Do not read this journal!
A downloadable experience
“Do not read this journal!” is a horror-themed, pamphlet sized journaling experience where you obtain a cursed journal, write down all the strange events you experience while you have it, and then pass it to a friend. Once you pass the journal to someone else, the curse is lifted from you and passed on to the next person. The experience continues until there are no more pages left in the journal.
If you’re the last person to own the journal, remove the pamphlet and put it in a public place for someone to find.
A Spotify playlist is available to accompany your journaling experience and get you in the mood for the story:
If the price of this game is a hardship for you, free community copies are available below.
If you share pictures and/or videos of your journal, please use the hashtag #dnrtj, so I can see your amazing artifact.
If you don't have a deck of cards, you can use this random card picker.
Spanish, German, French, and Turkish versions are also available.
An amazing example made by BudgetVersailles, using "Do not read this journal!"
Purchase
In order to download this experience you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $3 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Community copies
Support this experience at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.
Community Copy Donation
For every $4, you'll receive a copy of Do Not Read This Journal! and donate another copy of the game for those who are experiencing poverty to claim. Thank you!
~New community copies are added for each review left~
Community Copy
For anyone who feels they cannot afford this experience right now but want to try it, there are free community copies available, no questions asked. If all the community copies are gone, please send me a DM via Twitter @lunchweek or Reddit u/lunchweek and I'll send you a download key. Again, no questions asked.
~New community copies are added for each review left~
Download demo
Development log
- 🚀 A new log has begun…46 days ago
- Turkey & Syria Earthquake ReliefFeb 10, 2023
- French version available now!Nov 18, 2021
- German version available now!Jun 17, 2021
- A few minor updatesMay 23, 2021
- Spanish version available now!Nov 10, 2020
- Turkish language available now!Oct 20, 2020
Comments
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Hi there! I got myself a copy and am planning on playing it soon.
Quick question concerning the rules: When it says we should discard the drawn cards after writing our entries, does this mean the cards can't be reused? Or are we supposed to add them back to the deck?
I'm asking because then it follows by saying, without spoiling anything, that you can draw jokers three times. Given that most decks only have two jokers at most, this would indicate that the cards are returned to the deck afterwards, right?
Yes, "discard" means returning the cards to the deck. If you draw the same card more than once and don’t want to rewrite its prompt, you can skip it or swap it for another random card from the deck.
This was such an amazing experience!! I am new to the world of journaling games, but this was incredible and set the bar really high! Do you have a subreddit or anything where people can share their final journals?
I’m so glad you enjoyed the experience! While I don’t have a subreddit yet, I encourage you to share your final journals with the community on social media. I’d love to see what you’ve created!
I love this concept so so much, have only just started my journal and I'm already having so much fun with it (I got the joker on my first pull, which felt like a promising start haha!)
Have fun and please share the final result!
Is there a reason I can’t purchase this with a card attached to my account?
Hey there! I have no idea. Can you get in touch with itch about the issue? If they can't help, please get in touch with me via Twitter or Reddit (links in the description) and I'll sort it out.
from what I read from older support is that it’s a function you can enable. I could be very wrong though
I miss the "collaborative experience" thing o_O i mean, i write for 7 days and then i give the journal to someone else, i will never collaborate with anyone and neither they'll do...
The term "collaboration" doesn't require you to be in the same space at the same time :) It's all about creating something together. Also, DNRTJ is not necessarily a collaborative game, it's a solo journaling game :)
it's in the note of manual "This is a collaborative experience. Please be kind to others while writing your part." there are no a single rule that force the fiction to a collaborative experience, every player play on his own...
There is nothing that forces anything in the game, including the prompts. So again, you can play it as collaborative as you want. For example, you can get together with friends, brainstorm on ideas and then carry them to your journal.
Thank you so much for sharing this <3
Need to get my printer working asap because this is very very cool! I'm working on a journaling game of my own and this pamphlet form factor is a really neat size!
Glad you like it. Please let me know when you publish your game!
I love it! A friend and I have been playing for about 6 months and our story arc will conclude with the upcoming blood moon (on May 26th). We've had an amazing experience with this journaling game. Thank you so much!
Wow, 6 months? I'd love to see your journals!
It's not nearly as pretty as the one on the embedded video! My friend wrote his entries in digital format and then I wrote both his and mine in a notebook (his in a different colour).
The whole experience was very entertaining and it also helped me deal with some personal issues, so I'm very grateful.
It's easy to play, collaborative and creative! You can freely wander in your mind to create a story without feeling restricted by the fear of how society would receive it, and pass it on anonymously. It's a freeing experience in my opinion.
Hello. I downloaded a community copy, and while I myself am unable to play it, lacking some of the tools needed (a working printer, for one), I must say it's really something. If anyone wishes to play the game, go for it.
Thank you so much for that <3 You don't need to print it to start, you can just use your computer. And if you need cards, you can use this random card picker. All you need to start is a journal and a pen/cil.
Careful with the above link, the decks there don't have jokers in it which you need for DNRJ
Thanks for that!
Hi from France (so sorry 4 my poor & bad english)
I started to play this weekend and i publish my lil diary on FB ^^ . Today, i draw the 3 of Spade that ask me about the previous owner. But i did not know any previous owner 0_0 So, i thought about the author. Maybe he is the previous owner and i've just wanna know if he's safe after created this game.
Fanx 4 answer, it's maybe important ;)
That's an amazing way to use the cards! As mentioned in the rules, the cards are there to inspire you :)
And I'm ok by the way. At least for now...
OK, i am happy to read that :) it is maybe a good news 4 me too ^^ i ll see next saturday ;) fanx again !!
Fanx for your FB diary Damien, it was nice to follow your doppelgänger "adventures"... ;)
de nada but... after reading some coms... i think i'll wait a lil time before another meta-RPG on fb ^^
I'm so interested to see this :)