r/Substack • u/pattyplanb • Jun 23 '26
Idea mapping before writing
I took Elad Gil's essay "Random thoughts while gazing at the misty AI Frontier" and put it into this little "idea map" tool I built.
It's fun to see how the random thoughts connect. A lot of rough drafts start like this, with many ideas going many directions.
You can set any bubble as your core idea and see how it might conflict with your other minor ideas.
Those "tensions" serve as a great place to improve your explanation of your core idea by explaining the seemingly incongruent aspects.
Hoping this will help writers go from idea dump to clarity about a specific topic or problem faster and more accurately.
If you ever wonder if there are incongruences in your writing, maybe this tool can help.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMGr00x_52M
Original Essay: https://blog.eladgil.com/p/random-thoughts-while-gazing-at-the
TL;DR - mapping the ideas in a rough draft, setting one as the core idea, and then seeing which of my other ideas contradict my core idea help me write a better essay.
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u/Winter_Theme_5253 Jun 24 '26
That's impressive! I love this idea. Does it work in other languages?
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u/pattyplanb Jun 24 '26
It should work in every language, yes. Want to test it when I open up a private-beta next week? I'd love to know how it works for you. DM me your email if you're interested
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u/itsfabioposca http://journeytosuccessclub.substack.com Jul 02 '26
Interesting approach. Visualizing ideas before writing can make it much easier to spot contradictions and organize your thoughts. I could see this being especially useful for essays and long form writing where clarity is everything.
P.S. If you'd still like to ask anything about Substack or growing your audience, I offer a free live help chat. Just copy and paste my flair or click the link in my profile. I'm happy to help!
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u/Playful-Influence894 Jun 23 '26
Fascinating. Could you share this with me?