To many Americans, "diary" conjures up less-than-literary visions of a padded book, a lock and key, with "love" scribbled small and neatly on the flyleaf. "Most people fear expressing themselves in writing," said Michael O'Neill, an associate professor of English at New York University, who uses journals to jump-start freshmen into writing. "The solitary act of putting pen against paper, of using words in our video culture, is a profound one."
Now day and night, ordinary people who believe an unexamined life is not worth living write about the small activities and impressions that are their days.
(The New York Times)