Thing 4: Digital Mind-Mapping

Let's move from blogging on to some other digital tools for writers.

Bubbl.us is an online tool for brainstorming or mind mapping. You remember brainstorming from your earlier education days, right? You start with a concept, usually in a bubble in the middle of a page. Then you start thinking of all of the other related concepts (in bubbles surrounding the initial concept).

Brainstorming helped you look at all angles of the concept, to sort out related items and visualize connections. Mind mapping is similar, except the concepts are things you know or you are studying, and you are connecting them to other things you know (or are studying). It's a great visual technique for getting many many ideas and seeing how they link together.

Here's a mind map I made during break:

I've also used mind maps to get ideas for what to write on my blogs. It's kind of boring to write "this is what I did today" posts . . . every day.

One great thing about Bubbl.us is that, like many tools out there for writers, it's free.  You can just start working on the mind map, and sign up later.

Your Thing 4 assignment:

Try out a mind map for some writing project you have to brainstorm for: an upcoming paper? ideas for a blog you'd like to write?  See if you can get several layers of bubbles out there. Move them around to make the map pleasing to your eye.

If you have no upcoming writing projects, mind map what you need to do this week.

In your blog, post your mind map (just export it as a jpg and post it on your blog as a picture).

Then write about the experience of using another visual brainstorming tool. How did this work for you?  . . can you imagine situations in which you could use it? Do you like the computer version, or would you rather draw your mind map with pen and paper?