If You Can Write, You Can Draw

Are you held back from visual thinking because you’re afraid of drawing? You’re not alone. Visual thinking – the practice of using drawings and diagrams to understand information, tackle complex problems, and share ideas – can seem intimidating at first. But here’s the truth: if you can write letters, you can draw.

The Connection Between Writing and Drawing

When you break it down, writing and drawing are remarkably similar activities. Both combine straight lines with curved lines – that’s it! The only difference is that with drawing, these lines might vary in size and orientation.

We spent years practicing the alphabet as children, making those marks feel natural. Drawing simply requires applying these same skills in a slightly different way.

Simple Examples to Get You Started

Let’s look at some everyday objects and how they break down into familiar shapes:

  1. Coffee Mug: Start with two straight lines, add a curve like the letter ‘D’, mirror it, and finish with a ‘C’ shape for the handle.
  2. Phone: Four straight lines for the rectangles, with a small ‘O’ at the bottom.
  3. Desk Lamp: Think of it as a squished ‘S’, add rectangles and ‘C’ or ‘D’ shapes, combine curves and straight lines – and there’s your lamp!

Practice Makes Progress

The key isn’t learning new mark-making skills – you already have those. What you need is practice in:

  • Breaking down objects into basic curved and straight lines
  • Creating those marks in a smooth, flowing sequence

I encourage you to look around your own space. Pick objects and practice breaking them down into their basic components.

You can even add simple three-dimensionality without much extra effort – just a few strategic curved lines can make a flat drawing pop.

Helpful Resources

To continue developing your visual thinking skills, here are two valuable resources:

  1. The Noun Project: A collection of icons that shows how to simplify objects into minimal lines. Remember, efficiency is key – aim to capture the essence of an object with as few lines as possible.
  2. The Verbal to Visual Notebook: My book of activities designed to build your visual note-taking skills. Those prompts will help you become comfortable with different types of marks while learning to use writing and drawing as tools for thinking, brainstorming, and collaboration.

Getting Started Today

Ready to begin? Here’s what to do:

  1. Grab paper and your preferred writing tool
  2. Write the alphabet in capital letters as a warm-up
  3. Choose an object nearby and try drawing it
  4. Focus on making those straight and curved lines, experimenting with different sizes and orientations

Before you know it, your fear of drawing will fade away, and you’ll have unlocked a powerful new way to think and communicate.

Hand-drawn black ink illustration on a white background demonstrating the concept of 'Straight Lines + Curved Lines.' The top section features uppercase letters A to P in a simple, sketch-like style. Below the text, there are four sketched objects: a coffee mug with a curved handle, a tablet with a rectangular screen, a desk lamp emitting light, and a pair of speakers with visible circular elements and a connected power cord. At the bottom, two website URLs—TheNounProject.com and VerbalToVisual.com—are written with small globe icons next to them. The text 'Video by Doug Neill' is also included.

Remember: We’re not aiming for gallery-worthy art – we’re creating functional visuals to communicate ideas effectively. If you can write, you already have what it takes to draw.

Cheers,

-Doug