Complete Features Guide

Daily Entries: The Heart of Your Journal

Your daily entry is where your thoughts, experiences, and memories come to life. Here's how to make the most of this core feature:

Getting Started with Daily Entries

• Access your entry: Click "Today" in the navigation or visit any date using the calendar navigation
• Write freely: There's no character limit - pour your heart out or keep it brief
• Auto-save: Your entries are automatically saved as you type, so you never lose your thoughts
• Seamless experience: Start writing, get interrupted, and come back later - your words will be exactly where you left them
• Edit anytime: You can return to any past entry and update it

Writing Prompts for Daily Entries

Not sure what to write? Try these prompts to get started:

• What was the highlight of your day?
• What made you laugh today?
• What are you grateful for right now?
• What's on your mind that you need to process?
• What did you learn today?
• How are you feeling, and why?

Best Practices

• Write at the same time each day to build a habit
• Don't worry about perfect grammar or spelling
• Include specific details that will help you remember later
• Write about both the big moments and the small, everyday joys

Highlights: Capture Your Day's Essence

The highlight field is your daily summary - a quick way to capture the most important thing about your day.

How to Use Highlights

• Keep it brief: One sentence or phrase that sums up your day
• Be specific: "Had coffee with Sarah" is better than "Saw a friend"
• Include emotions: "Felt accomplished after finishing the project"
• Use keywords: This helps with future searches

Highlight Examples

• "First day at new job - nervous but excited"
• "Perfect weather for a picnic in the park"
• "Finally finished reading that book I started months ago"
• "Kids made me breakfast in bed - felt so loved"
• "Struggled with anxiety today, but managed to get through it"

Why Highlights Matter

Highlights serve as quick memory triggers. When you look back at your journal, these brief summaries help you instantly recall what made each day special or significant.

Labels: Organize Your Memories

Labels are powerful organizational tools that help you categorize and find your entries quickly. Think of them as tags that connect related memories across time.

Creating Effective Labels

Labels work best when they're meaningful and consistent. Here are some label categories to consider:

People Labels

• Family: "Mom", "Dad", "Kids", "Grandma"
• Friends: "Sarah", "Book Club", "College Friends"
• Work: "Team Meeting", "Boss", "Client"

Activity Labels

• Hobbies: "Reading", "Cooking", "Gardening", "Photography"
• Exercise: "Running", "Yoga", "Gym", "Hiking"
• Travel: "Vacation", "Weekend Trip", "Business Travel"

Emotional Labels

• Moods: "Happy", "Stressed", "Grateful", "Anxious"
• Milestones: "Achievement", "Breakthrough", "Challenge"
• Health: "Sick", "Recovery", "Wellness"

Place Labels

• Locations: "Home", "Work", "Coffee Shop", "Park"
• Events: "Concert", "Restaurant", "Museum", "Beach"

How to Use Labels Effectively

• Be consistent: Use the same label names across entries
• Don't over-label: 2-3 labels per entry is usually perfect
• Use descriptive names: "Weekend Trip" is better than "Trip"
• Add descriptions: Help yourself remember what each label is for

Finding Labeled Entries

Once you've created labels, you can:

• Click on any label to see all entries with that label
• Use the labels page to manage and view all your labels
• Combine labels with date navigation to find specific memories

Advanced Label Strategies

• Project tracking: Create labels for ongoing projects or goals
• Habit tracking: Label entries when you practice specific habits
• Relationship tracking: Use people labels to see patterns in your relationships
• Mood tracking: Use emotional labels to identify patterns in your wellbeing

Favourites: Mark Your Special Days

Favourites help you quickly identify and return to your most meaningful entries. This feature is available to Plus and Pro subscribers.

When to Use Favourites

• Milestone days: Birthdays, anniversaries, graduations
• Breakthrough moments: Personal achievements, important decisions
• Beautiful memories: Perfect days, special moments with loved ones
• Learning moments: Days when you gained important insights
• Gratitude days: Days when you felt particularly blessed

Managing Your Favourites

• Access all your favourites from the main navigation
• Use favourites to create a "best of" collection of your memories
• Unfavourite entries if they no longer feel special
• Combine favourites with labels for powerful memory organization

Favourites vs. Labels

Use both features together for maximum organization:

• Favourites: Mark the most special days across all categories
• Labels: Organize entries by theme, person, or activity
• Together: A favourited entry with labels becomes easily findable and meaningful

Image Uploads: Visualize Your Memories

Images bring your entries to life and help preserve visual memories alongside your written thoughts.

Image Upload Guidelines

• Lite users: No image uploads (upgrade to Plus for 1 image per entry)
• Plus users: 1 image per entry
• Pro users: Unlimited images per entry
• Supported formats: PNG, JPEG, JPG

What to Upload

• Daily moments: Your morning coffee, a beautiful sunset, your workspace
• Special occasions: Birthday celebrations, achievements, gatherings
• Progress tracking: Before/after photos, project milestones
• Inspiration: Art, quotes, beautiful places
• Memories: People, places, experiences you want to remember

Image Best Practices

• Upload images that enhance your written entry
• Don't worry about perfect photography - authentic moments are best
• Use images to complement your highlights and labels
• Consider uploading images even for ordinary days - they become precious over time

Managing Your Images

• Images are automatically optimized for web viewing
• You can delete images from entries if needed
• Images are securely stored and encrypted
• Access your images anytime by visiting the original entry

Navigation & Search: Find Your Memories

Forever Diary offers multiple ways to navigate through your journal and find specific entries.

Date Navigation

• Calendar picker: Click the calendar icon to jump to any date
• Week view: See the previous 3 and next 3 days
• Year navigation: Jump between years quickly
• Today button: Always return to today's entry

Search Strategies

While Forever Diary doesn't have full-text search yet, you can effectively find entries using:

• Labels: The most powerful way to find related entries
• Highlights: Use memorable keywords in your highlights
• Date navigation: Remember approximate dates for important events
• Favourites: Browse your favourited entries for special memories

Pro Tips for Finding Entries

• Use consistent keywords in your highlights for easier recall
• Create labels for people, places, and activities you write about frequently
• Favourite important entries so you can find them quickly
• Use the year navigation to browse through different periods of your life

Reminders: Build Your Journaling Habit

Daily reminders help you maintain a consistent journaling practice.

Setting Up Reminders

• Free users: Daily reminders at 8:00 PM UTC
• Plus/Pro users: Customizable time and timezone
• Email delivery: Gentle reminders sent to your inbox
• Easy setup: Configure reminders in your account settings

Building a Journaling Habit

• Choose a time when you're typically free and relaxed
• Start with just 5 minutes of writing
• Don't worry about writing perfectly - consistency matters more
• Use reminders as gentle nudges, not pressure
• Celebrate small wins - every entry is progress

Habit Formation Tips

• Write at the same time each day
• Start with simple prompts if you're stuck
• Focus on the process, not perfection
• Use the highlight field for quick entries on busy days
• Remember that even one sentence is a successful entry

Subscription Features: Unlock Your Full Potential

Upgrade your journaling experience with premium features designed to enhance your practice.

Plus Features

• Favourites: Mark and easily find your most special days
• 1 Image per entry: Add visual memories to your entries
• Up to 10 labels: Organize your entries with more categories
• Custom reminders: Set your own reminder time and timezone
• Custom fonts: Personalize your journaling experience
• 14-day free trial: Try all Plus features risk-free

Pro Features

• Everything in Plus
• Unlimited images: Add as many photos as you want to each entry
• Unlimited labels: Create as many organizational categories as you need
• Early access: Try new features before anyone else
• 14-day free trial: Experience the full Pro journaling experience

When to Upgrade

• To Plus: When you want to organize your memories better and add visual elements
• To Pro: When you're a serious journaler who wants unlimited organization and visual storytelling

Tips & Tricks: Master Your Journaling Practice

Advanced strategies to help you get the most out of Forever Diary.

Journaling Techniques

• Morning pages: Write first thing in the morning to clear your mind
• Evening reflection: Process your day before bed
• Gratitude practice: End each entry with 3 things you're grateful for
• Stream of consciousness: Write without stopping or editing
• Question prompts: Ask yourself questions to dig deeper

Organization Strategies

• Create label systems: Develop consistent naming conventions
• Use highlights strategically: Include searchable keywords
• Favourite sparingly: Only mark truly special days
• Combine features: Use labels, highlights, and favourites together

Memory Preservation

• Include sensory details: What did you see, hear, smell, feel?
• Write about emotions: How did events make you feel?
• Capture conversations: Note meaningful exchanges
• Document progress: Track goals, habits, and personal growth
• Record context: Include what was happening in the world around you

Overcoming Common Challenges

• Writer's block: Start with "Today I..." and see where it leads
• Time constraints: Use the highlight field for quick entries
• Perfectionism: Remember, this is for you, not publication
• Consistency: Focus on building the habit, not perfect entries
• Privacy concerns: Your entries are encrypted and secure

Advanced Features

• Habit tracking: Use labels to track daily habits and routines
• Mood tracking: Create emotional labels to identify patterns
• Goal tracking: Document progress toward personal goals
• Relationship journaling: Use people labels to track relationship dynamics
• Creative writing: Use your journal as a space for creative expression