The optional notebook

Letter: ‘I Haven’t Had a New Idea in a Year. How Do I Think Again?’

January is the month of taking on others’ plans—sobriety plans, fitness plans, and, for writers, the determination to finally pin down that writing plan for the year.

My offering to you today comes from years now of my own practice. I have fallen on and off the train of doing it myself. I have not be faithful, trying out five-year journals and attractive blank notebooks from Muji between books. Yet, I keep coming back to it. It do...