English writer and critic Lytton Strachey (1880-1932) quipped that 'perhaps the best test of a man's intelligence is his capacity for making a summary.' As a founding member of the elite Bloomsbury Group, Strachey was known for his wit, which might make his comment a snark that people should get to the point. Nonetheless, he posits this form of brevity as the marker of a sharp mind—a concept worth observing.

Summary writing is a process of distillation and abridgement—it requires that information be condensed into a succinct outline. It is, as Strachey implies, not that easy to do, as it requires the mind to sift and select the key aspects of any topic or text to communicate. It requires critical discernment and effective phrasing at once, to ensure the summary is both concise and precise in representing the longer form accurately.

The task of writing a summary should be streamlined, to prevent any excess of attention that might overcomplicate it. To that end, here are 5 steps to write a summary efficiently:

Read for comprehension—This may require a slightly slower pace, but reading for understanding will prevent time wasted in having to reread after careless skimming.
Put the text away—Put it aside, turn it over, toss it across the room. Just don’t look at it. The more you look at it, the more you will write about it.
Say what the text is about, generally, and write that down—Imagine you are telling someone else what the text is saying, doing or arguing. You’ll notice this can be done in 1-3 sentences, before you start recounting details or examples. Write those few lines down—that is your overview.
Give main body points 1 sentence each, in order—Repeating steps 1-3 for each main section, write the core idea or concept of that section.
Reread, adjusting for meaning and intent—If the summary is too bare, there may be a significant angle, perspective, study or example that needs to be included to reflect the full meaning and intent of the original text. An adjective or adverb sprinkled in here and there might do the trick. Otherwise, give required adjustments 1 sentence where they fit best.

A summary does not need a reiterative conclusion—it’s a framework. Keep it pointed, and say it crisply.