Zette's Take: How outlines work and when they don't

Outlines are not for everyone

I won't tell you that every single writer needs to work with an outline. That would be as ludicrous as any other 'you must do this' rule that you've read about writing. However, at the same time, I don't believe anyone should say 'never' to some tool in writing. You never know when something that otherwise doesn't work for you is just the bit of help you need