The Map
When writing I don’t really think in outline or linear form, these predefined formats never quite worked for me. Instead I tend to make concept maps and crazy Tokyo subway style diagrams. And in that regard I wondered if a map with links and diagrams wouldn’t be an alternative to the Table of Contents. Rather than just a list of what is here a map would show the connections between ideas and allow readers to both see the larger picture and decide what pieces they would most like to spend time on.
Ideally I would like the map to also serve as a primary interface, perhaps even in a distant future the map could be interactive, re-ordered and changed depending on the reader. But for now it is just an image of what I am working on. Below you can see the image and get a sense for the scope and topics I eventually want to cover in The Nodes. But this is likely to change, as my maps often change in the writing process.
As you can see from the map as it stands right now, the introduction is more developed than most of the other parts. Orange circles represent organzing principles, with the blue squares holding ideas I want to talk about. The gray boxes at the bottom are examples which I want to use to examine the issues here, sort of a series of reminders of places to perhaps go next.
