Outlines. (Pardon my grimace, but I hate them.)
Many writers, though, find outlines useful. Schools require them for research papers and even speeches. Outlines provide structure and organization for ideas, complete with an ordering of those thoughts. They can be handwritten or typed, in an electronic or print copy, to cater to each type of person who works best with a specific one of those means.
The downside is some people are mentally stuck in a structure once they see it numbered in some way. Also, some people don't work well with its vertical orientation.
The key with using an outline is not being married to the first order you come up with; be willing to deviate from the outline if you get a better idea during the writing process.
As far as how you outline, it's rather simple. Make it sentences or keywords, whichever helps you best. Use Roman numerals, bullets, or some other numbering order that works for you. What you outline are the chapters, starting with the chapter numbers, then jot down either high points that you want to hit in the chapter, or the sequence of events that will occur in each chapter.
It'll vary with each writer, what he finds himself naturally inclined to work with. That it's hard to write an outline doesn't necessarily mean that this isn't the best method for you; planning should be difficult.
That's assuming, of course, that you plan at all, but we'll talk about that later this month.
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