It’s been a long road researching and building the world in which I am writing the story of Nysta. With each week, a new idea naturally evolves into being and requires more research and integration into the overall world view. The hardest thing, for me, is finding a way to keep the notes together, and to provide structure to what is, essentially, a mutating form of virus spewing from my brain.

To start with, I use two monitors. I can’t use one. On one monitor, I have OpenOffice which is for me a more useful and worthwhile program than the Microsoft alternative. Other than being free, it’s stripped down and more reliable, whilst still being able to save in Word format which is obviously required. I use OpenOffice for writing out the story. For plot, I use OpenOffice’s version of Excel. This has been helping me to structure my novel with meticulous care. I need it, because I’m a bit of a chaotician when I am not forcing myself into structured creativity. I lose the plot, so to speak, if I don’t have one carefully constructed.

On the other monitor, I have my Internet sites which link off to various points of research, and I’ve had (in the past) a few other programs to help me to organise what I’m doing. But, recently, a crime writing friend of mine told me he used FreeMind. I hate to sound like a walking advertisement, but it’s easy to rant about something which is free to use. Though, if anyone wants to pay me for a rant, let me know.

I downloaded FreeMind, not quite expecting anything, and have been well and truly surprised. Basically it’s a mindmapping tool. You begin with a central balloon and pretty much build branches off it in a never-ending explosion of ideas. Though, being more critical of myself, I have many files saved already. One huge MindMap for the world, and one for the character, then support characters each get one. Plot gets one (It was easier to set out the basic mystery element in the FreeMind manner than on Excel, for some reason), and so too did languages, technical terms, settings and flora and fauna descriptions. It pretty much exploded my mind, and has helped to bring what was a chaotic scrapping of different ideas into one easy flowing river of ideas.

If you’re loooking for something to help you to set yourself out, and to present your ideas to yourself in an easy-flowing and structured manner (which isn’t limited to a linear listing of points, then FreeMind is really the way to go. It’s like building your scenes in 3D as opposed to chalking them on a blackboard. I cannot recommend it enough!

One thing I’ve grown fond of is the ability to colour the balloons, apply small gifs (such as numbers and exclamation marks to important points or stars to those that need it) to highlight specific points. It’s making the whole plot-structure to become more cohesive. More streamlined and focussed.

Loving it.

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