How to Write a Better Outline

Paterson is a prolific story machine and works with co-writers to expand his story worlds. Some writers use paper index cards for plotting scenes and characters. Lauren Buchas used a wall of index cards to physically plot the details for her award-winning thriller The Shining Girls, later adapted for TV. J.K. Rowling outlined the Harry Potter series with hand-drawn matrices tracking the characters against the plot and the timeline.