The Writer's Toolbox Review

            Tools come in all shapes and sizes. You have things that are sharp, curve, cut, attach, measure, and refine. But what is the tool that is the power behind all these things? Your mind. The mind is essentially a box full of tools; its different techniques can be used for different types of thinking, brainstorming, and in our case, designing,

“Learning never exhausts the mind.” Leonardo Da Vinci

            Reading The Writer’s Toolbox gave me some insight into new ways of thinking. As a designer we need to create the uncreated- but how do we come up with ideas? Where do we start? The Writer’s Toolbox told of ways such as mind mapping, concept maps, word lists, free writing, and brain writing.

            Mind mapping and concept mapping are a type of chart that grows from central or general ideas. The text describes that concept mapping, however, has a tendency to show more of a hierarchy of importance. This is a method easily used to get ideas across with teachers and students. Mind mapping was a tool that my group, in the make it better project, utilized.

            Free writing, brain writing, and lists all seem to go hand in hand. The Writer’s Toolbox described free writing as closely liked with journal writing, just with a defined topic. Brain writing is a little more organized than free writing, but uses descriptions about certain topics and subtopics. Word lists help get ideas flowing and are a quick and easy way to jot down any idea that comes to mind.

            Using these tools are beneficial to our creative thinking. Writing out our thoughts and jotting down any brainstorming we have is great for documentation and it helps us think of new ideas along the way. This is an important step in the designing process.