How to Organize Your Writing Life with a Canva Dashboard
- Rea Weeks
- Aug 3
- 3 min read
Let’s be real — being a writer isn’t just writing.
It’s juggling plot ideas, character notes, story timelines, writing goals, blog posts, publishing plans, content calendars, and the occasional 3 a.m. “this could be a book” voice memo. 😅
If your writing life feels scattered across notebooks, sticky notes, and 17 open Google Docs — I’ve got the perfect solution:
✨ A Canva Writer’s Dashboard — the digital command center you didn’t know you needed.
Whether you're a fiction writer, blogger, poet, or planner-loving journaler, this post will walk you through how to set up your own writing dashboard in Canva to bring order (and a little beauty) to your creative chaos.
💻 What Is a Canva Dashboard?
Think of it as your creative HQ — a single-page design in Canva that holds all your writing essentials at a glance. Kind of like a digital bulletin board + planner + visual brain dump… all in one place.
With a dashboard, you can track:
Your current writing projects
Weekly or monthly writing goals
Plot outlines or story structure
Deadlines or publishing timelines
Inspirational quotes or vision boards
Blog content or social media planning
It’s pretty, functional, and so satisfying to open when it’s time to write.
✨ Why Use Canva for This?
Canva is flexible, free, and fun. You can drag, drop, and customize everything — and once you create a base template, you can update it as often as you want.
Plus, Canva lets you:
Use your own fonts and brand colors
Add photos, icons, charts, or checklists
Duplicate dashboards for different projects
Download as PDF or PNG, or keep it digital
Access it from your phone, tablet, or laptop
🎯 Bonus: It makes staying organized actually feel inspiring, not like a chore.
🛠️ What You’ll Need to Get Started
A free Canva account
A clear idea of what you want to track
Your writing tools (word counts, deadlines, etc.)
Optional: Color palette, quote, or aesthetic image to set the vibe
Want to skip the setup and just plug in your info?📌 Grab one of my premade Canva dashboard templates in my Etsy shop!
📝 Step-by-Step: How to Build Your Writing Dashboard in Canva
1. Choose Your Canvas Size
Start a new design. I recommend:
1920x1080 px (great for desktops)
8.5x11 in (printable or tablet-friendly)
Or search “dashboard” in Canva’s templates for a jumping-off point!
2. Divide Your Space into Sections
Some ideas for dashboard blocks:
🖊️ Current Project: Title, status, word count
📆 Weekly Goals: What you want to write this week
📚 To-Do List: Research, editing, scene rewrites
🧠 Plot Points or Chapter Notes
🕰️ Deadlines: Submission or launch dates
✨ Inspo: A favorite quote or mood board space
Use rectangles, frames, or lines to create clean sections — Canva makes this part easy.
3. Add Your Own Flair
Make it you. Add:
Brand colors or aesthetic tones (dark academia, pastel romance, cozy cottagecore?)
Custom fonts
Clipart or icons that match your vibe
Decorative headers like “Word Wizardry” or “Plot Twist Zone”
A place to mark progress or celebrate small wins!
🎨 Canva is drag-and-drop magic — if you can dream it, you can build it.
4. Use It Like Your Creative Hub
You can:
Save it and open it daily to stay on track
Download it as a printable or lock screen
Add links to other documents, outlines, or websites
Make copies for each story or WIP
Update it monthly as your projects evolve
It’s flexible. It’s functional. And it’s just so satisfying to have everything in one place.
💌 Join My Mailing List for Freebies + Creative Prompts
Want a free character profile template to get started?Join my email list and get:
A printable + digital character sheet
Monthly creative freebies and Canva tips
First access to new Etsy launches
Encouraging emails for your writing + storytelling journey
Let’s make writing feel like a cozy adventure again. ✍️✨
🛍️ Browse My Printable + Canva Templates for Writers
I’ve got a whole collection of writer-friendly tools, including:
Daily writing planners
Brain dump pages
Book cover templates
Scrapbook paper for story mood boards
Canva dashboards for creatives, bloggers, and authors
🛒 Check them out in my Etsy shop:
They’re made with love for storytellers, planners, and big-dream energy.
✍️ Final Thoughts
Writing is messy, magical, and personal — but it doesn’t have to be disorganized.
With a Canva dashboard, you can bring clarity to your writing goals, structure to your stories, and inspiration to your creative space. You deserve tools that work for you — not against your process.
So go ahead — build your dashboard.Make it beautiful. Make it functional.Make it the space where your stories start to come alive.
Happy creating,
Rea 🌻Creator of A Rea of Treasures
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