A colorable reading log is such a staple in any reading journal, and looking at a beautifully colored one is so aesthetically pleasing that I was filled with excitement at the idea of having my own. Only... it didn't quite go as planned.
My log was filled with about 125 book titles when I finally picked a system, and I want to share the journey with you — and hopefully, by the end of this post, you'll have a system (or three) to try.
What Is a Colorable Reading Log?
Reading logs can take many shapes, but the one thing they have in common is that they offer a visual representation of your reading journey. It's a dedicated space where readers color in an icon — often a book, but sometimes a square, a star, whatever you like — each time they finish a book. The graphic options are limitless; you decide how elaborate or simple you want your log to be.
A simple checklist or numbered log can absolutely keep track of your books. But let's be honest: is it as satisfying to look at? That's entirely up to you.
Here's the real premise of this whole post, though: coloring in your log brings forward an additional layer of information at a glance, and you get to decide what that information is.
Color Systems — You Choose What Works for You
Keep in mind it shows the distribution of your ratings, not whether they're objectively "good" — but that's kind of the point. You'll spot right away if you tend to rate low, or hand out five stars like candy (which is perfectly valid too). You could even track half-stars if you're feeling thorough.
Choosing Your Categories & Palette (The Part That Nearly Broke Me)
Once you choose your system, you still need to pick your category list and palette. I'd personally aim for fewer than ten categories, and around eight is a comfortable sweet spot — you're the one who has to keep those colors straight every time you sit down with your journal.
Example palettes:
For genre: dark romance = deep red, fantasy = purple, contemporary = teal, thriller = black, etc.
For ratings: 5★ = gold, 4★ = green, 3★ = blue, 2★ = pink, 1★ = red
You can go with your favorite colors, different shades of a single color, a themed palette, all shades of grey — this reading log is your tool, and there are no reading-log police coming to check your choices.
Keeping Track
The Tools — What to Color With
Not all tools are created equal, and not all paper behaves the same way. Spend a little time thinking about this one — and read the bleed-through section below before you commit to anything.
| Tool | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Colored Pens / Ink | Precise, low bleed risk, doubles as your writing tool | Limited palette unless you own a big set |
| Colored Pencils | Generally the safest choice when you're unsure how a paper will behave; easy to layer | Subtle — won't pop as much |
| Highlighters | Covers area quickly, vibrant | Bleed-through risk varies by paper — test first |
| Felt-Tip Markers | Bold color, widely available — a box of Crayola does the trick! | Higher bleed-through risk than pencils — test first |
| Alcohol Markers (Copic, Ohuhu, etc.) | Beautiful blending, rich color — great for hybrid systems | Most likely to bleed through standard POD paper — test extensively before committing |
The Bleed-Through Test
No matter which journal you choose, run a bleed-through test first. When journals are printed via print-on-demand — like mine are — paper can vary depending on the marketplace and printer, so the safest approach is always to test your pens and pencils on one of the blank end pages before committing. This is also why I wouldn't assume a tool that worked beautifully in one journal will behave the same way in another — always test the actual journal in your hands.
My System — What I Finally Chose (and Why)
At first, I was staring at the empty page, feeling the pressure to choose the perfect system. I was leaning toward genre, but I wasn't sure which categories to include, which colors to choose, which pens or pencils to use — and I just froze. So instead, I started writing the titles as I reviewed my books, and before I knew it, 18 months had passed and I still hadn't chosen a system.
Here's the thing, though: I hadn't failed at the reading log. I was already using it — I'd just been waiting for permission to make it pretty.
What finally pushed me to make the move? Believe it or not, this post. This feature is such a fun one, and I wanted to share it with you, so I decided to stop letting my quest for perfection stay in my way.
I finally decided to go with subgenres, because every book I read falls somewhere in the romance family. I ended up with Dark Romance, Romantasy, Dark Romantasy, Dark Rom-Com, Dark Dystopian Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, (yes, I had another internal crisis about how to segment those subgenres, and a minor breakdown about where to file a few specific books... but that's a story for another day), Contemporary (cowboy romance lives in there too — I don't read enough of it to give it its own category), Sports and Monster.
My reading taste leans dark, but I'm actually a very girlie girl at heart, and I went with my favorite pastel colors for the palette — no relation whatsoever to the genres they represent, although I could have gone that route. I simply assigned my favorite color, aqua, to my most-read genre, Dark Romance, so it would be the prominent color on the page.
If you're unaware, I'm a neurospicy girlie who went through a coloring era, so I whipped out my Prismacolor colored pencils for this one. I've used highlighters and felt-tip pens in other parts of my journals (the series tracker and the bingo games, namely), so I know bleeding isn't an issue for me — I just wanted the softer vibe of colored pencils for this page specifically.
Here's what I ended up with:
What do you think of the result?
Permission to Just Pick a Color
I know, I know, it sounds silly coming from me after that confession, but I think I made a mountain out of a molehill, so here are some tips to help you avoid the same mistake:
Start with pencil if committing to a color feels scary — you can always go over it later.
Your system doesn't have to be perfect. It has to be yours.
Before you commit your system to the actual page, write it down on scrap paper and run a few imaginary books through it. Are there books you don't know what to do with? Better to find out now than 40 books deep.
Test your coloring tools on one of the blank pages at the end of your journal for bleed-through.
It's okay to change systems mid-journal — your reading life evolves, and your log is allowed to evolve with it.
A "messy" log is a used log. That's the whole point.
It's your turn to take pen to paper.
Have you had a reading log before? If so, how did you do it? If not, are you tempted to start one? Which system appeals to you most?
You can find more about the reading journal featured in this article here.
