"Illustrating Your Points" or "Demonstrating Your Case" or "Graphically Representing Your Discourse" as alternatives for "Visualizing Your Argument".
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In the pursuit of a more structured and effective writing process, one writer has turned to a novel approach: visual mapping. This technique, learned from a book called The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film, has proven to be a game-changer in organizing research materials and crafting compelling arguments.
The writer's journey began in a creative writing poetry class, where the concept of visual mapping was first introduced. To overcome the challenge of managing a rapidly growing amount of research during the writing process, the writer created a Word Document called "Notes." This document served as the primary resource for information and direct quotes, providing a centralised hub for all the writer's findings.
As the "Notes" document grew, the writer found themselves faced with a familiar hurdle: the blank page at the beginning of the writing process. To address this, the writer started to wonder if seeing all the notes pinned to a wall might allow for new opportunities in organisation and argumentation. This idea was inspired by the writer's poetry professor, who also used visual mapping by pinning all his poems to a wall to determine the best order for them.
The writer's curiosity led them to explore various visual mapping tools, including mind maps, literature maps, and data visualizations. These strategies have proven to be immensely helpful in breaking down complex information into manageable, interconnected components. By visually structuring ideas, identifying relationships, and presenting arguments clearly, visual mapping has improved the writer's memory and creativity, and clarified the flow of their argument.
Mind mapping, for instance, is a powerful tool for brainstorming and organising thoughts non-linearly. Linking concepts with colours, icons, and branches, this method boosts creativity, helps prioritise key ideas, and maintains focus throughout writing by visually displaying connections and hierarchies among ideas.
Literature mapping, on the other hand, is a structured visual approach used to map existing research, detect gaps, and align arguments with the literature. This approach helps clarify patterns and avoid redundancy while refining the research question.
Data visualization, such as charts, infographics, and interactive visuals, can also be incorporated within writing to highlight data points, trends, and comparisons clearly. Visuals like expressive charts or infographics make arguments more engaging, improve recall, and increase reader understanding beyond traditional text or simple graphs.
The writer has already started implementing these visual strategies in their workflow. They begin with a mind map during early research or idea generation to gather and connect thoughts freely. Once they collect sources, they develop literature maps to visually organise research themes and relationships. When interpreting data or presenting evidence to support claims, they create data visualizations. To make their organisation more intuitive and readable, they use colours and icons to signify different argument strands, evidence types, or counterarguments.
In an architecture class, the writer is currently working on an infrastructure mapping project that emphasises visual organisation over text clarity. The focus of this project is to examine the systems behind everyday objects of infrastructure and produce a map of the object and the networks to which it is attached.
By embedding these visual strategies, the writer aims to enhance comprehension, streamline their research process, and deliver a more persuasive and well-structured argument. Whether you're a student, a researcher, or a writer, visual mapping could be the key to unlocking a more organised and effective writing process.
[1] Buzan, T., & Buzan, B. (2015). Mind mapping: how to use radiant thinking to maximize your brain's potential. Penguin.
[2] Booth, W. C., Colomb, G. G., & Williams, J. M. (2016). The craft of research. University of Chicago Press.
[3] Tufte, E. R. (2001). The visual display of quantitative information (2nd ed.). Graphics Press.
[4] Brown, P. C. (2014). Make it stick: the science of successful learning. Harvard Business Review Press.
[5] Ware, C. (2012). Information graphics: a comprehensive guide to the visualization of data. Collins Design.
The writer has found success in education-and-self-development by implementing visual mapping strategies learned from books such as The Conversations and Mind mapping. To enhance their junior paper, they use various visual tools like mind maps, literature maps, and data visualizations to streamline their research, boost creativity, and deliver a more persuasive and well-structured argument. They also incorporate these strategies in other learning endeavors, such as an infrastructure mapping project in an architecture class. For those seeking a more effective writing process, the art of learning and applying these visual mapping techniques could prove invaluable.
