Mind Mapping is Writing Too!

Today I had a moment of “Oh crap, I haven’t written anything for ages” and then I reminded myself that writing takes many forms. And more importantly, to be gentle with myself.

It’s been a long and adventurous summer writing and delivering keynote talks and an immersive sound experience in the UK and abroad, I’ve loved every minute of it because each one pushed me past my comfort zone. I learnt new skills and something new about my belief in myself. I also learnt loads from many of the beautiful souls that I crossed paths with this summer. I may share more of that on here soon.

Over the past 24 hours I’ve sat with friends in co-coaching/ mentoring sessions and let them in to one of my most intimate spaces. The inner workings of my mind, where I have moved from long-form note-taking to multi-layered thinking through mind mapping. I had to remind myself that creating these is also a form of writing, albeit in a non-linear format.

I find solace in mind maps because they allow me to explore the multi-dimensional nature of language and storytelling that writing on the traditional page doesn't offer me.

They are works of art in their own right.

This non-linear way of being, seeing and expressing, has been taking up a lot of space in my thoughts recently because I feel that I am ready to write my first book. However, I struggle because the narrative and the ideas aren’t linear, they are interconnected, intra-connected and alive. The ideas are fluid, organic, juicy and playful.

How can I express the essence of ideas within the linear constraints of a page, whether it's in a digital or physical format?

It feels like I am clipping my own wings before I’ve even started so I’m going to spend time thinking and researching some possible work-arounds.

In the meantime, here are some of the mind maps that helped to do the research whilst exploring potential narratives of the multi-layered sound art piece that I unveiled at the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) in Milan this November.

Sound art narratives through mind mapping

You can listen to the resulting sound art, Dystopian Dreams and Electronic Graves, here. Enjoy.

If you have any suggestions feedback please comment below. I’m sure that others would love to explore new ways of presenting and creating a ‘living book’.

More soon.