A Popular (and Expensive) Habit Among Young Chinese People: Keeping a Diary

Writing a diary has become a popular habit in China, especially for young people. In Chinese, a diary is called shou zhang (手帐) and the popularity of this activity originated from Japan. This activity is more than just writing down what you did that day, it is more like a scrapbook or a piece of art. People write, draw, stick tickets in it, write down to-do lists, etc.

For many of these diary hobbyists, keeping a diary can be expensive. In addition to buying a nice journal, they also purchase many peripheral items such as tapes, pens, and stickers. Many people will spend several hundred to several thousand RMB a year on this hobby. 

Why Is Keeping A Diary So Expensive?

First, it’s the book itself. If you are looking for good quality, most of them will be from international brands. Countries such as Japan and the UK are well-known for producing high quality journals. Mine is very affordable, at 66 RMB while a journal from the popular Japanese brand knox costs 3,000 RMB. And it’s just the book.

Second, as we mentioned above, the term shouzhang doesn’t simply refer to writing in a book. It includes a lot of peripheral products such as a cover, washi tapes, stamps and stickers. If you want to draw, you also have to prepare gel pens and colored pencils. Some people will buy Nite Writer pens so they can write in the dark without keeping roommates awake. 

A popular Japanese brand called Hobonichi, its inner book costs over 100 RMB and together with its cover, a shou zhang can reach over 1,000 RMB.

Group Buying Washi Tapes

Washi tapes are especially popular and stationary brands frequently launch new tapes to grab customers’ attention. If you like collecting things, you will keep buying whatever is launched.

But they can be costly as well. A complete roll of tape might cost around 40-50 RMB. To save money and buy more tape designs, on some Taobao reseller stores, a complete roll of tape is divided into several parts, so that each one only costs 4-5 RMB.

Another way for those tape lovers to buy tapes at a lower price is through group buying. There are apps dedicated to this business, such as Sami (撒米) or Benben, or you can go to Weibo and put the key word “拼米团” on it and it will guide you to the forum or group.

Many museums and cultural sights, such as Beijing’s Palace Museum, have started producing their own washi tapes with designs from items in their collections. 

Influencers Getting in On the Trend

For several years now, popular fashion influencer Becky Li has launched a yearly planner/diary specially illustrated by her in-house illustrator. It comes with stickers and plenty of space to draw. 

Shou Zhang Communities

For many of these hobbyists, keeping a diary isn’t a private activity. Many of them will share their diary pages online, like a piece of art. Besides posting on mainstream social media platforms. There are also niche platforms that have popped up for shou zhang enthusiasts to connect with each other and also to purchase shou zhang products. 

There are also offline gatherings/markets for Shou Zhang lovers in different cities.

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