Journaling Your Life - Writing Your Story

When one thinks of writing their life's story, it can seem a daunting task and ask these questions. Who would want to know about my life? Why should I do it? Does it really matter? Where do I start? What do I write about?

LDS Journaling is a website that has the philosphy that journaling should be easy, convenient, and allow one to view their progress through life and reflect on the past. LDS Journaling is not just for LDS church members. It is open to anyone who would like to begin writing a life history and journal.

The mastermind behind the website, Nick Jones, resides in Nevada. I admit that I was very wary about placing my journal on line so I called the company to ask a few questions. Nick Jones called me the following day and was gracious to answer a few of my questions. LDS Journaling was launched March 3, 2008 and at the time of the interview which was about 2-3 weeks ago, the site already had over 4000 users. The users come from all walks of life including the international communities including Russia, Brazil and the United States. I was concerned about various topics including the security of journal entries including who would own the information, why they needed my birth date, the difference between the free and Gold accounts, and many other questions. I will attempt to answer these questions for you below.

1) Why do you need my birth date? The site features a section titled "All About Me" which includes questions in the following categories, person, family, spiritual, the world around me, accomplishments, growing up, marriage, education, challenges, and parenthood. The questions included in each of the categories will depend upon the age of the person journaling, for example, a question about marriage would not necessarily be appropriate for a teenager that is 13 years old.

2) What is the difference between the fee and Gold accounts? The difference between the two accounts includes the size of storage capabilities with the Gold account being larger of 2 Gigabytes. The standard account has 100 MB of storage. If you remain on the standard plan for LDSJournal, you will not be forced to upgrade to the Gold account, but if you want to continue journaling, you will need to remove some of the entries or footnotes. The Gold account will also include optional DVD Archival, optional printing and binding services, video journaling, journal stationery, and journal-To-PDF capabilities.

3) What is the difference between this site and a blog? A blog is generally viewable to anyone on the internet unless you have set up a the blog to be password protected. Most blogs do not to to the lengths to protect privacy like LDSJournals. The website is secure and uses encryption of the journal entries similar to many investment and bank accounts. You are required to select a security photo in addition to a username and password.

4) What will happen to my account if I don't journal everyday? The answer to that is nothing at the moment. LDSJournal encourages you to journal every day, recording your thoughts and experiences as it will provide a record of your life for your progenitors.

5) What is the advantage of journaling online versus journaling on ones own computer? Mr. Jones said that the site is more private and is backed up nightly, it is easily accessible from anywhere there is an internet connection, and you can also journal with your mobile telephone using the MMS technology. The ability to journal with your mobile phone will allow you to send pictures to your journal as well.

6) Is LDSJournal associated to the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints? The answer is no. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the church in any way. The site does subscribe to the policies, procedures, and standards put forth by the church.

If you like to journal or have wanted to begin, you might want to check out LDSJournal. If you would like to read more about the site, click LDSJournal Help.