I haven’t explored the mind mapping space for a while, but here’s what I’m using now.IThoughts, one of the most promising new mind mapping tools for the iPhone and iPod Touch, provides an impressive amount of functionality in a very small package. To be worth a monthly or annual subscription, an app needs to be a daily essential. But the cost of a stack of monthly subscriptions soon mounts up. The subscriptions aren’t huge and as I’ve said, I don’t mind developers making money.

The Buzan tool became Miro on the desktop it’s still available in its original form for iPad users. Within a couple of years, two of my favorite apps, Nova Mind, as well as Tony Buzan’s iMindMap, took the subscription route. Mind mapping apps: are there any inexpensive, or free apps left? Intuitive maps help you to create “mud”: the raw materials of your writing. Write your topic in the center of a sheet of paper, then cluster words or phrases around that central topic… without thinking about it. … kick your rational mind out of the way when you’re creating an intuitive mind map.

Not sure how to use mind mapping? In How To Outline Your Writing: 3 Easy Tricks You Need Today, I discussed intuitive mind maps: (BTW, if you’re not using mind maps, they’re excellent tools for writers.) Intuitive mind maps: get inspired with visual tools However the pendulum seems to have swung from “hey, try this it’s FREE”, to “pay a monthly subscription, or go away…” Of course I’m all for app developers making an income from their hard work. If the apps weren’t free, they were inexpensive. These apps didn’t have all the bells and whistles of apps intended for business use, but they did provide wonderful tools for authors who needed an aid to plotting and structuring their writing. Just a few years ago, you’d find lots of free mind mapping apps. Even little apps seem to be subscription-only now…” I received this message from an author: “What’s happening with mind mapping apps? I can’t afford hundreds of dollars.

Ithoughts subscriptions