Today on the show Jodi explains how author-entrepreneurs can use a brain dump to create a working table of contents for their book.

The word outline feels constrictive to many entrepreneurs, particularly creative entrepreneurs (think event planners, photographers, bloggers, etc.). A brain dump gets people to the same result — but without feeling like a middle-school assignment.

The traditional brain dump that we’ve all learned involves a timer, a blank piece of paper, and something to write with. (Yes, you can do this on the computer by typing in list format, but the creativity that comes with freewriting seems to benefit this process greatly. This initial brain dump is a macro-level brainstorm. What comes next is to dig deeper — with micro brain dumps. Take a topic from the initial brain dump and brainstorm on just that topic/concept. When Jodi did a brain dump for her book Write.Publish.Market., one of the main topics from the macro brain dump was book writing. When she then did a micro brain dump, concepts including writing mindset, fears, roadblocks, writing routine, and writing schedule came up. Each of those ended up appearing in the “Section 1: Write” section of Write.Publish.Market. As you explore the topics you begin to see concepts that are similar and/or can be combined (like fears and roadblocks in Jodi’s example). Eventually, an outline of sorts takes shape, which becomes a working table of contents.

Listen here or on your favorite podcast player, and let me know what you think!

Other Resources You Might Like
https://www.jodibrandoneditorial.com/blog/brain-dumping-table-of-contents