How to Create an Outline in Word 2007

1. Open a new document in Word. To create a simple standard book outline, go to the 'Home' toolbar and click the multilevel list icon on the 'Paragraph' tab. Choose the type of outline list you want to create. A multilevel list in Word 2007 is the same as an outline in other versions of Word. For a book outline, select a simple chapter list to work with.
2. Type in a brief chapter synopsis under the first chapter heading in your outline. Select the heading style from the available styles on the toolbar by clicking on the example icon for that style. This will format your document text to that heading style. Use the 'Heading 1' option for your chapter title. The default text is 'Chapter,' but you can change it to the title of your chapter or whatever suits your needs.
3. Hit 'Enter' and select the 'Normal' text option to type a synopsis of your chapter. Write several lines of text giving an overview of your chapter. To add sub plots or notes, click 'Enter' in your text, select another heading style to apply to the text, then write your note or describe a sub plot in your novel. The new heading will make this text distinguishable from the general synopsis. for consistency and ease of understanding, it's important that you use the same heading style for each element of your outline. If notes to yourself are in Heading Style three, make all notes to yourself in this heading style.
4. Continue to build your outline. When you introduce a new element, choose a different heading style than you have already used. Your final outline will be a tree structure that allows you to see your overall novel or article at a glance.