Tried plotting a story with a timeline app vs. index cards on the floor

I spent 3 days mapping out a fantasy novel in some fancy app with drag and drop timelines. Kept losing track of character arcs because I had to keep scrolling around. Switched to laying 100 index cards out on my living room floor last Saturday, color coded by subplot. Easier to see the whole picture at once and spot gaps. Anyone else find paper methods beat digital for big picture stuff?

2 comments

2 Comments

sarah19819d ago

Totally get the struggle with those apps. Paper just lets your brain see everything at once in a way screens can't match.

cameron68419d ago

Yeah I actually just read something about this the other day! There's some research out there that says when you write stuff down by hand your brain processes it differently. Like it has to think about the shapes of letters and where things go on the page. That extra step makes you remember it better. Screens just show you the same text over and over but paper makes you slow down and actually think. It's wild how much of a difference that little change can make.