There are several websites that help mind mapping, but is it an effective technique?

As a creative writing student, some of my tutors encouraged us to use mind maps claiming they were the most effective way of keeping track of ideas. But some of my tutors were against the idea, claiming they would encourage us to go over the same ideas and stop us from finding new plots or characters.

I think that both arguments may be right, and that it depends on the person and the sort of mind mapping used. For example, when we were discussing the issue with my writing group we decided that there were two sorts of mind mapping; Definitive Mind Mapping and Blind Mapping.

Definitive Mind Mapping is when you start with a solid idea and use mind mapping to take it further. Firstly, it is effective in this instance, because it shows you what ideas go together better. Secondly, it’s good at revealing ways of pairing two ideas up that the writer might not have thought, thus encouraging individuality in the piece. However, I do agree that looking at the same ideas can get a writer clogged up, and could make it harder to think of new alternatives to the plot. So, I think definitive mind mapping is only useful in the later stages of the planning process.

Blind Mapping is when you start with no idea. Often writers will pluck random words out of dictionaries and use mind maps to build on them. This may help some to think up new ideas, but as with definite mind mapping, the new ideas might be similar and it might prove difficult to think of truly original ideas. Also the structure mind mapping provides may help with writer’s block, but there are several other ideas such as black writing that could help with this.

In conclusion, the effectiveness of mind maps lies at the writer using them. If a writer feels comfortable and thinks that they are productive then their use should be encouraged, but equally if a writer feels they are of no use then the writer should move on to another technique.