Types of Outlines

If you’re a writer who needs a plan before diving in—aka a plotter—then an outline is probably one of your best friends. They help you map out your story ensuring your characters get from point A to point B. Outlines keep you on track and break down how your plot points will come together to create a compelling story. There are a variety of ways to outline, and we wanted to discuss a few of the most common ones as well as our favorite way to outline.

Classic Outline

The classic outline has been with us since we first started writing papers. It includes headings and subheadings all marked with numbers, letters, or Roman numerals. It lets you detail your main plot points and your subplots. The great thing about the classic outline is that you can be as vague or detailed as you want. If you just want to map out the key plot points, you can, but you can also have more in-depth chapter breakdowns. This outline is perfect for seeing the chronological structure of your story from start to end.

Web Outline

The web outline is also known as clustering. To put it simply, it is a web of ideas. This outline has always seemed like a great way to brainstorm. You can get all your thoughts and ideas out in one cohesive space. Web outlines start with a main idea in the center. Details, descriptions, and subplots branch out from there. You can place these in bubbles or boxes and then connect points using lines. This outline allows you to see how different elements of your story connect. You could do this to sketch out a character’s backstory, or the plot of your novel, or even on a chapter-by-chapter basis.

Index Card Outline

We’re not sure who invented the index card outline, but we like their style. This method involves capturing the details of a scene on one index card. This allows you to take a deep dive into the details of your book and have a good understanding of how a scene will play out before writing it. This outline lets you literally piece together your story. It’s great for structuring your story and gives you the freedom to rearrange plot points. This outline would be helpful in determining the timing and pacing of the story.

Calendar Outline

The calendar outline has become our favorite. While we would love to say we came up with this idea, we’re pretty sure others were doing it before us. For this outline, we print out monthly calendars with the dates our story takes place. We then fill in the main plots as well as the subplots. It helps us see how our story progresses and if the overall timeline makes sense. This type of outline also helps us with pacing because we can see how quickly things progress or if there’s a lull period. If you’re feeling adventurous, you could pair this with an index card style and stick post it notes in for each day. This would let you rearrange things, while still seeing the timeline of the story.

Outlines can be a great tool to help you have a clear direction for your story. We’re sure there are other methods in the world, but these are a few of the most common ones. Whether you like having a detailed outline or prefer to jot down the main points, there’s an outline out there to suit your needs.