— Welcome to THE IAJW
Join a Global Community of Journal Writers
You already journal. Now imagine what’s possible when you go deeper with a community that gets the power of journaling!
- Go further with journaling
- Be inspired to write in new ways
- Connect with other journal writers
- Come home to yourself
$19/month or $190/year · Prices in USD · Cancel anytime.
A place to be inspired. A place to belong.
This community is for you if…
You want a more consistent, meaningful journaling practice.
You are a coach, therapist, or helper using journaling.
You long to connect with like-hearted writers.
You crave clarity, calm, and self-connection.
You want inspiration, growth, and reflection in your life.
— A Home for Journal Writers
Our IAJW Journaling Community Brings People Together to write, grow and be inspired!
The IAJW is the world’s home for journal writers. It’s a place to deepen your practice and discover new ways to write, grow and flourish both on and off the page.
With expert guidance, fresh inspiration and a warm global community of people who understand why journaling matters, you will love being part of the IAJW.
While we meet online, you will feel like you are gathered around the table with fellow journal writers – pen in hand, heart to heart.
Whether you quietly write alone or thrive journaling inspired in community, there’s something meaningful here for you!
We meet virtually and it is just like we are sitting around a table together doing what we love!
“Now I own my story. IAJW is my second home and it is the best gift I ever gave myself.” – Lyn Smith
Where journal writers gather to write, reflect and grow.
— Why Journal?
Journaling changes lives.
There are many benefits of journaling and the IAJW community exists to help you experience every one of them in your own life.
Gain Depth
Move beyond surface-level entries and learn how to write more deeply and authentically. Journaling helps you access what’s truly going on beneath the surface of your everyday life.
Get Fresh Ideas
Break out of your journaling rut. With guided prompts, themed workshops, and a community full of creative energy, you’ll never run out of new directions to explore on the page.
Write Creatively
Learn how to turn your journal entries into life stories. Journaling is a powerful gateway to creative self-expression. Your journal pages hold more richness and meaning than you may realize.
Increase Self-Awareness
Know and grow yourself through journaling. Regular reflective writing builds a deeper relationship with
who you truly are including your values, your patterns, and what matters most to you.
Discover New Insights
Gain clarity and confidence in your life decisions. The page is one of the most powerful thinking tools you
have. Journaling helps you see your situation from a fresh perspective.
Improve Your Health
Nourish your emotional, physical, and mental wellbeing. Journaling is one of the most accessible and
evidence-supported tools for managing stress, processing emotion, and building resilience.
What You Get as an IAJW Member
Your Membership Includes Everything You Need to Journal Your Best Life
Live Monthly Member Events & Exclusive Inspiration
— Director iajw.org
Meet
Lynda Monk,
MSW, RSW, CPCC
Journaling has carried me through the hardest chapters of my life including grief, stress, uncertainty, and my deeply personal journey as an adoptee reuniting with my birth family, which I wrote about in my latest book, The Adoptee’s Guide to Healing, Wholeness & Growth (2026). It has also made me a better parent, partner, and professional. I can’t think of a single area of my life it hasn’t touched.
As a Registered Social Worker, Certified Coach, co-editor and author of multiple books on journaling, and Director of the IAJW, I bring over 30 years of lived and professional experience to this community.
— The Community Heartbeat
A rhythm you can always return to.
The communities that stay alive have one thing in common: a predictable, welcoming rhythm people can count on. Inside IAJW, your writing practice has a home it can come back to over and over again!
Weekly — Prompts and Inspiration
Deepen your journaling with writing prompts and regular inspiration in our journaling community. Show up, settle in, write. No pressure, just a creative place to land.
Monthly — Live Member Events
With our Writing Alone Together Circles, JournalTalk guest expert interviews, and the Journal Lounge you can get more out of your journaling practice. There’s something fresh every month.
Annually — World Journaling Day
The global celebration at the heart of everything IAJW stands for. Hosted by the community, for the world.
— From Our Members
Voices from the IAJW Community
I am so thankful that you Lynda, and IAJW, have become part of my … journey — I can’t wait to see what you and IAJW and I discover together this year.
- Tammy Fyten
Being a member of the IAJW community has given me a sense of belonging. … Lynda has created a safe place where I have been able to deepen the place inside of me where power and story intersect. … I feel seen, known and accepted.
- Gail Braverman
Joining the IAJW was the catalyst for me finding my voice, and being able to learn to write through my challenging past to a place of healing and clarity. … Now I own my story. IAJW is my second home and the best gift I ever gave myself.
- Lyn Smith
I love that I can always count on all the warmth, shared ideas and camaraderie of the IAJW community. … I also appreciate the courses, tools, and spontaneous writing prompts all of which enhance my journaling, and broaden my point of view.
- Cheryl Finley Goggins
While journaling has been such an important part of my life since 1974, it was pretty much a solitary journey … Now I am loving being part of a community of like-minded individuals … It has opened new doors for me, and I am immensely grateful.
- Merle R. Saferstein
I have journaled for many years, but I had no idea how journaling could be used to enhance my life through prompts and by setting intentions in what I write. … It is always exciting to see the group when we gather every month.
- Kevin Schultz
If you like writing in a journal you will like it here.
- Lucinda Swearingen
I am thrilled to be part of such a supportive group of writers who understand the value of journaling, are devoted to learning more about themselves and the world … and happily share their insights with the rest of us.
- Vicky DeCoster
You offer so much at IAJW … I feel like I sit down at a huge harvest table and feast on a very nourishing meal!!
- Stephanie Needham
Laughter, tears, heartache, and joy are the emotions shared as part of the IAJW community. … As a lifelong journal writer, I was amazed to discover that sharing the experience with others opened a whole new world for me.
- Richard Bliss
— Membership
Deepen Your Journaling Practice All Year Long.
For less than the price of a coffee a week, you are making an investment in your writing, your well-being, and living a self-expressed life! That’s not just good value, it’s a gift to yourself.
Secure checkout
Join from anywhere in the world
You’re in good company
with journal writers worldwide
— The Invitation
If you’ve been looking for a place where your writing is celebrated —
We would love to welcome you. The IAJW community is a warm, invitational space for people who believe in the power of writing for healing, insight, and personal growth.
Together, we are building the global home for journal writers. And we’d love for you to be part of it.
$19/month or $190/year · Cancel anytime.
— FAQs
Here are some things you might be wondering about…