Generative Scribing: A Social Art of the 21st Century

I have known and worked closely with Kelvy for nearly two decades. There is no one I feel more indebted to for my own orientation to and understanding of our practice, and the potential in our field of play. In GENERATIVE SCRIBING, Kelvy solidly and poetically lands an important, relevant, and timely approach and model of practice—one I've been lucky to witness in development.Her offering provides insight and guidance into the unseen—a guide through the conceptual and practical underpinnings of transformation through listening and mark making. Her work gracefully invites us all to challenge ourselves while remaining rooted in our bodies, feet firmly planted on the ground, immersed in humor, acceptance, and hope (and surrounded by colorful leaves, lichen and moss).As a perpetual learner, I have often (knowingly and unknowingly) borrowed and tested out ideas from Kelvy, and in doing so am slowly coming to find and learn how to use my own voice (and mind, body, hand) in service of others and our shared future.Many of the gifts I’ve received from Kelvy over the years are now here, in this book—a valuable source and an invitation to engage in further exploration and advancement of the ideas it so carefully expresses. Kelvy gifts us with poetry, beauty, and space for self-reflection. She provides new and historical models to inform our work from the minute we put down the book (even in fact, as we read).Her approach models patience, deep care, and dedicated striving toward a future we can hold and sense into alone, together—a future that gives me great hope for our practice, for the trajectory of my own personal development and my work with colleagues and partners, and for (dare I go this far) the evolution of our species. This book serves as a welcome reminder that how we listen, attune, amplify, and see together is of utmost importance. Thank you, Kelvy, for this gift and invitation.

Otto Scharmer is a leadership and systems theorist and Kelvy Bird takes the theories and demonstrates what they look like in real time through the art of graphic facilitation. Bird’s book is really a book of poetry in the best sense and flow like her inspired drawings. Not to pick on Scharmer, okay well a little, but there is less value in Theory U unless it also has the sweat and tears on it which Kelvy Bird supplies. The book is filled with minimal yet striking illustrations, beautiful and memorable phrases and an openness and vulnerability lacking in much more theoretical frameworks. All to say - if you need inspiration, aesthetics, heart and yes - leadership and change theory - get the book. Substitute the word “scribe” with the word facilitator, trainer or leader and you will see what I mean. Now, get generative!

This is not a book for people who've seen graphic notetakers or facilitators and want a tactical guide to the craft -- though the appendices alone will inspire you to bust out of your linear, tiny-notebook mode of recording. Instead, this is a much deeper discussion of presence, of group dynamics, and of finding one's role in the world, in the moment, in a group. It is a beautiful, authentic, personal, reflective account by a practitioner that you will want to keep on your shelf and pass along to others who strive to be more in tune with their individual and collective potential.

After reading Bird's Generative Scribing, I decided to attend her recent training in Toronto. Both experiences were so powerful. Somehow she manages to transfer her wisdom into the book, while within the training, the book's wisdom is brought to life with a similar "art" of expression and skill. You do not need to be a graphics expert or even a good doodler to make sense and utility of this process. She rightly suggests this is part of the new social communication skills required in a complex world. I whole-heartedly agree with her. Dive in and experience for yourself...you'll quite literally see and communicate a new world as a result.

This piece of art is pure poetry for (and of) the soul. Kelvy has a way with words and phrases that is just magical. I love every detail about this book, from the sensuous texture of the cover which makes it almost warm to the touch, to the single-word chapter titles, to the bold brushstrokes that remind me of Chinese calligraphy and ink, to the layout and composition which actually make it very easy and natural to approach reading in a non-linear way, to (in the author's words): "jump around at will... Pass over what you don't need today. Find what resonates and dwell there."The way in which Kelvy shares the generative process is simple, yet powerful. There are precious moments of vulnerability and humour. I feel this is a work of empowerment, that should encourage us all to explore scribing with more courage, and a new desire to let our hands and gut guide us. I love the wide margin space that has been expressly designed for note-taking and scribbling: it makes the book much more interactive. I believe something actually happens differently in the way we read and feel the text, as we make our own marks on the page. Meaning becomes more familiar, the process creates new connections of thought and feeling.

I have personally witnessed and benefited from Kelvy's beautiful gift to visually representing ideas while people talk—this book is a powerful read for anyone that wants to build their awareness of being to listen, connect, make meaning visually.Kelvy once again is helping all of us move forward gracefully into an emerging future. Thank you!

A great reflection to help organizations see what they say they believe. A scribe’s offering is the strongest tool to visualize ideas and assist in decision making. The process is so important for us all to understand. Our organization’s purpose comes to life in a collaborative situation with a quality scribe. This book is seminal root text for the process.

A fascinating look into the world of scribing. Intellectually stimulating.

This book is about generative scribing, which is a visual practice and an art form, functioning in the moment, across boundaries, as a device for social seeing.[1] The primary value of generative scribing is in-the-moment collective sourcing and reflection. Through scribing, a group can see a course to take and find their direction. The scribe aids the group to induce a greater vision and turn it into action.[2]Generative scribing activates and makes visible the unseen—yet felt—inner life of the social field. This means that scribing only takes place within a group of people. It doesn’t depend on one scribe’s view, but on the input of many views. The drawing has the power to influence and to transform the thinking in the room.[3] With the aid of seeing together, a group can more clearly choose and chart its path. Views become shared and problems become solvable.[4]The book is intended as an approach to the practice of generative scribing and is divided into five sections:[5]- Be: Bringing forward your most authentic self. Being matters.[6] When we draw, disconnected from interior knowing, we represent an interpreted reality and miss the opportunity to create from inside out.[7] Scribes need to stay open and connected to the flow of meaning that wants to be mapped. Staying open, while listening and drawing, is a key skill and a real challenge.[8] By staying open the scribe becomes a channel for what wants to come through, for something that wants to be seen.[9] Scribes contribute to social fields by showing up from inside out.[10] By being in touch with themselves at the truest level, scribes are in a position to meet the truth in the room through what they draw.[11]- Join: Engaging across boundaries. Boundaries dissolve when we activate our deeper humanity.[12] Scribes meet intuitive knowing—beyond the literal understanding of words and concepts. Relaxed, scribes can receive and join as conduits for the flow-through of meaning.[13] The meaning doesn’t come after the interaction. It comes alongside and involves listening. Listening is a through line to any generative practice.[14]- Perceive: Noticing with a broad, systems view. Seeing is how we perceive our way into thinking and structures, to reveal dynamics and shift outcomes. To see is to comprehend.[15] Moving through uncertainty, we experiment. With experimentation, we experience and perceive. Through perception, we orient and choose. And through choosing, we direct our action.[16] It is far too easy to inadvertently close our minds to what is actually going on. A closed mindset serves no one.[17] If something is not clear, slow down.[18] The framing of the mind influences the organization of the drawing. What others see influences their understanding of the structures in play.[19] Reframing allows us to see things from multiple perspectives.[20] It is directly related to seeing with fresh eyes.[21]- Know: Discern coherence to inform choice. In any moment, when we want to understand, we can inquire into the underlying order by asking: How does this make sense?[22] Trying to see the greater context enhances our perspective.[23] In generative scribing, we can impose structure and/or we can inquire into what is seeking new form. Seeking coherence demands trust. And trust encourages us to consider that this drawing or that conversation is exactly what is meant to unfold in this particular moment. It is a piece of the greater context that is becoming known.[24] Scribes have to choose what to draw. Part of this is subjective, based on listening skills; part is objective, based on ordering ability; and part is generative, based on connecting with source.[25] Listen deeply to the space between the words for what wants to be seen. If nothing comes, nothing is yet meant to come.[26]- Draw: Giving form to content. Drawing is a weaving together of multiple inputs from the social field. Through our drawing we have the power to represent the possible, and to help initiate it into the present moment. Scribing helps the unborn to birth, and brings a new reality to life.[27] We draw what we must draw, in the present moment as it unfolds, in the right time.[28] Generative scribing is a drawing process with which we open to the unknown to bring it to life.[29] If our craft or practice is something other than scribing, then we can apply a generative approach to that too.[30]To summarize, this is a book for all who care about how we exist together, and who want to explore our interior functioning, both as individuals and as a group.[31] Generative scribing is fluid motion. The book can be read in the same way. It is written in such a way that it encourages the reader to jump around at will to find what is most needed.[32] Kelvy Bird’s writing and drawing resonates deeply with me. This is the kind of book you don’t stop reading!Notes:[1] Kelvy Bird, Generative Scribing: A Social Art of the 21st Century (PI Press, 2018), p.1.[2] Ibid., p.5.[3] Ibid., p.5.[4] Ibid., p.10.[5] Ibid., pp.12--13.[6] Ibid., p.49.[7] Ibid., p.50.[8] Ibid., p.53.[9] Ibid., p.56.[10] Ibid., p.61.[11] Ibid., p.63.[12] Ibid., p.67.[13] Ibid., p.71.[14] Ibid., p.77.[15] Ibid., p.87.[16] Ibid., p.92.[17] Ibid., p.93.[18] Ibid., p.97.[19] Ibid., p.100.[20] Ibid., p.102.[21] Ibid., p.103.[22] Ibid., p.120.[23] Ibid., p.122.[24] Ibid., p.123.[25] Ibid., p.124.[26] Ibid., p.127.[27] Ibid., p.133.[28] Ibid., p.142.[29] Ibid., p.143.[30] Ibid., p.146.[31] Ibid., p.11.[32] Ibid., p.14.

This book has quickly become my core reference guide in my work on organisational development and change. I'd say it's for anyone passionate about change and people, you don't need to scribe to find it a powerful and useful read. It's always with me, mostly in my hand and almost always influencing my practice and interactions.Through her drawings and practice Kelvy distils, integrates and shares an amazingly broad spectrum of thinking and approaches into this slim and gorgeously written guide. An economical, beautiful and humble offering. The main problem I have with this book, is prizing it out of the hands of people I show it to.

Nice book written by a to expert. It is very useful!

This is one of those wise quiet books that is so unassuming that you may miss seeing what you are holding. If you are interested in generative scribing, this book is a key resource with thoughtful insights into that process. Even if you have never heard of generative scribing and don't draw, I would recommend this book. This is a book about noticing, understanding what matters, and meaningful ways to relate and create connections in what you you are noticing...which is wise guidance for living a full life.

Kelvy offers in this book a profound and meaningfull approach on scribing (love the concept). I red the book in just two days and I'm ready to read it again (so many details, hints, insights...). Brilliantly written. Clear and touching. Based on her vast experience. Connecting both: who we are and what we do (as scribers). A must to all of us who we are trying to bring a generative approach to organizational development&learning through #VisualThinking.