Don't stress BT, you are now, and have in the past been, in great company. I myself waited until the Thanksgiving holiday to start outlining and I can not honestly think of anyone that I associated with that actually put a valid effort into outlining before then (just not enough time). After reading your post I got curious as to whether starting late is the norm or if I just hung around slcakers, so I asked around my firm and this is how it stacked up. Out of 32 people asked 27 waited until a month or less before finals...2 started 2 weeks into the semester...1 started midway...and 2 used commercial outlines (scary prospect, wouldn't reccommend that). The general answer as to why they started late was either lack of time or that they wanted to wait until they had as much info as possible. I'm sure you have noticed how the case you read last week got trumped by the one you read this week. Sometimes the last few weeks of class are what actually bring it all together for most people. I attended a top 10 school and am far from brilliant so I am certain that I did not pass my finals due to sheer genius. So, I would advise that you start when you think you can afford to take the time away from briefing, writing, researching, attending class, eating, and sleeping. If you have to wait until November don't stress it. Just get it done about a week before finals and study. Believe me, it will all come together and seem pretty damn simple...unfortunately that doesn't seem to happen for most people until the last few weeks of the semester.
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