During what stage of the writing process do you explore a topic and organize ideas

The stage of the writing process in which the writer explores the topic and organizes ideas is called brainstorming/outlining. During this stage, the writer jots down, usually through a graphic organizer such as a bubble map, the ideas that she would like to explore and develop, and begins to organize the structure of the essay, including the main topics that she will write about and in what order.