Mind Map

Mind maps help organize characters, story outlines, and sequences of events. Create a Mind Map card on a WonderPen Whiteboard.

Drag the Mind Map icon from the toolbar onto the whiteboard to create a card. Click Edit on the card to open the mind map editor.

Here is a mind map used to plan a story:

Try Planning a Story

1. Create a mind map card on a whiteboard and click Edit on the card. A new map starts with a central topic and three child nodes.
2. Double-click the central topic, or select it and press F2, to name it after your story. Press Enter to finish editing.
3. Rename the three child nodes “Characters”, “Places”, and “Events” in the same way.
4. Select “Characters” and press Tab to add a character. After typing the name, press Enter once to finish editing, then again to add a sibling character.
5. Add details in node notes to keep titles concise.
6. Choose a suitable layout, or switch to Outline Mode to work through the structure as a list.

Both modes edit the same content, so you can switch at any time. Consult the shortcut tables below as you become familiar with the workflow.

When you finish editing, click the inward-pointing arrows at the upper right of the card to leave the maximized view and return to the whiteboard.

Map Mode

You can switch between Map Mode and Outline Mode. Map Mode is the default, and the switch is in the upper-right corner, as shown below:

Layout

Map Mode supports multiple layouts, which you can switch between in the upper-left corner, as shown below:

Left- and right-facing layouts suit character or topic groups; tree layouts suit hierarchies; timelines suit sequences of events. With an S-shaped timeline or fishbone layout, you can also adjust Items per Row in the layout menu. Changing the layout preserves node content and hierarchy.

For example, the image below uses an S-shaped timeline to show a story flow:

Arrange Nodes and Navigate the Map

• Move nodes: Drag a node and follow the drop indicator to change its order or level. Its children move with it.
• Collapse branches: Click the collapse control beside a node, or choose Collapse from its context menu. Expand it again to see its children. The More menu at the upper left also lets you expand or collapse all branches, or expand to a particular level.
• Pan and zoom: Drag an empty area of the canvas to pan. Use the controls at the lower right to change the zoom or fit the map to the view.

Node Notes

Keep node titles short and put longer explanations in notes. Right-click a node and choose Note to add background details or clues. Nodes with notes display a note icon; click it to reopen the note panel. Outline Mode displays notes beneath their titles.

Focus on a Branch

For a large map, choose Focus on This Node from a node’s right-click menu to view only that branch. Click an ancestor in the breadcrumb path at the top to focus on that branch, or click Show All to return to the full map. Focusing changes the view without deleting other nodes.

Outline Mode

Click Outline in the upper-right corner to edit nodes and notes as a hierarchical list. This is useful when concentrating on text. The button is shown below:

The resulting view is shown below. Outline Mode belongs to the mind map card; it is separate from a document’s Table of Contents and the Overview.

The modes handle Enter differently while editing a title: Map Mode finishes editing, while Outline Mode creates a sibling node. In both modes, Shift + Enter inserts a line break in the title.

Import and Export

In Map Mode, paste a Markdown list while not editing text to turn it into nodes. The content becomes children of the selected node, or new root nodes if nothing is selected. When a branch is focused and nothing is selected, it becomes children of the focused root. While editing a title or note, pasting inserts ordinary text instead.

In both modes, the More menu at the upper left offers:

• Import Markdown from Clipboard: Append the Markdown outline from the clipboard as new root nodes, keeping existing content.
• Copy as Markdown: Copy the entire mind map, including node titles and notes, as a Markdown outline for use in other tools.

In the WonderPen desktop app, switch to Map Mode to access Export as Image and Export as PDF from this menu:

Keyboard Shortcut Reference

In the tables, Mod means ⌘ Command on macOS, or Ctrl on Windows and Linux. On macOS, Alt corresponds to ⌥ Option.

Map Mode Shortcuts

“Non-editing mode” means that the mind map canvas is focused, but no title or note is being edited.

Create and Edit

Shortcut	Function	Available in
Enter	Finish editing a title and keep the node selected	While editing a title
Enter	Create and edit a sibling node	Non-editing mode
Mod + Enter or Tab	Create and edit a child node	While editing a title; non-editing mode
Shift + Enter	Insert a line break in a title	While editing a title
Enter / Shift + Enter	Insert a line break in a note	While editing a note
F2 / Space	Edit the current node's title	Non-editing mode
Esc	Finish editing a title	While editing a title
Esc	Close the note panel	While editing a note

When editing a title, press Enter once to finish editing; press it again to create a sibling node. When no node is selected, Enter creates a root node. If a branch is focused and you select its root or leave all nodes unselected, Enter adds a child to that root instead.

Adjust Hierarchy and Order

Shortcut	Function	Available in
Mod + ]	Make the current node a child of its previous sibling	While editing a title; non-editing mode
Mod + [	Move the current node to the same level as its parent	While editing a title; non-editing mode
Mod + Shift + ↑ / ↓	Move the current node up / down	While editing a title or note; non-editing mode
Alt + ↑ / ↓	Move the current node up / down	Non-editing mode

Duplicate, Paste, and Delete

Shortcut	Function	Available in
Mod + D	Duplicate the current node and its subtree after the current node	While editing a title or note; non-editing mode
Mod + C	Copy the current node and its subtree to the clipboard	Non-editing mode
Mod + V	Paste clipboard content as a child of the current node	Non-editing mode
Mod + Shift + Backspace	Delete the current node and its subtree	While editing a title or note; non-editing mode
Delete / Backspace	Delete the current node and its subtree	Non-editing mode

Mod + D preserves notes and collapsed state without affecting the clipboard. When editing text, Mod + C / Mod + V perform standard text copy and paste.

When no node is selected, pasted content becomes new root nodes, or children of the focused root if a branch is focused. A confirmation prompt appears when deleting a node with children.

Collapse and Expand

The following shortcuts are available while editing a title or note and in non-editing mode.

Shortcut	Function
Mod + . or Alt + .	Collapse / expand the current branch
Mod + Shift + .	Collapse / expand sibling branches with the same parent as the current node
Mod + Alt + Shift + .	Collapse / expand all branches

For batch operations, branches are collapsed when any branch in scope is expanded; otherwise, they are expanded. All branches include hidden branches and multiple root nodes.

Node Selection

Shortcut / action	Function
Shift + ↑ / ↓	Extend / shrink a contiguous selection in visible tree order
Mod + Click or Shift + Click	Add a node to the selection, or remove it
Shift + drag in an empty area	Select nodes within a marquee
Esc	Clear the selection and cancel an in-progress drag or marquee selection

The keyboard operations above are available in non-editing mode. When editing text, Shift + ↑ / ↓ retain their native text-selection behavior.

Canvas Zoom

The following shortcuts are also available while editing text.

Shortcut	Function
Mod + Shift + =	Zoom in on the canvas
Mod + Shift + -	Zoom out on the canvas
Mod + Shift + 0	Reset to 100%
Mod + Shift + 9 or Mod + Shift + F	Zoom to fit

You can also use the numeric keypad +, -, 0, and 9 for these actions while holding Mod + Shift.

Undo and Redo

Shortcut	Function
Mod + Z	Undo
Mod + Shift + Z or Mod + Y	Redo

When editing a title or note, undo and redo apply to text. In non-editing mode, they apply to mind map operations.

When multiple nodes are selected, shortcuts for operations on individual nodes, including creating, editing, adjusting hierarchy, moving, duplicating, and deleting, are temporarily unavailable. You can still collapse / expand all branches, zoom the canvas, and undo or redo.

Outline Mode Shortcuts

“Non-editing mode” means that the outline is focused, but no title or note is being edited.

Create and Edit

Shortcut	Function	Available in
Enter	Create and edit a sibling node	While editing a title; non-editing mode
Mod + Enter	Create and edit a child node	While editing a title; non-editing mode
Shift + Enter	Insert a line break in a title	While editing a title
Enter / Shift + Enter	Insert a line break in a note	While editing a note
Alt + Enter	Switch between title and note, moving the cursor to the end	While editing a title or note
F2 / Space	Edit the current node's title	Non-editing mode
Esc	Exit title editing or remove focus from a note	While editing a title or note

Adjust Hierarchy and Order

Shortcut	Function	Available in
Tab	Make the current node a child of its previous sibling	While editing a title
Shift + Tab	Move the current node to the same level as its parent	While editing a title
Mod + Shift + ↑ / ↓	Move the current node up / down	Editing mode; non-editing mode
Alt + ↑ / ↓	Move the current node up / down	Non-editing mode

Duplicate and Delete

Shortcut	Function	Available in
Mod + D	Duplicate the current node and its subtree after the current node	While editing a title
Mod + Shift + Backspace	Delete the current node and its subtree	Editing mode; non-editing mode
Delete / Backspace	Delete the current node and its subtree	Non-editing mode
Backspace	Delete an empty node	Editing mode, when both its title and note are empty

Duplicating a node preserves its note and collapsed state without affecting the clipboard. A confirmation prompt appears when deleting a node with children. Spaces and line breaks count as content, so they do not make a node empty.

Collapse and Expand

Shortcut	Function
Mod + . or Alt + .	Collapse / expand the current branch
Mod + Shift + .	Collapse / expand sibling branches with the same parent as the current node
Mod + Alt + Shift + .	Collapse / expand all branches

For batch operations, branches are collapsed when any branch in scope is expanded; otherwise, they are expanded. All branches include hidden branches and multiple root nodes.

Navigate and Select

The following shortcuts are available in non-editing mode:

Shortcut	Function
Shift + ↑ / ↓	Extend / shrink a contiguous node selection
Mod + Click	Add a node to the selection, or remove it
Shift + Click	Select a range of nodes
Esc	Clear the node selection

When editing a title or note, the arrow keys move the text cursor first. At the beginning or end of text, press ← / →; on the first or last visual line, press ↑ / ↓ to move between inputs in this order: “title → note → next node's title.” Collapsed child nodes are skipped. Native text operations remain available when text is selected or a modifier key is held.

Undo and Redo

Shortcut	Function
Mod + Z	Undo
Mod + Shift + Z or Mod + Y	Redo

When editing a title or note, undo and redo apply to text. In non-editing mode, they apply to mind map operations.

When multiple nodes are selected, shortcuts for operations on individual nodes, including creating, editing, adjusting hierarchy, moving, duplicating, and deleting, are temporarily unavailable. You can still collapse / expand all branches and undo or redo.