My partner and I are trying to be poly. How does it work between you and your partner(s)? How did you start -- conversations, reading, meeting people? What is your network like? What is the relationship between and among people in your network?
These are huge, broad questions that would take a long time to type full answers to. I strongly encourage you to read through my FAQ and the archives of this blog, and check out the resources linked here. There are tons of first-person accounts, examples, interviews, anecdotes, etc. that can provide a range of answers to the questions you posed here.
No one can provide a roadmap for you and your partner. What works for someone else might not work for you two, so it's unwise to take someone else's story and set that up as a blueprint to strive towards. Do your research and educate yourselves, but don't be too reliant on other people to hold your hand and teach you how to be polyamorous.