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How Can I Use My Outline to Begin Drafting?

Your outline provides a framework you can use to draft your document. Your outline likely includes your plans for

the points you will include in your document
the order in which you will make your points
the amount of space you plan to devote to each point

As you review your purpose and your outline, check that you have organized your document in a way that will allow you to achieve your purpose and address the needs and interests of your readers.

If you have listed information about the sources you will use to support your points, you can check whether you are

providing enough evidence to support your points
relying too heavily on a limited number of sources
relying too heavily on support from sources that favor just one side of the conversation

If you created an informal outline, you can begin to flesh it out by translating key points in your outline into sentences or paragraphs. If you created a formal outline, you can turn major headings in the outline into headings or subheadings in your draft and then use the points under each heading as the basis for topic sentences for paragraphs. If your outline is highly detailed, you can use minor points as the basis for supporting sentences within each paragraph.

If your outline contains references to specific notes or sources, make sure that you use those notes or sources in your draft. Take advantage of the time you spent thinking about which sources are most appropriate for a particular section of your document.

As you work on your draft, you might find it necessary to reorganize your ideas. Think of your outline as a flexible guide rather than a rigid blueprint.