Notation in Organic Chemistry: Guide to Writing and Using Condensed Formulas and Line Drawings

Examples for acetone and alanine (an amino acid) will be carried through the process.

Step 1: Start with the correct complete Lewis structure.

Step 2: Eliminate the dots for all lone pairs of electrons. No information is lost; the number of lone pairs on each atom is designated by the specific bonding arrangement (number of bonds plus any stated formal charge).