Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you have a wonderful time playing! I ended up taking a break for months, but it’s about time I returned to the river. I even have striking images I remember of some of my days, and having this journal to remind me is wonderful. Can’t wait to keep on playing again!

And the best part about solo journal RPGs is that you need no skill… Just the desire to have fun and tell a story that only you’ll read! I share bits and pieces of my writing, yet I like knowing that this isn’t something I’m trying to submit or get any feedback on. It’s a journey through the seasons, meandering along a peaceful river with all manner of animal friends, books, and cozy slices of life to discover!

All good choices to start with! I’ll say that so far, Fox Curio’s Floating Bookshop seems to be the easiest for me to keep up with. The only downside is that you will need to flip back and forth a lot to different sections, yet the rules are pretty simple and easy to follow.

Additionally, it sets the stage to give you some control over how deeply you explore the world. Customer cards can represent individuals you slowly get to know, or new ones all the time. You can keep the bookshop open all the time, or decide when to close to fish, explore, participate in local events, or travel to the next town down the river.

I’ve been keeping up with regular journal entries, typically journaling about a single day on the River on a real-life day in as little as 30 minutes. It lends itself to cozy tales and a very laidback approach. The others you mentioned are also great, but I found that there was more to them with lots of tracking. I love that, yet my bookshop has been simpler.

For instance, you really only need to keep track of coins and total books. You can purchase other items to do more… Or not. The random events add some fun stuff to each day with weather and daily tasks. But it’s the least demanding solo journaling RPG I’ve played yet, which makes it very attractive to get into. Good luck!

Well, I’ll take on your offer and ask for guidance. My solo RPG ventures are rather new (but I have played RPGs when I was a student). After having tried Ironsworn and found the world too grim for me, I am now exploring Colostle. It’s nice because the ruleset is slim and, most of all, I can avoid battling if I decide to do so (to the cost of a slower progression, maybe). Colostle’s world is cool and all. But it’s still not cozy enough some days.
In the back of my mind, I am considering the likes of Apothecaria, Apawthecaria, Fox Curios, The Last Teashop (although this one might be too emotional for me)… My time is not expandable so I don’t want to try too many games at a time, since RPGs require much more time investment!
If you have other recommendations, I’ll gladly take them!

Thank you very much! I should note that the sketching is all from the book itself: I merely added some color to a printout that allows you to set up the layout of your bookshop.

There are lots of wonderful solo journaling RPGs out there that let you have that cozy experience. I’ve mentioned a few here and there, but if you’re ever looking for more suggestions, ask away! Although I will say that this one is right near the top. Almost 2 weeks of in-game time completed and it’s been awesome with all sorts of interesting story moments and so many different customers!

You have a great hand writing and sketching talents. I also own a very ols copy of Once Upon a Time and I never thought of using it that way. Clever!

I think you nailed something I wasn’t aware of: I have tried solo RPGs where fighting was very encouraged andfelt it was missing something I craved for in my writing experiences. Which is cozyness. Time to look for games that cater for that!