still alive he'd hav better things to do than come after Agatha. He'd hav to, right? And I am grateful that he's ded. If he wasn't, I may not hav been abl to stay with Agatha after the Great War ended. It just feels wrong to celebrate so much wen we never saw a body.

Ira's talking about buying a bording hous, away from here. We're so close to the site of the new National Pet Training Centre, and it feels like there ar inspectors around every corner now. Also I do not understand half of wat Ira says about lacking in the gud food and spase, cos this is the best I hav ever eaten and I can live on far less, but I think that is also a reason. I do not no why a bording hous tho. I am scared to move, this is the safest I hav ever felt, but I will hav Agatha and Ira, and I will not go back to being a pet.

My name is Eloise Stanbury, sister, possibly, to Agatha Stanbury, ward of Ira Waterhouse, and I am a free woman.

Eloise Stanbury

_

Diary of Agatha Stanbury, October 1926 - February 1927

Related topics: Agatha Stanbury, Eloise Stanbury, Ira Waterhouse, Pet Liberation History, World Pet History, 1920s Britain, Social History, British Diaries

Transcribed by Calixte Văduva, Assistant Archivist at Rising Sun Bay Archive, Rising Sun Bay, ON

26th of December, 1926

Dear Diary,

Eloise asked me yesterday whether I am still afraid of Mr Foster. I think I managed to convince her that I am not, but we shall see. She has enough on her plate without worrying about me too. She's terrified already, and if she knows I am scared it will make her worse.

I am scared, though. So scared. Mr Foster is dead but I cannot forget everything he did to me. The decade when clothes were an extremely rare occurrence, when I almost forgot my own name. He once claimed that training was half the fun in owning a pet, and it showed. I came to London for the season and was kidnapped to be his pet instead. The scars are never going to leave me.

I cannot sleep alone in the dark anymore. I used to love it, until Mr Foster, but now it's like I cannot get my mind out of his house. Even after being owned by Mr Hayes instead for over ten years I cannot do it. How can it be legal to leave a person in your will, anyway? I confess that the lack of pet owning in my parents' circles has left me rather ignorant in the matter, but it still seems wrong.

Mr Foster was terrifying. He still is. I see him in half the faces on the streets, when I am brave enough to leave the house. Eloise says I'm brave, but I am not so sure. If I was so brave, surely Mr Foster's rules and sadism would not still be so affecting?

Ira does not agree with me. She says it is perfectly reasonable, that soldiers still have shell shock so why shouldn't I be affected by being scarred? I am unsure what to do with that.

I have fought, but it was not a war. Soldiers are not caged naked and gagged with horrible experimental gags, or whipped and beaten by sadists. They are not scarred on film simply because the starring pet is too valuable to be damaged herself.

That sounds like I blame Eloise. I do not. None of this was her fault. I hope, if I had ever become an actor as a person, I would have paid attention to the pets forced to perform, but most likely I wouldn't. I try not to think about that.

Mr Foster still haunts me, awake and asleep. Eloise does not know. She cannot know. She has enough nightmares of her own, and I do not want to wake her up from mine. I am so, so glad Mr Foster is dead, and I think (I hope) that Eloise thinks that is all I am. I told her the truth, just not the whole truth. I really would like to thank the soldier who killed Mr Foster. But I also wish I was not constantly so scared.

With love

Agatha Stanbury

_

Diary of Ira Waterhouse, December 1926 - October 1927

Related topics: Ira Waterhouse, Agatha Stanbury, Eloise Stanbury, Pet Liberation History, World Pet History, 1920s Britain, Social History, British Diaries

Transcribed by Calixte Văduva, Assistant Archivist at Rising Sun Bay Archive, Rising Sun Bay, ON

Wednesday, December 8th, 1926

Not content with having a London office, the WRU are now building a large training centre nearby. It's too close. Far too close. The numbers of inspectors and recapture officers are increasing daily it seems like now work has started, and my girls haven't left the house for days. Even when they do, they come back spooked, especially Eloise. If she was a cat, her hair would stand on end constantly.

The supporters of this new 'pet' class claim that it's entirely voluntary. Maybe for some it is. Maybe they really believe that. But if you're signing a lifetime contract, and being given a drug that's supposed to induce amnesia, making you more compliant and reliant on your owners, I'm not sure that it counts.

It is not always voluntary, anyway. A few weeks ago, Agatha told me her story of being kidnapped into it. How she tried to show an inspector her lack of a seller's mark and number, and he had her tattooed for a bribe. There must be others like her. As bad as the pet trade is, it feels even worse without even the pretence of volunteering.

We need to move. We are so close to the training centre, and one day our house is sure to be inspected. The girls will certainly be taken and killed, with no regard to even Agatha's kidnapping (I have my suspicions about her upbringing but I cannot find any living relatives in the society pages). And I won't come out of it well either.

I have been thinking of starting a boarding house. There must be others like my girls in need of a kind hand and an escape from the wretched pet system. I had to stop giving Agatha cleaning chores because she'd tremble in fear until I declared the house spotless, and Eloise sometimes stays in one spot for hours, forgetting that she is allowed and able to move. Even, maybe especially, if she's uncomfortable. They are both scarred, inside and out, and I'm sure there are others who could use a safe place to stay, at the very least.

I haven't brought my idea up to either of the girls yet, although I feel certain that neither would object to it. They're both kind people, although Eloise wouldn't like me calling her that. She gets prickly when anyone except Agatha says nice things about her.

If Eloise was an animal, she would definitely be a cat.

Ira Waterhouse

[loveyourlovelysoul]

I recently started journaling, just keeping a digital diary for a month how and ever since she passed I've turned my 'dear diary' entries to 'dear mom' to dedicate all my thoughts at the end of the day to her, like we used to talk about everything. I tell her all I'm feeling and hope she knows she can rest now. I guess i just wanted to vent about it. Thanks for reading 💗 hopefully i can find ways to get adjusted to this grief.

Hey you :) Forgive me if I am only sharing this part of your ask.

First of all, thank you for sharing such a heart-breaking experience with me. I am very sorry about your loss and my deepest condolences go out to you and your family. It's indeed a tragedy, also seen how much she wanted to live, for y'all too.

I'm not religious either but I call myself spiritual. I personally found comfort in realizing (and experiencing myself) that the souls of those we love(d) do stay around us even when we cannot see their bodies anymore. And they do send us messages and signs, maybe through random images/shapes, words, sensations, smells but even more dreams. They can still connect with us, when we need it the most. But we don't have to overstress and search for signs constantly... which is something that may happen to some (not talking to you now, js in general). They will reach for us when it's time.

I understand your worry about her, and I get why you feel so lost and confused, and your thoughts are running so fast, having had to say goodbye to such an important figure for you so suddenly. It's earth-shattering to say the least. When I lost my dear ones I told myself "At least they're not suffering anymore", and it somewhat made me feel a bit better about them, leaving most of the remaining grief/closure on me, on the relationship we had. But probably their situation was different from your mom's one. Idk.

The only thing I think I can say to you now is: let these feelings flow inside of you freely. And keep journaling about them, about everything you need. Keep sharing your pain with those around you, if you can. Give yourself time, try to go as slow as you can and cry anytime you need. You'll find a new balance within about this new reality, it will happen at the right time. Right now, let confusion, pain and all your emotions be there, and take care of those feelings, accept and nurture them. Especially when things seem so hard, everything is so silent and heavy and memories and pain come back to you to shout at you. If you cannot deal with all that in a precise moment ofc take a break, be nice and compassionate with yourself always, but when you can, come back and give it all the attention it deserves. Give yourself and your emotions the attention y'all deserve. Hug yourself in any way you can. And ask for help: you don't have to deal with all that alone. It's a huge thing. And yeah, grieving is a very complex path, try to not rush through it or neglect your own emotions and needs. Stay by your side and also do things you like doing when you can.

I am sure your mom is listening to each of your letters, and will soon send you signs about her being okay and still around you to guide you.

I'm sending you a huge hug. You will make it, I'm sure. Take care of you<3

And if you need to vent again, here I am. My dms are open too.

[gamerkats]

Hey, besties. *heavy hearted sigh* Look....

If, in your reading travels, you happen to stumble upon some cis/het/idiotic toxic trope/shameless depthless book and you go, "Huh, that style kinda looks like gamerkats. Wait. Is... Is that gamerkats trickin' on the other side of Literature Street!?", just go on about your day, 'kay?

Don't tell your friends and try to drive traffic to our curb. Don't live your sleuth truth messaging us saying, "Found you!" Don't rally all the mutuals and stage a "don't write this garbage, you're better than that" intervention in the DMs. 👏 Move. 👏 Along. There's nothing to see at this crime scene.

Girls gotta eat, and that "toxic guy/mean girl I can't believe it's not butter plot twist" money spends.

Even though it's not what we enjoy writing, it's what a massive audience enjoys reading. No shame in their kink game. It makes them happy, and us a little cheddar.

We don't kink shame in this house!

Why are we saying this? Because a couple of you are scary good, and have seen through our street name, and wanna reveal that we're not "cis/het Heather" but actually two Queer cats in a trench coat. Don't. We're not even being polite and saying please. We're straight up telling you to mind your business.

If we wanted you to read what we were doing as a side hustle, we would have been advertising our stuff here. Obviously, we're trying to protect our safe spaces. You don't know the types of readers this stuff brings.... To the point that, we don't even have a socmed account for this shit. It's just a pen name and a quick write/publish into the digital void; where grammar dies on the literary battlefield, clutching originality's fallen corpse.

Trust us. You're not missing out on our stories. It's cheap, greasy fast food, when y'all are getting the home-cooked meals, ok?

We're sharing our Queerest of passions for free with y'all on AO3/Wattpad. Other than obvious fanfic stuff, everything is our IP. We could sell if we wanted. But we just don't like the feeling of paywalling our Queer rep when it's so desperately needed.

No shame to those who do paywall. Support those Queer writers!!!!! Sell your Queer works!!!! This is an "us" thing, not a commentary on Queer writing thing. We have our own pains and traumas and writing Queer fiction for free is how we chose to heal some of them.

The flip is, we also kinda need monies too.

To like, you know, live.

So we made a choice. Free the Queer, paywall the 'Bad Boy Fireman Cowboy Next Door Is Answering A Five Alarm Rodeo In My Bed'.

Surprise.

We're sellouts...like every other writer who wants to eat. We try really hard to mask our style, but it's apparently still there. So, if some found us, others will eventually. Don't make us change pen names and start from scratch.

Here's the exchange:

Y'all get the free real Batman version of us, who's raw, unfiltered, gritty, quirky, Queer as fuck, soul searching, human existence commentary, romance-nightmare diary entry, trauma coping, disability struggling, weirdly poetically surviving, bimbo nerd chic.

And the randos pay for the Bruce Wayne who's a mentally healthy, sassy, fiery feminine icon, living in a cabin by a lake, drinking wine and eating chocolate with her soulmate husband and two dogs.

We don't trick where we treat, ok? So don't snitch and ruin a girl's hustle. You don't ask us why we're there, and we won't ask you the same.

We both didn't see shit.

Ok. Kiss, kiss, love, love. Sorry we're not independently wealthy. Bye. 💋❤

Edit: 😂😂😂😂 Ok, so, by the powers of sheer whining from you beloveds, that you want smutty stuff without plot too, fine. You're right, that's only fair. We're already writing a lot, BUT how about this, all the cutting room floor and unpublished practice scenes will be scooped up, and posted under a fic title called, Miss Kitty's Fabulous Empornium or something. We'll even slap some reader x character, and villain x hero names to hide what books of ours they belong to. 😉

[wjbminecraft]

A screenshot of Steve's Quest, a commodore 64 game released in 1989, developed by an anonymous developer known only as HM Vocal.

The gameplay is very simple; tilting the joystick left and right makes the protagonist walk either left or right; tilting it up makes them jump, and tilting it down makes them crouch, with diagonal tilts jumping or crouch-walking in that direction.

The fire button, in C64 tradition, does different things based on what direction the stick is in. When neutral, it swings whatever item is in the player's hand; down changes the held item to one of four options (Crystal Sword, Iron Axe, Hellsteel Pickaxe, Stone Block), each of which does a different thing; the sword is used for fast attacks, the axe is used for breaking through trees, the pickaxe is used for tunnelling through mountains, and the block is used for creating walls and bridges; left and right increases the player's speed for a few seconds; and up does a larger-range melee attack.

There are five enemies. The three of them depicted above are Zombies (have a weak melee attack, using a small crystal knife), Skeleton Rangers (shoot arrows), and Aliens (turn red on contact accompanied by a low-pitched static hiss, and send the player back to the start if they don't get away fast enough); later levels introduce Nightmare Skeletons, which are dark-grey and carry swords, and the final boss, the Skeleton Lord, which is a flying Nightmare Skeleton with no visible arms, which attacks by shooting exploding skulls.

Now, this is not the best game; as you can tell, there's no HUD, so you have no idea how much health you have, though most enemies kill you in one hit anyway so that doesn't really matter. The fire+left/right ability can also be exploited to speed past most enemies, although it does sometimes stop working entirely if you do it too much. Also, the Skeleton Lord is ridiculously difficult, as its projectiles have the same properties as the Aliens; that is to say, if one hits you, all your progress is lost.

Now, about that developer. Hidden in the game's files are diary entries written by HM Vocal, which gives some interesting information about the game and its developer; apparently, she is a half-Japanese, half-Swedish developer who lived in Croydon, England. She based the game's protagonist on one of her fellow developers, and the Aliens were based on an injoke they shared.

I actually managed to get in contact with HM Vocal (and even met her, though she asked to remain anonymous), and she said I could upload a digital version the tape, so here's an emulatable version.

I put this in the tags and put an out-of-context Civvie clip instead of the actual game, but just in case this post gets big; no, this game isn't real. It's literally just a random image I made for fun.

HM Vocal also doesn't exist; it's literally just a "Miku made Minecraft" joke, which was originally going to also be a "Miku is trans" reference, but I don't want to have to research how gender-affirming care worked in the UK in 1989 since it'll probably be stressful.

Also if you want context for the clip, here.

[kaeru-kobold]

Kaeru Kobold-Dear Tumblr #1

I finally decided what I'm going to do with this Tumblr Account! Aside from the typical reposts of my art, self-promotion and such, I'm going to use it primarily as a live, public diary of my adventure in Vtubing, streaming and content creation, so here goes my very first entry. I think I'm going to try to do this daily, at the very least I'll make one weekly and on big events.

Dear Tumblr,

it's currently 1:22 AM, 12/11/23. I've been interested in becoming a Vtuber for roughly a year now, and have slowly done tons of research, watched hours of Vtuber content for fun and advice, built up art and assets, came up with a new Sona design, customized models, and have spent hours upon hours of work making art and assets related to that goal. Boy they really don't tell you how much work it is to be a streamer/content creator, especially when you're broke and doing it all by yourself. Speaking of broke... I'm currently out of work, money is very low, and I'm very stressed out. I made the mistake of leaving my old job for a new one that I hoped would be a good opportunity, but I had to leave on day one for moral and public health reasons I won't get into. I have put in dozens of applications the last two weeks and have mainly only received automated emails; I have done 2 Zoom interviews for two different jobs, and then was never given a call or email back. My old job won't take me back for reasons beyond me. I admitted this in an OkayDonuts stream a day or so ago, and he said similar issues motivated him to start streaming. This gives me so much hope that I can have the great community and career success that he has that I so desire-If he could do it, so can I! Right? I just really like making stuff, I've always liked learning new techniques both physical and digital; crochet, clay sculpting, wood carving, painting, graphic design, 3D modelling/Texturing, game design. I wasn't good at much as a kid, but art was my passion, and the best part was seeing how happy it made other people. I just want to make cool things that make people happy and create a community of similarly creative people to share our passions and bring more kindness and cool creations into the world. I don't want to be an uber rich Mr. Beast level celebrity, I just want to make enough that I don't need a menial job I suffer at. Simply making a decent living in this world off my art would be a blessing, it would be so much better for my mental health. Speaking of which, if you're reading this....did you know I take commissions? Please commission me, I hungy :'( But seriously, as of writing this, I have $43.20 in my bank account. My phone bill alone is $45. My partner and I have family support, so we'll get by ok, but the struggle and having to ask for help is really getting to me. On the bright side, since we should count our blessings- I have a really nice microphone since my partner tried streaming a couple years ago and is letting me use it whenever I need! I have a really good laptop from my college days that can run everything I need without getting TOO overwhelmed. I have a really good drawing tablet that I bought a couple years ago when I was doing a little better financially (It's much easier to save money when you're living with your parents and work 40 hours a week for $13/hr and your parents pay for everything) Losing my job may be a blessing in disguise because In my stress I have gone into a manic state and began going crazy getting my custom stream Overlays done, fully animated Stream Opening, BRB and Closing Screens, stinger transition animation, a functioning PNGTuber, and multiple drawings/animations for alerts/emotes/rewards/etc. and yes that includes things I didn't know I needed to be a Twitch Affiliate to even use...lol...I'm currently working on an animated lore video for my debut that I will also record a voice-over for. Lastly, a more recent thing-My partner found a gamer chair in the dumpster at our apartment last week after I had spent a couple months trying to find one-the cheapest ones on Facebook Marketplace in our area were like $80-and it's in near perfect condition, only a bit of scuff/rip on the seat and arm rests. How crazy is that? I gave it a good scrub-down and its good to go. I choose to take that as a sign from the universe that I'm on the right path. Wish me luck! With lots of love, Kaeru Kobold

[intheoverlap]

Paper World

Entry 1

Summary: blog purpose, safety rules, introduction to paper world, first interaction with paper world

The reason I'm making my diary digital is to circumvent, what I assume is, one of the key components of paper world.

Every part of paper world I have been able to find has been, well, created or printed on paper. Which is why I will ask any potential guest on this blog not to print out anything found here, and especially not paint or draw or write on paper about it. For safety's sake. Nothing against traditional art, I just want to be on the safe side.

My run ins with paper world started long before I even understood it existed, and paper world's interaction with the world will remain long after I'm gone. These are the only two things I am sure of.

A third thing I am almost sure of is, you will know, instinctively, if you come across paper world. You won't know-know it, you won't understand it, you may not have the words for it, but it's ever so different from being immersed in a book or imagining things. And no, I don't have carbon monoxide poisoning.

The first sign that you've encountered Paper World is; the story reads you, as much as you read it.

That sounds dumb typed out like that. You'll just have to know. There's this eerie sense that, you are the story, the characters see you, hear you, maybe you can even smell the flowers on the page.

The second sign is; immersion. Beyond a daydream, beyond getting engrossed in the story. For a moment, all that existed WAS the story. It wasn't a story. It was life. It was the moment. If you lived in the moment, the moment was Paper World, and when you get back it lingers. Not as a thought. As a sensation. You might even see the imprint of it, a hint of something at the corners of your eye, or, if you're unlucky, yourself on the paper.

That happened to me once. I didn't understand at the time, more than that I never wanted to read that book again. I wasn't in middle school yet, though I could read, and my grandpa took me to the second hand shop in town. I could pick anything I wanted under 50 sek. Book worm as I was, I padded over to the older children's section where they had nonfiction about animals.

Something else caught my eye, though.

With a red back as though it was stolen from a library, it sat on the lowest shelf, standing taller than the other books. It didn't belong. Too tall, the wrong genre, no alphabetical sorting. No price tag. 0 was less than 50 and that was all that mattered to me. I picked it up and grandpa haggled the price to 20 sek.

I read it on the school bus.

The text was simple enough for a 1st grader to follow, though I must've been in 3rd already. Watercolour illustrations covered every page. A family of three, mother, baby and father, as plain as can be. What we'd call a "Svensson-Svensson" if that tells you anything. Think, average white middle class family. Only something felt off.

When a house is pristine like an Ikea catalogue it doesn't feel like anyone lives there. That's how the book felt.

The bus ride passed me by. I chalked it up to my wild imagination and the high quality of the book, though I no longer consider that the truth. Because. At my stop. Right before I got off, farther down the line of kids who were going to the same school, was a family of three. Mother, child, and father. Straight from my book.

I could've been wrong. To make sure I opened the book, to a random page, somewhere in the middle, and what I saw wasn't the family staring back at me. It was their house seen through the window of my own room. My own pyjamas laid on the bed.

I closed the book.

At school I taped it shut and covered the whole front and back with markers. When I got home my neighbour's house looked just the same as usual, and it relieved me, but I still check my window sometimes just in case.

That started my collection. I have found 14 samples of this phenomenon I call paper world.

At first I thought they were separate works. They all told different stories in different styles by different authors. Some were even handmade watercolour animations. Not even books!

The similarities popped up the more I studied them. (I'm very very careful not to read a full book from front to back.) Characters would overlap. Backgrounds would show up in different works, by name or appearance or even vaguely hinted at on a map. No, I can't 100% confirm a comic panel is the same place as a swamp on a fantasy map, yes, I'm still 100% sure it is. You'll have to take my word for it.

It is my theory that paper world actually is a world jus like our own, though bound by completely different rules.

These books don't technically exist. Searching for works by the same author yields nothing online, even as I have a trilogy from a certain W. A. Gallenbury.

To anyone with experience of paper world, PLEASE send in your stories. DMs or ask box or submission doesn't matter. All I ask is that you under no circumstances re-read or re-watch anything with ties to paper world. No links to videos should be posted for anyone to see, though short clips that don't contain the whole story might be safe to watch. DM if you're unsure.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

The Author of this diary

[redcherryyyy]

How to Choose the Best Diary for Office Use

In today’s fast-paced professional world, staying organized is essential to achieving productivity and meeting deadlines. One tool that can help you manage your time, tasks, and goals effectively is a diary for office use. With so many options available, selecting the best diary that suits your professional needs can be overwhelming. This guide will walk you through the key factors to consider when choosing the perfect diary for office use to help streamline your workday and boost your efficiency.

Why You Need a Diary for Office Use

While digital planners and apps are popular, there’s something uniquely effective about a physical diary for office use. Having a dedicated space to jot down tasks, meetings, and deadlines can significantly improve focus and organization. A diary for office use also provides a distraction-free environment—there are no notifications or tempting apps to pull your attention away from your tasks.Key Features to Look for in a Diary for Office Use

When choosing the right diary for office use, it’s essential to consider your personal preferences and work requirements. Here are the primary features you should evaluate to ensure you select the best option:

1. Size and Portability

The size of your diary plays a crucial role in how convenient it is for daily office use. A bulky, oversized diary may be inconvenient to carry around, while a compact one might lack the necessary space for detailed entries. When choosing a diary for office use, consider where and how you plan to use it.

Small or Pocket Size (A6): Ideal for people who need a diary on the go. It’s lightweight and easy to slip into a bag or pocket but may have limited space for notes.

Medium Size (A5): The most popular size for office diaries, offering a balance between portability and writing space. It’s large enough to jot down meeting notes or to-do lists but compact enough to fit into a briefcase or laptop bag.

Large Size (A4): Best for detailed planners who need extra room for comprehensive notes and scheduling. However, it might be more cumbersome to carry.

2. Layout and Format

The layout of a diary for office use is crucial to how effective it is in organizing your tasks. Depending on your work style, different formats will offer varying levels of functionality:

Daily Layout: Provides a full page or section for each day, making it ideal for people who have packed schedules and need to capture detailed information about meetings, tasks, and appointments.

Weekly Layout: Offers an overview of the entire week on one or two pages, allowing for better planning and tracking of longer-term tasks.

Monthly Layout: Useful for professionals who prefer to view all upcoming deadlines and important events in a single glance. A monthly format is excellent for setting goals and tracking progress over time.

Choosing a layout that aligns with how you prefer to organize your time will make your diary for office more functional.

3. Paper Quality

When using a diary every day, the quality of the paper matters more than you might think. Poor-quality paper can result in ink bleed-through, making it difficult to read or write clearly. If you often write with pens or markers, consider the following paper options:

Standard Paper (70-80 GSM): Suitable for general use with pens or pencils. If you’re not using markers or fountain pens, this is a cost-effective and reliable choice.

Premium Paper (90-120 GSM): Thicker and smoother, this is perfect for those who want a luxurious feel and use pens with heavier ink flow. It’s ideal for avoiding ink bleeding and smudging. For a professional setting, opting for premium-quality paper can enhance your writing experience and ensure your diary looks neat and polished.

4. Binding Style

The binding style of your diary for office affects its durability and ease of use. The most common types include:

Spiral Binding: Allows the diary to lay flat on your desk, making it easier to write on both sides of the page. It’s a good choice for those who need flexibility when flipping through pages.

Hardcover Binding: Provides durability and a professional appearance. A hardcover diary is ideal for daily office use, especially if you’ll be carrying it in a bag, as it can withstand wear and tear.

Softcover Binding: Offers flexibility and is generally lighter. While it might not be as durable as a hardcover option, it’s easier to carry and perfect for those who prefer a more casual style.

5. Additional Features

A well-designed diary for office use often includes extra features that can add value to your productivity:

Bookmark Ribbon: Helps you easily find the current date or your most recent notes without flipping through multiple pages.

Pen Holder: Ensures that you always have a pen handy when you need to make quick notes.

Pockets: Internal pockets provide space to store important documents, business cards, or receipts.

Tabs or Dividers: These make it easier to organize your diary and quickly find specific sections or dates.

If you’re someone who likes to keep everything in one place, these extra features can enhance the functionality of your diary for office use.

Choosing the Best Style for Your Work

The type of work you do and your personal preferences should guide your final decision when choosing the best diary for office use. Here are some diary styles suited for different types of professionals:

Minimalist Diaries: Ideal for professionals who prefer simplicity and functionality. These diaries often have clean, straightforward designs with no excessive embellishments. Minimalist diaries focus on providing ample space for writing, making them perfect for someone who needs an efficient, clutter-free tool.

Creative Diaries: If you enjoy incorporating creativity into your workday, look for a diary for office that includes areas for brainstorming or sketches. Creative diaries may also feature inspiring quotes or illustrations, helping to keep your creative juices flowing.

Professional Diaries: For those working in a corporate or business setting, a sleek and professional diary for office is the way to go. Look for diaries with leather or faux leather covers, elegant designs, and premium paper for a polished look.

Conclusion

Choosing the best diary for office use can significantly impact your productivity and organization. Consider the size, layout, paper quality, binding style, and additional features to find a diary that suits your needs. Whether you prefer a structured daily planner or a more flexible weekly layout, the right diary will keep you on track and help you achieve your work goals with ease.

So, invest in a quality diary for office use that reflects your personal style and enhances your productivity—it’s one of the best tools you can add to your workday!

[unhingedwomandiaries]

Ugh. Here I am, once again confronting the digital ghost of x through LinkedIn's relentless "People You May Know" feature. If you recall my previous existential spiral—and really, how could you forget?—X was the improbably named spectre from my high school past who had ascended to the lofty heights of Head of Packaging at some candy conglomerate. A job title so mundane it borders on the surreal, like being the Chief Officer of Cardboard Box Folding or the Executive Vice President of Gumball Sphericity.

I had sworn off any further high school reconnections, vowing to let the past remain an undisturbed tomb of awkward memories and unrealized potential. But here's the thing about the past: it's like a bad pop song from the '90s. Just when you think you've escaped it, some cosmic DJ decides to put it back into heavy rotation.

Against every better judgment I've cultivated over the years—which, admittedly, isn't saying much—I actually reached out to x. What followed was less a conversation and more a descent into a nightmare of late-stage capitalism, dressed up in the cheery pastels of a Miami summer.

X, in a move that surprised absolutely no one except perhaps my own misplaced optimism, didn't accept my friend request. But he did send a message, probably out of some misguided sense of obligation to our shared history of occupying the same zip code for twelve years. The job he mentioned was for a packaging scientist—because apparently, that's a thing that exists in our reality. It's based in Miami, a city known for its reasonable cost of living in the same way that Siberia is known for its tropical beaches.

Let's break down this financial fever dream, shall we? The salary—if you can call it that without irony dripping from your lips—is $35,000 before tax. After Uncle Sam takes his cut, you're left with $29,000. That's $2,416.67 per month, a sum that would make even the most ascetic monk question their vows of poverty.

Now, let's talk about rent in Miami. According to Zoopla—a website that I'm pretty sure exists solely to crush dreams and induce panic attacks—the average rent is $2,538. So right off the bat, we're in the red. But let's be optimistic and say we find a one-bedroom for $1,745. We're still left with a whopping $671.67 for... everything else.

Health insurance? That'll be $700 per month, plus an extra $100 for each family member you foolishly decide to keep alive. Car insurance for a used Nissan Leaf—because even in financial ruin, we're trying to save the planet—is another $300 per month.

At this point, you're not just broke; you're pioneering new frontiers of debt. You're so far in the red, you're approaching infrared. It's the kind of financial situation that makes you wonder if there's a secret underground economy in Miami based on recycling discarded Cuban coffee cups or selling black market sunscreen.

The sheer absurdity of this offer made me question everything. Is this what the American Dream has become? A nightmare where you work full-time testing food packaging, only to live in a cardboard box made from the very packages you tested?

This whole exercise in futility reminded me why I left high school behind. It's not just the memories of bad haircuts and worse fashion choices—it's the lingering specters of people like x, who emerge from the mists of the past to offer you a glimpse into an alternate reality where you're perpetually broke and subsisting on the very candy you're paid to package.

I'm done. Again. For real this time. I'm never reaching out to anyone from high school again. The past isn't just a foreign country; it's a dystopian regime where the currency is nostalgia and the chief export is disappointment. I'll stick to my diary entries and my vague sense of superiority, thank you very much. At least here, in the echo chamber of my own thoughts, I don't have to confront the grim realities of candy packaging economics or the crushing weight of unfulfilled potential.

In the end, maybe the real lesson is this: sometimes, the people you may know are the people you're better off not knowing at all. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go delete my LinkedIn account and possibly fake my own death. It seems like the only reasonable response to this whole debacle.

[digitalethnography]

Diary Studies vs. Interviews: Which Method is Right for Your Research?

Diary studies and interviews are two widely used approaches that allow researchers to explore consumer behaviors, experiences, and emotions. However, deciding which method is best suited to your research goals is often a nuanced process, requiring a solid understanding of how each method works.

In this article, we will explore the differences between diary studies and interviews, comparing their advantages and disadvantages so you are better equipped to select the right approach for your specific research needs.

What are Diary Studies?

Diary studies are a longitudinal research method that involves participants documenting their experiences, thoughts, and behaviors over a set period. Participants are asked to keep a diary or log, either written or digital, where they record specific details about their everyday activities, interactions, and emotions as they occur in real-time.

How Diary Studies Work Diary studies typically follow a structured or semi-structured format, where participants are provided with a set of instructions or prompts to guide their entries. Researchers might ask participants to log activities such as:

How they interact with a product or service

Emotional responses to particular events or experiences Decisions they make in specific contexts Diary studies can span days, weeks, or even months, depending on the research objectives. The ongoing nature of diary entries allows researchers to capture authentic, in-the-moment data, minimizing recall bias since participants are documenting events as they unfold.

What are Interviews?

Interviews, in contrast, are direct, real-time conversations between researchers and participants. In-depth interviews, a cornerstone of qualitative research, are aimed at understanding participants’ thoughts, feelings, and perspectives on particular topics or experiences. Interviews can be structured (following a set list of questions), semi-structured (using flexible guidelines), or unstructured (more conversational).

How Interviews Work Researchers typically schedule interviews at a convenient time for participants, lasting anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours, depending on the depth of inquiry. Questions are often open-ended, allowing participants to provide detailed responses and explore topics in depth.

Read complete blog here - https://ethosapp.com/blog/diary-studies-vs-interviews-which-method-is-right-for-your-research/