The outline of your book is what helps to keep the ideas flowing and organized. The outline is important to the author and nobody else, so design it how you would like it.
I'll show you how I design mine and why.
1. Program
For me, this is extremely simple. I use two free programs to write my outlines and ideas. The notes app on my phone, and "Microsoft To-Do"
Something else that I've been trying out is Scrivener, a one-time purchase that allows you to personalize how you write, outline, and store information, and has become very useful to me.
2. My Format (notes)
- put important things in bold
- WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN
3. Chapter Organization (Microsoft To-Do)
I use the app Microsoft To-Do to organize chapters because it is free, easy to use, and does exactly what I want it to do. Originally I only used Notes, but when it came to writing the "scenes" which is how I plan chapters, I couldn't move them around without deleting and re-writing them constantly.
I use this app specifically for the fact that I can drag ideas around and check them off when they are completed(when I've written them).
But what if I decide that I want A & B to fall in love before they go on an adventure? I can easily pick them up and drag them around where I want.
- put a short description of an event that you want to happen in each row
- click the circle on the left when you have finished writing that chapter