> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.trydear.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Outline mode: capture ideas and build your plan

> Use Outline to gather raw ideas as index cards, arrange them into a structured plan, and send that plan to Write with a single click.

Outline mode is where a piece begins. Instead of starting with a blank canvas, you gather raw material — fragments of thought, spoken notes, pasted text — and let Dear organize them into index cards. Once your cards are in order, you pick a structure, review the AI-generated plan, and send the whole thing to Write with one click.

## Switching to Outline

Select the **Outline** tab on the left side of the toolbar at the top of the workspace. You can return to **Write** at any time; your cards are preserved between switches.

## The Explore sub-tab

When you first open Outline, you land on the **Explore** sub-tab — a staging area for raw input. Use the switcher at the bottom of the panel to move between Explore and Outline.

There are three ways to add material:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Talk">
    Press the voice button to start live transcription. Dear captures what you say in real time using live transcription. When you stop, the spoken text is committed as a new index card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Type">
    Type a short note directly into the staging area and press **Enter** (or the send button) to create a card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Paste">
    Paste a block of text. Dear splits it into chunks and creates one index card per chunk.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Each card receives an AI-generated header that summarizes the note. When consecutive cards share the same topic, Dear merges the voice segments automatically so related thoughts stay together.

<Note>
  Only typed text counts toward your human-written word total. Words that arrive through AI-generated headers are not credited.
</Note>

## The Outline sub-tab

Switch to the **Outline** sub-tab to shape your cards into a plan. Dear reads your cards and generates a plan summary and a set of suggestions based on the structure you choose.

### Choosing a structure

Select one of four structures before generating the plan:

| Structure      | Best for                                      |
| -------------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| **Outline**    | Hierarchical pieces with distinct sections    |
| **Freeform**   | Open-ended writing without a fixed shape      |
| **Narrative**  | Stories or sequential accounts                |
| **Comparison** | Side-by-side analysis of two or more subjects |

### Reviewing the plan

After you pick a structure, Dear generates:

* A **plan summary** that describes how your cards fit together.
* **Suggestions** — additional cards you can add to fill gaps in the outline. Each suggestion inserts at a specific position. You can refresh suggestions to get alternatives.

You can reorder cards by dragging them within the Outline sub-tab. Expanding a card reveals its full text.

<Tip>
  Add at least three cards before switching to the Outline sub-tab. Suggestions only appear once there are enough cards for Dear to detect patterns.
</Tip>

## Sending the plan to Write (Stitch)

When the plan looks right, click **Send plan to Write**. This runs Stitch, which converts your ordered cards into heading and body blocks in the Write editor, then switches you to Write mode automatically.

The cards themselves are not deleted — you can return to Outline at any time and continue adding material.