The Six Core Competencies (6 cc's): a mind map

In a previous post, I showed my mind map of one of the 6 cc's--story structure. I've decided to show my mind map of all six. The order of the 6 cc's is not important, only that you have them working for you (according to Larry Brooks, author of Story Engineering). I think of them as a living being of sorts: story structure is the skeleton, character is the muscle and skin, scene execution as the organs working together, concept is the heart and soul of the story, and theme and voice are both embedded in and permeate the entire story like blood and oxygen. You can look at them separately if you wish, but they work together as a whole.

As in the previous posts, I'll show the entire map and various sections. Some of this is difficult to read, but I hope you get the idea. One of the benefits of this mind map is seeing the thing as a whole, which, when I did, gave me the idea of the 6 cc's being like a living being. I could see that these things overlapped and worked together. You can almost overlay scene execution onto story structure. Concept feeds the veins. I hope this analogy works for you. If you see it differently or something better, let me know.

Entire Mind Map of the 6 cc's

Story Structure

Concept, Scene Execution, & Character

Voice & Theme

Mind Mapping a Book

I've done a mind map of Part Five, The Fourth Core Competency--Story Structure of the book on writing titled Story Engineering by Larry Brooks. Due to limitations in my knowledge of how to present these pictures, I've had to show the whole mind map followed by various sections of the map enlarged. What I'm trying to achieve with this map is an overview of the components of story structure as presented by the author. If I can comprehend the entirety of the components in one visual, it should be easier for me to follow and remember. I could have done a straight outline of the chapter, but the visual component would be missing. Combining a limited outline with the visual component of the mind map, I should have a better grasp of story structure, a mental picture. This mind map is based on my understanding of the key components. One word or group of words represents paragraphs, even pages of information. It would not mean much to someone who hasn't read the book. But, because I've read it, I understand what everything stands for.

Mind Map of Story Structure

Right side of mind map.

Lower right corner of mind map.

Left side of mind map.

I hope this illustration has given you an idea of one way to use a mind map. Reading something is one thing. Understanding it is another. I think mind mapping helps with understanding and remembering.