Incorporating a journal writing routine into the classroom is critical to developing autonomous writers. During the course of a full year, a first-grade classroom embarked on a quest to discover the importance of creating successful writers. This study confirms the significance of implementing and establishing authentic and meaningful journal writing sessions. The quantitative analysis demonstrates the constant growth and achievement that empowered this group of students to become writers. The journal entry examples depict one student's personal writing journey and personalize the research. The findings delineate how journal writing, with proper teacher support, empowers students by increasing their writing abilities, through increased confidence and control over written language. (Contains 4 figures and 2 tables.)