--- title: "The School of Life Writing Journal: A5, 192 Pages" canonical: "https://stationerytimes.com/guides/the-school-of-life-writing-journal/" description: "The School of Life Writing Journal: 210 × 148 mm softcover, 192 pages of 100g paper, Sage with a dot grid or Burgundy lined, elastic closure, £16 (about US$21)." category: "Notebooks" type: "Journal" published: 2026-11-05 updated: 2026-11-05 author: "Ellis Penhale" publisher: "Stationery Times" sources: 3 products: - name: "The School of Life Writing Journal" brand: "The School of Life" brand_origin: "United Kingdom" made_in: "Not stated" material: "Softcover with rounded corners, elastic closure and bellyband; 100g paper per the bellyband" price_band: "$$$ ($20–75 per notebook, typical US retail, October 2026)" manufacturer: "Campus London Limited (trading as The School of Life)" url: "https://shop.theschooloflife.com/products/writing-journal-sage" --- # The School of Life Writing Journal: A5, 192 Pages > The School of Life Writing Journal is a 210 × 148 mm softcover with rounded corners, an elastic closure and 192 pages of 100g paper, dot grid in Sage and lined in Burgundy. The London company's shop listed each at £16 (about US$21) on November 5, 2026, in our $$$ band. Where it is made is not stated. - URL: https://stationerytimes.com/guides/the-school-of-life-writing-journal/ - Category: Notebooks - Author: Ellis Penhale - Published: 2026-11-05 - Updated: 2026-11-05 ![The School of Life Writing Journal drawn to scale at 210 × 148 mm in Sage and Burgundy, with an open dot-grid spread](https://stationerytimes.com/images/raster/the-school-of-life-writing-journal-illustration-16x9.png?v=d96f9873) *Sage and Burgundy closed, and an open dot-grid spread, at 210 × 148 mm (1 mm = 1.45 px); colors sampled from the maker's photos.* Original illustration made for this guide. © Stationery Times. Original drawing (SVG): . Drawings © 2026 Stationery Times, reusable with credit under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). ## Product facts | Product | Brand | Brand origin | Made in | Material | Released | Price range (typical US retail, October 2026) | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | The School of Life Writing Journal | The School of Life (by Campus London Limited (trading as The School of Life)) | United Kingdom | Not stated | Softcover with rounded corners, elastic closure and bellyband; 100g paper per the bellyband | – | $$$: $20–75 per notebook | - Made in (The School of Life Writing Journal): Not stated. The maker's product pages and bellyband photos give no country of manufacture. Source: https://shop.theschooloflife.com/products/writing-journal-sage - Good for: Journaling and planning. Skip it if you want a stated country of manufacture or a fountain-pen claim: the maker gives neither. ### The School of Life Writing Journal colors - Body colors (2 standard, 0 special edition): Sage (Dot grid; dark green elastic.); Burgundy (Lined; dark red elastic.). - Per The School of Life Shop (Sage and Burgundy product pages and photos) (https://shop.theschooloflife.com/products/writing-journal-sage), checked 2026-11-05. Two colors are listed, each a separate product page. Tints were sampled from the maker's own photos. Shops stock different colors; check the listing. ## Key takeaways - The School of Life lists 192 pages, 210 × 148 mm (the A5 format), a softcover with rounded corners, a bellyband and an elastic closure. - Two colors are listed: Sage with a dot grid and Burgundy with lines; the bellybands in the maker's photos print 100g paper. - The bellyband describes it as a home for thoughts, plans, reflections, dreams and doodles, and the shop files it under Calm and Work. - Each color was £16 (about US$21) in the maker's UK shop on November 5, 2026, in our $$$ band ($20 to $75). - The maker does not state a country of manufacture, the dot or line spacing, or fountain-pen performance, and we have not tested the paper. ## What is The School of Life Writing Journal? **It is a softcover journal sold by The School of Life, a London company, in two colors with two page layouts.** The School of Life's shop is run by Campus London Limited, which its terms of service say trades as The School of Life. It also sells books and card sets, and files this journal under Calm and Work. We read the maker's two product pages on November 5, 2026. The pitch is writing as a route to self-knowledge: the maker calls it a place to capture and explore what might otherwise flap restlessly in the mind. The band around the cover says it is a home for thoughts, plans, reflections, dreams and doodles. ## What are the size, paper and binding? **210 × 148 mm, 192 pages of 100g paper, a softcover with rounded corners, an elastic closure and a bellyband.** These figures come from the product pages and the bellyband printed in the maker's photos. | Spec | The School of Life says | |---|---| | Size | 210 × 148 mm | | Pages | 192 | | Paper | 100g paper, read from the bellyband in the photos | | Cover | Softcover, rounded corners | | Closure | Elastic, with a bellyband | | Interior | Sage: dot grid. Burgundy: lined | | Made in | Not stated | | Price | £16 (about US$21) per color, UK shop, November 5, 2026 | | Price band | $$$ ($20 to $75) | The bellyband prints "100g" without a unit, and we read it as grams per square meter, the usual way to give paper weight; the product pages themselves give no weight. Our [notebook sizes chart](https://stationerytimes.com/guides/notebook-sizes-chart/) shows that 210 × 148 mm is the A5 format. The maker does not state the thickness or the weight of the book. ## Is it dot grid or lined? **It depends on the color: Sage is dot grid and Burgundy is lined.** The two product pages say so, and the bellybands in the photos read gridded and lined. Both pages also add "blank pages" after the ruling, and the maker does not say what that means, for example blank pages at the front or back. The dot or line spacing is not stated either. ![Drawing of a dot-grid patch for the Sage journal and a lined patch for the Burgundy journal, each 60 × 40 mm](https://stationerytimes.com/images/the-school-of-life-writing-journal-rulings.svg?v=866368bc) *The two interiors the maker lists; the spacing is drawn by eye because the maker does not state it. Original illustration made for this guide. © Stationery Times.* For other dot-grid notebooks and what makes them work for planning, see our guide to [notebooks for bullet journaling](https://stationerytimes.com/guides/best-notebooks-for-bullet-journaling/). ## What colors does it come in? **Two: Sage and Burgundy, each on its own product page.** Sage is a soft gray-green cover with a dark green elastic, and Burgundy is a deep red cover with a dark red elastic. We sampled the tints from the maker's photos. The maker lists no other colors, and each color is a separate listing, so the layout does not come as a choice within one page. ## Who is the Writing Journal for? **It suits people who want a plain journal with a stated page count and paper weight, because it lists 192 pages of 100g paper.** - **Journaling and planning:** 192 pages with a dot grid in Sage or lines in Burgundy, and an elastic closure to keep it shut in a bag. Skip it if you want a stated country of manufacture or a fountain-pen claim: the maker gives neither. For pens that suit this kind of paper, see our [best pens for journaling](https://stationerytimes.com/guides/best-pens-for-journaling/). ## Where is it made, and what does it cost? **Not stated, and £16 (about US$21) per color in the UK shop on November 5, 2026.** That is in our $$$ band ($20 to $75). Both colors were in stock when we read the pages. We did not check overseas prices or other sellers, and prices change with shipping and tax. The same maker's [Writing as Therapy Notebook Ideas](https://stationerytimes.com/guides/the-school-of-life-writing-as-therapy-notebook-ideas/) is a linen-bound A5 notebook, and its [Journal Prompt Cards](https://stationerytimes.com/guides/the-school-of-life-journal-prompt-cards/) are a set of 52 cards for deciding what to write about. ## Frequently asked questions ### How many pages does the Writing Journal have? 192, per The School of Life's product pages for both colors. The bellybands in its photos also print 192 pages. ### What size is it? 210 × 148 mm, which is the A5 format. The maker lists the size on both product pages and does not state a thickness. ### Is the Writing Journal dot grid or lined? It depends on the color. The Sage one is listed as dot grid and the Burgundy one as lined. Both listings add the words blank pages, which the maker does not explain. ### What paper does it use? The bellybands in the maker's photos read 100g paper, gridded in Sage and lined in Burgundy. The maker states no brand, finish or fountain-pen claim, and we have not tested it. ### Does it have a closure or a pocket? It has an elastic closure and a bellyband. The listings mention no pocket, ribbon or page numbers, so we do not claim any. ### How much does it cost? £16 (about US$21) for either color in the maker's UK shop on November 5, 2026. That is in our $$$ band ($20 to $75). Prices change, and we did not check overseas prices. ### Where is it made? Not stated. The School of Life's product pages and photos give no country of manufacture, so check the packaging. ## Sources - [The School of Life Shop (maker): Writing Journal, Sage, specs, description and price (read November 5, 2026)](https://shop.theschooloflife.com/products/writing-journal-sage) - [The School of Life Shop (maker): Writing Journal, Burgundy, specs, description and price (read November 5, 2026)](https://shop.theschooloflife.com/products/writing-journal-burgundy) - [The School of Life Shop (maker): terms of service, which name the company that runs the shop (read November 5, 2026)](https://shop.theschooloflife.com/policies/terms-of-service)