Its really mostly trial and error. Finding the right 2 woods to put together. Softer woods work well for this and I like to use plants stalks for the spindle which is the part you are doing the drilling with. Mullein makes a great spindle and is pretty easily found in North America.
Cattail can work well to but I have not had as much success with it. Cedar, cottonwood and Willow make good hearth boards which is the board you are drilling into. You want a fairly soft wood so when choosing it you just press your finger nail into the wood. If it's easy to make in impression in the wood than it will likely make a good hearth board.
Once you have your materials you shave down the spindle so it is nice an smooth to avoid hurting your hands. This is easily accomplished with a knife or a rock with a sharp edge. Aim for a hearth board about 1/2 inch thick. Make a indentation in the hearth board so the spindle does not slip and than do a test burn. This will create a proper hole that holds the spindle in place. From there you notch the wood. The idea is that heat and friction from spinning the spindle will grind the wood into dust. The notch you create will give a place for the dust to accumulate in one spot. The notch will look like this.
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You start off slow and as you go increase speed and pressure until you see smoke. This is where the work begins. Now you keep increasing speed and pressure while the dust forms in that v shaped notch. In time there will be enough heat that the dust will combust and start smoking on it's own. You will see a little red glow in the dust while it smokes. Tap the board to dislodge the pile. You should have a leaf or some other thing in place under this hole where you collected the dust.
Now you take that glowing pile of dust and place it in a tinder bundle. This should consist of very dry grasses. I like to add things like busted up cattail heads. The fluffier the material the better. You are looking for lots of surface area and very fine pieces as they will catch fire the easiest . Most materials can be broken down and worked to create more surface area and you want the finest material in the center where you drop the coal. Than it's just a matter of blowing it into flame. Start out slowly and the more smoke you see the harder you blow until it combusts.
I personally find it very satisfying when you get flame from such a method. To take materials around you in a natural environment and turn them into a fire gives you, or at least gives me, a great feeling of accomplishment. Below is a picture of Mullein which most will recognize.
