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Sally Smith is a writer, editor, and the Communications Director for IDEA.
Creating a compelling nodemap isn’t difficult, but it does challenge writers to think and express themselves in new ways.
SpicyNodes opens up new methods of organizing information. In order to create a powerful nodemap, keep in mind that you’re working in what is essentially three-dimensional space. In other words, readers don’t have to travel in a linear fashion from one nugget of information to the next. Instead, they’ll be able to make their own choices and follow the paths of information that pique their interest.
Because SpicyNodes is deployed in what is akin to 3D space, it’s helpful to begin “thinking nodefully.” Instead of thinking in narrative form, begin breaking down information into small morsels. Use whatever visualization technique works for you: morsels as information packets, morsels as clouds, morsels as individual wildflowers in a field. Beginning to think nodefully will enable you to easily create node copy.
The craft of writing node copy is slightly different than that of writing magazine or news articles, web copy, press releases, or technical material. With traditional forms of writing, you have a high word count in which to explain a concept or expound upon a theory. When writing node copy, you want to keep it short and to the point – from a few words to several sentences. The art of writing node titles is akin to writing titles and subheads for other media, while writing node copy is similar to writing captions or sidebars.
A useful and engaging nodemap begins with a single ingredient: information. Whether you’re creating morsels from the copy on an existing web site, using nodemaps as a vehicle for creative expression, or researching a topic and compiling information from a variety of sources, start by having your information close at hand.
There are many different types of nodemaps. They can lead readers to the specific information they seek, but can also invite readers to browse and discover new information. Serving as a directory, nodes can act like a table of contents, breaking a topic into increasingly smaller pieces and swiftly leading the reader to the information he or she wants. When serving content, a nodemap becomes more like a museum exhibit, inviting the reader to delve more deeply into topics of interest. Nodemaps often serve both purposes, and contain nodes that are like a directory and nodes that are like an exhibit.
In all cases, the center node acts as a “home base.” From the center, the reader clicks on nodes to travel into the nodemap, but always has the option to return to where he or she started.
Your SpicyNodes copy will draw in the visitor by the way you organize your information, so you first need to decide how to structure your nodes. SpicyNodes implementations begin with a central or “home” node, the overarching theme out of which other nodes radiate. If you think of the home node as the “parent,” the next level of nodes are “children,” or items related to the parent node. Each child can also have a set of nodes, or “grandchildren.” Each grandchild can also have a set of nodes, or “great-grandchildren.” You can use as many “generations” of nodes as you need to convey your information.
Keep in mind that nodes don’t have to be organized symmetrically; the goal is to prominently display the information your readers most often seek. So, while some of your first-level “children” nodes may be general in nature and allow your reader to drill down for detail, if certain details are of primary interest to your readers, you should make those “children” nodes as well. For example, your content might center around “The History of Weather Forecasting,” but a significant number of your visitors might want to know the three-day weather forecast in their area. If that’s the case, “Your Current Weather Forecast” should be a first-generation node.
With any type of writing, it’s important to know your audience. When organizing nodemaps, it’s doubly important to know why your readers visit your web site.
To make it easy for readers to quickly find information in a directory-like fashion, your nodes should have consistent, hierarchical relationships. You may wish, for example, to have the concept depicted in each node be distinct and make each node mutually exclusive.
To achieve the best exploratory journey for your readers, create an organizational structure for your nodes that is faceted, rather than hierarchical. Instead of adhering to a top-down approach, a faceted organizational style gives equal weight to several different concepts.
One of the most appealing aspects of SpicyNodes is that there are no rules governing how many nodes you must have and what each node must contain. Generally speaking, a parent should have fewer than five children, although you can create an effective nodemap with as few as two children and as many as 12 children. If a parent only has one child, your nodemap will resemble a string of pearls rather than planets swirling around the sun. If a parent has too many children, the space may become too crowded and confuse your reader.
One helpful way to construct your nodemap is by using an outline. The central, “home” node won’t be a part of the outline (since there’s only one central node), but all of its descendants should fit nicely into an outline.
Each node consists of a title and supporting, expository text. A node can also contain simple HTML, graphics, and a hyperlink. Optimally, the title length should be from one to six words; the text can range from a short phrase to several sentences, since visitors can read more information by expanding a node or by scrolling. When writing titles, keep in mind that you should draw in your reader, whether through interesting text, prompts, or questions. A node’s text can provide information, give the reader a choice, or both.
They key to a successful nodemap is simplicity and ease of use. Even complex concepts and sets of information can be transformed into bite-sized morsels that lead the reader through a landscape of information. By writing interesting and engaging titles and text, your readers will want to stay and explore your web site.
When it comes to the mechanics of putting your text into the SpicyNodes system, you can take one of two approaches. First, you can create nodes visually, using the SpicyNodes author interface:
Simply click on the “Add node” or “Delete” buttons to create and delete nodes. Click on the title of a node to edit it, and drag the node up or down to rearrange the sequence of your nodes, or to nest one node within another. This method is particularly useful for rearranging the hierarchy of nodes. When you click on the “Edit details” button, you can add text or upload an image to go with the node.
The second method of entering your nodemap text is to import it into the SpicyNodes interface. You can either upload a Word or text file, or copy and paste your text into the interface.
When you create your nodemap text in a Word or text file, you need to use the SpicyNodes syntax, which is quite similar to using an outline. The syntax is as follows:
+ Level A (central node) :: Descriptive text ++ Level 1 (child to central node) :: Descriptive text +++ Level a (child to Level 1 node) :: Descriptive text +++ Level a (child to Level 1 node) :: Descriptive text ++++ Level i (child to Level a node) :: Descriptive text ++++ Level i (child to Level a node) :: Descriptive text>
And so forth. Simply add a plus sign for every level of nesting, and a double colon before the descriptive text.
Whether you’ve created the nodes visually using the interface or have imported a Word or text file, you can always export your node text. This is especially helpful when you are proofreading or making significant text changes.
