Welcome to spooky season! The lattes are pumpkin spice, there’s a nip in the air (here in London it’s pouring)—tweed jackets are on, scarves are adorned, and boots are back.

I love autumn; call me basic, but there’s something about leaves changing colours and nights becoming longer that feels like renewal. Maybe it’s because it’s back-to-school time, and cute stationery is everywhere; maybe it’s that I’m forcing myself to look towards something other than holidays in the sun. I think about when to start a bullet journal, and I realize: autumn is the perfect season to begin a bullet journal.

What is a bullet journal?

Technically, a bullet journal refers to any journal that has the “bullet” method; Ryder Carroll’s way of tracking past and present through a series of symbols in a scheduled diary.

In practice, what this has grown into is a huge community of artists—painters, sketchers, doodlers—who have chosen to track their year the most creative way they can, in journals that are dotted in grid formation. Some artists have even made careers out of sharing their bullet journal journeys—like AmandaRachLee, who documents her spreads on Youtube. The term “bujo” (a shorthand of “bullet journal”) on Instagram or Pinterest will result in thousands of images:

The idea is that, in a single notebook, you can track your year, singling out whatever is important to you in a way that no pre-made notebook can. You can use it as a diary or journal; you can use it as a scrapbook, saving bits and pieces like concert tickets and paper trinket. People track time (days, weeks, months; appointments, dates, meetings, anniversaries, etc.) as well as milestones. Goals get their own pages, and progress is tracked creatively.

For example: say your goal is to become a famous singer, and your goal for the next year is to practise, get really good, and start playing local gigs. You might build pages in your bullet journal to track:

-The money you’ve saved for renting a recording studio

-A list of local bars and clubs that have open mic nights

-Your social media outreach, to see how far your music can be shared

-Band practices and vocal lessons

Not everyone has big ambitions, though – some people want something simpler. If you want to bullet journal for mental health, for example, you might try using a mood tracker, to track your mental health daily; you might make pages to write out mindfulness or breathing exercises; or you might have a page dedicated to bullet journalling for gratitude.

My goals for next year are to travel more, and to sew more clothes. Pages I’m planning include a mini-calendar where I can plan days off work, and a page outlining the repairs I’d like to make to torn sweaters and clothing. I’m also considering how I could bujo the patterns I’ve attempted to recreate in the coming year.

These are things that might be hard to see progress on day by day—but at the end of the year, you’ll be able to look back and see how far you’ve come.

Bullet Journals: Where To Start?

 It’s surprisingly easy to start a bullet journal. First, you’ll need materials:

A dotted notepad. Which bullet journal is the best? It’s hard to say, but I think beginners should consider the Leuchtturm1917 books; they’re a standard A5 size, durable, and have 251 pages (so there’s plenty of space for mistakes!). I used these until I started working with inkier markers and paint; the pages are great but they’re thin, so I now use the Archer & Olive A5 dotted notebooks; they’re expensive, but in my opinion, worth it!

A pencil, eraser, and ruler. You’re going to be drawing a lot of lines, and making mistakes; all of these are musts!

Pens & markers. If you’re going to pursue bullet journalling, might as well go all-out and have some fun; get a set of bright, colourful markers that will get you excited about the layouts you’ll make!

Optional but a lot of fun: Stickers and Washi tape. If you’re starting out, or if (like me) you’re not always the best at drawing, patterned tape and pre-made stickers can be a fun way to spice up your layouts.

And that’s it! You can, of course, buy a ton of materials like fancy papers to layer on top; magazine clippings of words or images; or even stamps and scalpels. But truthfully, all you need is the basics to start.

Why is this the best season to start a bullet journal?

I like to start a bullet journal at the beginning of the year, so that every book in my cupboard represents a year of my life. Usually, I’ve waited until November or Christmas to get my stuff together and sit down with a notebook, plan my year.

But let me tell you, the holidays take everything out of me. There’s a bit of excitement for the new year, of course; but between catching up with friends, rich food, constant parties (it’s a rough life!), in-fighting with family, and anxiety over present-getting, I find the end of the year isn’t the best time to calmly ask myself, where do I want to be a year from now? What goal would make me happy to pursue? If in one year, I was celebrating something I spent the next year working towards, what would that be?

If I wait until December to ask myself those questions—when I’m either in party mode or exhausted, the way I find the holiday season to be—then those answers are very different to the rest of my year. This past year, I left 10 pages at the front of my bullet journal blank, thinking that I’d want to fill out specific goals. I wrote things as titles like “HOSTING” and “READING”….and never ended up making actual goals under these titles. It’s wasted space for this year.

But when I think about the headspace I’m in as the weather and leaves change, I’m bursting with ideas of things I’d like to get better at. I could track the days I sew; I could see how long it would take me to save for a serger. If you’re thinking about getting into bullet journalling, buying the materials now and then getting comfortable using them for 3 months is ideal!

Would you try bullet journalling? If you’re unsure, what do you think is the biggest hurdle you need to get past to start enjoying it? Let me know in the comments!