Journaling
Bullet journaling with a fountain pen
The method needs numbered pages and an index. A fountain pen needs paper that holds ink. Surprisingly few notebooks do both.
Stripped of the decorated spreads it has accumulated, the bullet journal method is short: log entries as single lines, mark each with a symbol for a task, an event or a note, number your pages, and keep an index at the front so you can find things again.
That is it. Everything else — the layouts, the colored headers, the hand-drawn calendars — is a separate hobby that grew on top of it.
The core notation
| Symbol | Means | When it changes |
|---|---|---|
| A dot | A task | Cross it out when done, or arrow it forward when moved |
| A circle | An event | Does not change |
| A dash | A note | Does not change |
| A right arrow | Migrated to a later page | Written over the dot |
| A left arrow | Scheduled into the future log | Written over the dot |
The notebook problem
The method needs numbered pages and an index. Fountain pens need paper that holds ink. The notebooks that do the first thing well are largely built around thinner paper, and the notebooks with the best paper mostly do not number their pages.
That is a genuine gap, and it is why the picks below lead with the two notebooks that publish a paper weight and print an index — rather than with the market leader, whose US listing publishes no weight at all.
Quick picks
Ranked for the beginner buying their first setup. Every pick names who it is wrong for.
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No image Dingbats Wildlife A5, dotted 100 gsm cream paper in a hardcover journal, which is the specification Leuchtturm buyers keep asking for. | Structure plus heavier paper | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
| 2 | No image Rhodia Goalbook A5, dotted 90 gsm paper, numbered pages and an index, built specifically for the bullet-journal method. | Bullet journaling with a fountain pen | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
| 3 | No image LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted Numbered pages, a printed index and a pocket, in the notebook that made bullet journaling a thing — but the paper is the thinnest here. | Structure, if your ink is well behaved | Check price on Amazon #ad No live price right now. How this is funded |
1. Structure plus heavier paper
Dingbats Wildlife A5, dotted
100 gsm cream paper in a hardcover journal, which is the specification Leuchtturm buyers keep asking for.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
100 gsm is the number that removes the argument. At that weight a wet medium nib is comfortable and a broad is workable, which is not true of the 70-80 gsm books this competes against.
The format copies the structured-journal template closely — hardcover, elastic, pocket, ribbon — so you are not trading features for the paper.
Cream paper warms every ink slightly. If you have chosen a color carefully, it will not look the same here as on white.
| Paper weight | 100 gsm, acid-free, creamSource: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Maker's claim | Made for fountain pens, gel ink and markers; outperforms standard 70-80 gsm paperThe maker's own wording on its listing.Source: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Format | A5, dot grid, vegan leather hardcoverSource: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Extras | Inside pocket, elastic closure, bookmarkSource: Dingbats Wildlife A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
What it does well
- Published 100 gsm, comfortably above the fountain pen threshold
- All the structured-journal features
- Coated cover survives a bag
What it does not
- Cream paper shifts ink colors
- Heavier and thicker than a comparable 80 gsm book
- Less widely stocked than the market leader
Skip this if you want ink colors to read true — buy a white-paper notebook instead.
2. Bullet journaling with a fountain pen
Rhodia Goalbook A5, dotted
90 gsm paper, numbered pages and an index, built specifically for the bullet-journal method.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
The Goalbook is the one Rhodia book that publishes its paper weight, which is why it anchors our GSM guide. 90 gsm coated is comfortably enough for a wet fountain pen.
Numbered pages and a blank index are the structural half of the bullet-journal method, and having them printed saves an hour of setup.
It is a large, heavy book. That is fine on a desk and less fine in a jacket pocket.
| Paper weight | 90 gsmSource: Rhodia Goalbook A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Maker's claim | Fountain pen friendly, with no bleed-through and minimal ghostingThe maker's own wording on its listing. We have not tested it.Source: Rhodia Goalbook A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Size and ruling | A5, dottedSource: Rhodia Goalbook A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Designed for | Bullet-style journalingSource: Rhodia Goalbook A5 (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
What it does well
- Weight is published, and it is enough for a wet nib
- Numbered pages and index printed in
- Coated Clairefontaine-group paper
What it does not
- Heavy
- Slow drying
- Costs more than an unbranded dotted notebook
Skip this if you do not use a page-numbered system — you are paying for structure you will not use.
3. Structure, if your ink is well behaved
LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted
Numbered pages, a printed index and a pocket, in the notebook that made bullet journaling a thing — but the paper is the thinnest here.
#ad No live price right now. How this is funded
The structure is genuinely excellent: numbered pages, an index you fill in yourself, two ribbons and a pocket. Nothing else at this price is as well organized out of the box.
The paper is the argument against. Read the buyer feedback on the maker's own listing and it splits down the middle on bleed-through — which is exactly what happens when paper is adequate for a dry nib and marginal for a wet one.
If you write with a fine nib and a dry ink, this is a fine book. If you have just bought a broad nib and a wet blue, it is the wrong one.
| Extent | 251 numbered pages, A5, dottedSource: LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
|---|---|
| Maker's claim | Acid-free and ink-proof paperThe maker's own wording. Buyer feedback on the same listing is openly split on bleed-through, which is why we do not repeat the claim as a finding.Source: LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
| Paper weight | Not publishedThe US listing for this edition does not state a gsm figure. We do not fill it in from a comparison chart. |
| Extras | Blank table of contents, expandable pocket inside the back coverSource: LEUCHTTURM1917 A5, dotted (retail listing, read 2026-09-01) |
What it does well
- Numbered pages and printed index
- Hardcover with a pocket and two ribbons
- The most widely stocked structured notebook
What it does not
- No published paper weight on the US listing
- Bleed-through reports are genuinely split
- Costs as much as notebooks with better paper
Skip this if you write with a broad nib or a wet ink — pair the structure you want with paper that can take it.
Adapting the method to a fountain pen
Write on one side if the paper is thin
It halves your page count and it is often the right call. A ghosted reverse page is usable; a bled-through one is not.
Use a fine nib for the log, a broader one for headers
A single-line entry benefits from a narrow nib — less ink, sharper on thinner paper, and more words per line. If you want the headers to stand out, that is what a broad or a stub nib is for, and a swappable-nib pen makes both available from one pen.
Skip the highlighters
Most highlighters will smear a dye-based fountain pen ink, sometimes badly. If you want to mark something, use a pigment ink underneath or mark in the margin with the same pen. Inks that do not bleed covers which inks survive contact.
Dot grid, and why it won
Dot grid became the default for this method because it does two jobs at once: it keeps handwriting straight like a lined page, and it lets you rule a box or a table without printed lines running through it. For a method that mixes prose with structure, that is exactly right.
Questions people actually ask
Can you bullet journal with a fountain pen?
Yes, with two adjustments: choose a notebook whose paper weight is published and adequate, and use a fine nib for the log entries. Highlighters over dye ink will smear, so mark in the margin instead.
What is the best notebook for bullet journaling with a fountain pen?
One that publishes its paper weight and prints numbered pages. Dingbats Wildlife states 100 gsm and Rhodia's Goalbook states 90 gsm; both include the structure the method needs.
What are the bullet journal symbols?
A dot for a task, a circle for an event, a dash for a note. A right arrow over a dot means the task was migrated forward; a left arrow means it was scheduled into the future log.
Why is dot grid used for bullet journaling?
Because it guides handwriting like a lined page while still letting you rule boxes and tables without printed lines running through them — the right compromise for a method that mixes prose with structure.