Where identity work becomes a daily rhythm.
The Narrative Lab is where Pinnup’s identity and belonging work meets practice. It’s a home for tools that help you slow down, listen inward, and rebuild your story with more clarity and stability — one page at a time.
Why a lab?
Circles give you a structured hour with other people. Narrative Systems Engineering gives you a language for what is happening inside your story. The Narrative Lab is the place in between: where those ideas become concrete practices you can return to on your own.
The first tool in the Lab is the Pinnup Wellness–Art Journal — a 90-day guided rhythm built for people who are carrying a lot and want a gentle, repeatable way to process it.
It’s not about perfection or performance. It’s about giving your identity system a calmer, more honest space to speak.
How the journal fits Narrative Systems Engineering
Narrative Systems Engineering (NSE) treats identity as a living system: Self → Story → Meaning → Behavior → Outcome → Feedback. When that system is under pressure, it can default to old protective patterns we call “the glitch.”
The journal is designed around that loop. Its prompts and layouts help you:
- Notice when your system is reacting instead of responding.
- Separate what actually happened from what your identity is afraid it means.
- Capture stories, images, and patterns before they disappear into busyness.
- Build a more stable inner narrative over time, not just in one breakthrough moment.
In other words, the journal is a gentle way of running NSE on yourself in small, human pieces.
Who this journal is for
The journal was created with real people in mind — not ideal readers. It’s especially helpful if you are:
- an immigrant, first-gen, or cross-cultural person holding multiple identities at once;
- a caregiver, staff member, or community worker who holds space for others but rarely for yourself;
- a leader or founder navigating burnout, transition, or quiet identity crisis;
- someone who feels a lot, thinks deeply, but struggles to find words that feel true.
You do not need to be an artist or a writer. You just need a willingness to show up on the page as you are.
Common questions about the Narrative Lab journal
Purchases of the Pinnup Wellness–Art Journal help sustain Pinnup’s nonprofit mission: circles, identity tools, and community drives for people who are often carrying more than they can say. If you would rather give directly, you can also visit our Support page.