Outline of first dictionary by English writer (8)
I believe the answer is:
describe
'outline' is the definition.
('describe' can be a synonym of 'outline')
'first dictionary by english writer' is the wordplay.
'first' indicates taking the first letters.
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'english' becomes 'e' (abbreviation).
'writer' becomes 'scribe' (scribe is a kind of writer**).
The first letter of 'dictionary' is 'd'.
'd'+'e'+'scribe'='DESCRIBE'
'of' is the link.
(Other definitions for describe that I've seen before include "Draw (a geometrical figure)" , "Tell what something is like" , "style" , "Give an account of extremely" , "Report in detail" .)