Solo Journaling: Give Your RPG Character a Voice
A journal is the difference between a pile of die rolls and a story. A few sentences after each scene give your character a voice and give you a record to read back.
Keep it short
Three or four sentences per entry is enough. Write in your character's voice, and describe what they felt, not just what happened. A short entry keeps the game moving and makes the habit easy to keep.
Use prompts
When you are stuck, roll on a journal prompt table. There are prompts for travel, after a fight, downtime, relationships, doubt and discovery. Each one gives you a question to answer in character.
Track what matters
Write down names, debts, promises and unfinished business. These are the seeds of your next scenes. When you are not sure what to play next, read the last few entries and look for a thread to pull.
Let your character change
A journal is a good place to notice growth. If your character was brave at the start and cautious now, write about why. Over time you will find that the best parts of your story are the ones you wrote down.