Plan stories visually

AI-powered outline chart for fast story structure

Turn ideas into a crisp, color‑coded outline. Generate sections, rearrange beats, and preview instantly—no design skills needed.

Paste notes or start from the sample outline, then tweak colors, indent, and connectors.

Why use this outline tool

Purpose‑built controls for clear, flexible structure

🤖

AI story generator

Describe your plot and get a complete, labeled hierarchy with acts, chapters, and beats in seconds.

🧲

Drag‑and‑drop nodes

Reorder sections, move branches, and refine pacing with smooth drag‑drop interactions.

🎨

Color by level

Auto‑color each hierarchy for quick scanning; adjust palettes to match your brand.

📐

Readable spacing

Tune font size, line height, indent size, and node spacing for maximum clarity.

🕸️

Connector styles

Show or hide connectors and switch between solid or dotted lines to fit your style.

🗂️

Expand or focus

Expand all for overview or collapse branches to focus on a scene or chapter.

Bring your outline data

⌨️

Type or paste

Write headings and beats directly or paste notes from any editor.

📋

Spreadsheet paste

Copy columns from Google Sheets or Excel to seed levels and labels.

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Import file (Pro)

Upload CSV or JSON to load hierarchies in one go.

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Use template

Start from proven story structures and adapt in seconds.

Share and export

🖼️

Download PNG/SVG

Export crisp images for slides, docs, or printing.

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Share link

Send a private link for quick reviews and feedback.

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Embed on site

Add the outline to blogs or docs with a lightweight embed.

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Copy to slides

Grab a presentation‑ready image for decks in one click.

About this outline chart tool

This AI‑powered outline chart generator turns ideas into clear hierarchies fast. It’s simple for beginners and flexible for pros. Edit visually with drag‑drop, colors, and spacing. Export or share in a click. Build story structures with confidence.

  • Optimized for story planning and structured documents
  • AI suggestions tuned for acts, chapters, and beats
  • Precision controls for spacing, indentation, and connectors
  • Accessible, readable designs on any device
  • Fast exporting for slides, docs, and the web

Quick facts

Time to first outline
<2 min
Built‑in templates
20+
Customization options
30+
Languages supported
12+
No sign‑up to try
Yes

Build your outline in minutes

From idea to structured plan—guided by AI

1

Describe your story

Type a brief: genre, audience, length, and major beats. The AI drafts a clear hierarchy with labels and colors.

Example: “Mystery novel, 3 acts, 12 chapters, hero’s journey beats.”

2

Refine structure

Drag to reorder, add or delete nodes, and group ideas. Toggle connectors and expand all for the big picture.

Move ‘Inciting Incident’ under Act I and add ‘Red Herring’ as a child.

3

Style for clarity

Adjust font size, line height, indent, node spacing, and color mapping per level.

Increase line height for readability and switch to dotted connectors.

4

Export or share

Download PNG/SVG, copy to slides, share a link, or embed on your site.

Export SVG for a pitch deck and share a review link with your editor.

Use cases

Where outline charts shine for planning and storytelling

Publishing & Writing

Novel and screenplay planning

Map acts, scenes, and character arcs to keep pacing tight and structure consistent.

Product & UX

Feature roadmap outline

Organize epics, features, and tasks into clear phases that align teams.

Education

Course or lecture outline

Lay out modules, lessons, and activities for transparent learning paths.

Research & Academia

Paper and thesis structure

Plan sections, subsections, and references to maintain logical flow.

Smarter than manual outlining

From scattered notes to a clear hierarchy—fast

Traditional tools

  • Manual formatting, fragile structure
  • Hard to keep levels consistent
  • No quick way to expand/collapse
  • Limited visual styling for readability
  • Slow exporting for teams

AI‑powered outline

  • Auto‑generate acts and beats from a brief
  • Consistent labels, colors, and levels by default
  • One‑click expand‑all or focus on a branch
  • Fine‑tune font, indent, spacing, and connectors
  • Instant PNG/SVG export and share links

Frequently asked questions

What is an outline chart?

An outline chart is a hierarchical view of topics and subtopics. It uses indentation, spacing, and connectors to make relationships obvious, which is ideal for planning stories, courses, and structured documents.

How does the AI story outline generator online work?

Describe your story—genre, acts, and key beats. The AI proposes a labeled hierarchy with colors and readable spacing. You can drag to rearrange, add nodes, and adjust appearance before exporting or sharing.

Can I keep my original order instead of sorting?

Yes. The tool preserves your input order by default. If you prefer, you can request an alphabetical sort or reorder branches with drag‑and‑drop.

Can I customize colors, spacing, and connectors?

Absolutely. Set color by level or branch, tweak font size, line height, indent size, and node spacing, and choose solid, dotted, or no connectors. Expand all for overview or collapse to focus.

Is there a free story outline generator online version?

Yes. You can create, customize, and export outlines for free. Optional Pro features add file uploads, advanced templates, and AI enhancements.

Designed to be inclusive

  • Readable defaults with adjustable font size and line height
  • High‑contrast color palettes for clarity
  • Keyboard navigation for editing and reordering
  • Screen reader‑friendly labels for nodes and controls
  • Right‑to‑left language support across the interface

Your data, your control

  • You decide what to share; private work stays private unless you create a link
  • AI prompts and outputs are used only to generate your outline, not for advertising
  • You can delete files and outlines at any time
  • Local exports (PNG/SVG) require no persistent storage
  • Optional, anonymized usage analytics can be turned off

Start your story outline now

Generate a clean, color‑coded hierarchy in minutes—free to try.

AI‑generated acts and beats
Drag‑drop editing and quick styling
Expand all or focus on a branch
PNG/SVG export and share links
Templates for novels, scripts, and courses