OUTLINECreating an outline begins with a reading of your prewriting First， group related ideastogether， looking for major topics (which can be headings) and minor ones (which can besubheadings， examples， or details) Define your major points， and rearrange them until theymake sense and follow a logical You will be able to see the relationships betweenyour ideas as you outline them， and determine their importance (major point， minor point，example， detail) If you need more supporting details or facts—subcategories—you can addthem As you outline your information， use one-word topics， short phrases， or writeout full sentences for each point on your If your prewriting notes are somewhat organized， you can use the outlining feature includedin most word-processing programs to create an Otherwise， arrange them yourself ina standard outline form using Roman and Arabic numerals and upper and lower case letters:I A B Once you have completed an outline， revise and refine it by following these steps: Write down your overall goal for your What are you trying to say to yourreaders? Go over your outline and circle， underline， or highlight your major points Do they all support your goal? Brainstorm words and phrases that will accurately and concisely express thosepoints (jot them down in the margin of your outline， or use a separate sheet ofpaper) Use this list and your outline to guide your Do not allow yourself tostray from your goal or your major
