Step Two:

Know Your Tools

Once you have some idea of the method you would like to try, the next step is experimenting with tools.

Paper and Pen

Ah, the classic paper and pen, and this is good for any outlining method you choose, whether it be creating lists, grids, or doodling scenes and characters; and whether you choose pen, pencil, highlighters, color coding, black and white, lined paper, dotted paper, loose paper or bound stacks of paper. It's all up to you, and there's no wrong way.

Boards and Cards

Again, you have an infinite number of possibilities to how you want to outline with this, whether you use a corkboard, whiteboard, a poster board, a tri-fold board, or even your wall. You also have the option of color-coded sticky notes, index cards, pins, strings, and more.

Word Processors

If you're starting to dip your toes in on outlining via a laptop, computer, tablet, or even phones, a simple word processor can be a great way to get started. A simple notes app can be used to make simple list of ideas, and planners can include a little more, such as mood boards.

Some can afford the latest version of Microsoft Word, but, if you want a free alternative, there's always Google Docs and Libre Office.

I usually use Libre Office's text document for my character outlines, and Calc for story outlining, and another document for my world-building, but you can make moodboards and mindmaps using the Draw, and you can insert your story boards or story notes using the Presentation.

The awesome thing about this is you can create and save templates so you don't have to create everything from scratch over and over. You can just open the template, fill it out, and save without worrying about saving over the template, having to recreate the template later.

The headings and the navigation tree make going back and forth from one part of a document to another a breeze in case you couldn't remember what you mentioned or how you described something.

And if you're pressed for time, you can add quick comment bubbles to remind yourself what you would like to add to your outline, or ask yourself questions, or make a note that this thing still needs to be foreshadowed somewhere in an earlier chapter.

Specialized Writing Programs

There are a million programs specifically for outlining and writing stories. Scrivener, Ulysses, Obsidian, Bear, iA Writer, and Upnote, are just a drop in the bucket, and they all have their ups and downs, so you may want to try any free trials to see if any of them are right for you, but let me just remind you that whatever you see on these programs, you can do the same thing--or close to it--using other tools (for free). These programs just makes it more convenient and all in one place with easy navigation instead of opening and closing folders and windows.

That being said, I would like to shamelessly plug in a newer program that I've been using for more than a year, and have been (mostly) enjoying. I initially started outlining with LibreOffice Calc, but I bumped into a program called WaveMaker Cards, gave it a whirl, and, honestly, I've been using it more than LibreOffice. While I'll get into more detail of how I used it to outline Sequestered Mind later in this piece, let me list some of its features that made my life easier:

• Data cards that you can color code, add images, and tag so you can easily find them in a sea of data cards.
• Outlining using the Snowflake Method, where you can split and expand one general idea into three cards at a time, and you can export this into a book if you want to write into even further detail or create even more detailed data cards.
• A Plot Grid system where you can plug data cards under however many columns and rows you need.
• A Story Planner where you can easily move data cards from one chapter/scene/whatever-you-want-to-use-it-for, to another.
• A distraction free writing space with simple formats, the ability to change the page and font color, and have your notes and a navigation tree on either side of your writing space for easier referencing as you write. And if you want an even more distraction-free writing space, you can write in typewriter mode, and the entire screen will be just your writing space.
• Simple timelines with a subject line for dates, time and location, and a text box for detailing the event, lined up in a column rather than a row.
• Simple mind map that you can insert pictures into and has a few options for lines.
• You can have more than one book, story planner, timeline, snowflake, mind map under one file, which makes things handy if you're working on a series.
• You're able to save new versions of your file, so if you misplaced your newest file, or it was accidentally deleted, you can go to the other most recent saved file and work from that, instead of having to start entirely over.

The only thing that is missing for me is a space for character outlines. My work around has been to create a separate book for them, but that means having to copy and paste from my LibreOffice template and fill it out. I quickly decided to just stick with LibreOffice Word for my character outlines. My hope is for that to be a feature in a newer version of WMC with completely customized character outlines, which have been my main issue with other programs. I either don't like their template, am unable to customize them, or it's an absolute nightmare to customize them, and customize them for every character.

If you do decide to try it out, and have questions, the creator/programmer has a subreddit, r/wavemakercards, and they're pretty active and open to future possibilities. Just don't ask them to insert the Save the Cat story outline template. The creators of that template didn't like it being used in WMC (without their permission), so the programmer had to take it out and isn't planning on reinserting it.

Other Methods

If you can outline by embroidering on a potato sack, go for it. I encourage you to try all sorts of methods and see what works best for you.