Screenwriting guides
Learning how to become a screenwriter starts with the page: how screenplays are formatted and built, from page layout, templates and scene headings to montages, beat sheets, loglines and TV pilots, plus how to choose screenwriting software.
Screenplay format
Screenplay format: how to format a script, page by page
Page setup, every element with its indent and casing, page breaks, scene numbers and an annotated one-page example — the rules of screenplay format in one place.
Screenplay template: a free script template you can copy
A copyable movie script template with a title page and one scene that shows every element, plus how to use it and a script outline template to plan with.
Screenplay font: why scripts are written in Courier 12
What font scripts use, why monospaced Courier keeps page counts honest, and how Courier, Courier New and Courier Prime differ.
Screenplay title page: what to include and where it goes
What belongs on a script title page, where each line sits, what to leave off a spec script and examples for features, adaptations and TV episodes.
Scene headings: what INT. and EXT. mean in a script
How to write a scene heading: INT. and EXT., location and time of day, CONTINUOUS and LATER, secondary headings and establishing shots, with examples.
How to write a montage in a screenplay, plus flashbacks
How to write a montage in a screenplay, a series of shots, a flashback, a dream sequence and an intercut: how each is formatted on the page, with short original examples and when to use them.
Parenthetical in a screenplay: what it is and when to use one
What a parenthetical is, where it sits on the page, what (beat) means, the four jobs a parenthetical does well and the habits that make readers skim.
Screenplay transitions: match cut, smash cut, CUT TO and fades
Common screenplay transitions explained with original examples: match cut, smash cut, CUT TO, DISSOLVE TO and fades, plus the format rules and when to leave them out.
Script template in Google Docs: margins, indents and limits
How to build a script template in Google Docs, step by step: margins, font, indents for each element and styles, plus the honest limits: no (MORE)/(CONT'D), no element switching, page drift.
Script revision colors: the standard order and how they work
The standard script color order from white to cherry and beyond, what the asterisks and page headers mean, how locked pages and A-pages work, and why spec writers can ignore it.
How to write a title card in a screenplay
How to format on-screen text in a script: SUPER over a picture, TITLE CARD on black, location and time supers, opening titles, chapter cards and text that scrolls.
How to introduce a character in a screenplay
How to introduce a character in a screenplay: the format for a first appearance (capitals, age, one detail) and how to write descriptions that show who someone is rather than what they look like.
How many pages is a movie script?
How many pages is a movie script, a half-hour or hour-long TV episode, a short or a vertical episode, the page-a-minute rule of thumb and what makes the count go up or down.
What does CONT'D mean in a script? (MORE) and (CONT'D) explained
What does CONT'D mean in a script, what (MORE) means, how a speech is split across a page break, (CONT'D) after interrupting action, and why many current spec scripts leave it out.
How to write a text message in a script
How to write a text message in a script: four ways to put texts, chats and screens on the page (INSERT, ON SCREEN, description in action and intercut conversations), with original samples and a rule for choosing.
Dual dialogue in a screenplay: when and how to use it
What dual dialogue is, how the side-by-side columns are laid out, the scenes it suits, the cases where alternating lines read better and an original example.
Fountain format: plain-text screenplay syntax explained
What the Fountain format is, why writers use it, the syntax for scene headings, cues, parentheticals, transitions, forced elements, centered text and notes, and how files move between apps.
Story structure
Story structure: the main plot structures and when to use each
A survey of the main plot structures for screenwriters — three-act, five-act, hero's journey, fifteen beats, kishōtenketsu, Fichtean curve, sequences and nonlinear — and when to use each.
Three-act structure: act breaks, the midpoint and examples
What happens in each act of the three-act structure, where the act breaks and midpoint fall on a 110-page screenplay, and how two well-known films use it.
Inciting incident: what it is, where it goes and examples
The event that knocks a protagonist's life off balance and starts the plot: what it is, where it falls in a screenplay, how it differs from the catalyst and how to write one.
Freytag's pyramid: the five-act structure and the Fichtean curve
Gustav Freytag's pyramid puts the climax at the center of five parts. What each part does, how the five-act structure maps to film and TV, and how the Fichtean curve differs.
Kishōtenketsu: the four-act story structure without conflict
A four-part East Asian structure that builds a story around a twist instead of a conflict: how each part works, examples and how to use it in a short film or episode.
Character arc: types, examples and how to write one
What a character arc is, the three main types, the difference between want and need, how arc beats map onto the three acts and an original worked example.
Dan Harmon's story circle: the eight steps, with an example
The story circle's eight steps in plain words, how the circle's halves and crossings work, how it compares to the hero's journey, how to use it for TV episodes and an original example.
Seven-point story structure: the beats and how to use them
The seven beats of seven-point story structure, why you plan them from the ending backwards, where they fall in a feature script and an original worked example.
Writing craft
How to write a screenplay: a step-by-step guide
How to write a screenplay in layers: a one-sentence idea, a structure, an outline of scenes, a fast first draft and several rewrites. Here is each step in order.
Beat sheet: what it is and how to write one
A beat sheet is the skeleton of a screenplay: the handful of moments where the story turns. Here is how the three-act, Save the Cat beat sheet and hero's journey versions compare.
How to write a logline, with examples
A logline sells a story in one sentence. Here is what goes into one, a formula to start from, original examples and how a logline differs from a tagline and a synopsis.
How to write a TV pilot: structure, format and acts
A pilot has to tell a complete story and prove a show can run for years. Here is how to choose a pilot type, structure acts, format the script and build a series bible.
What is a screenplay? Definition, length and how it differs
What is a screenplay, what screenwriting involves, screenplay vs script vs teleplay, spec scripts vs shooting scripts, how long a screenplay runs and who reads it.
Vertical drama: how to write a micro drama series
What vertical short dramas are, how one episode is built from hook to cliffhanger, how to format the script for a 9:16 frame and how to outline a full season.
Script coverage: what it is, script doctors and how to use notes
What goes in a coverage report, what pass, consider and recommend mean, how a script doctor differs from a reader and how to give, receive and act on script notes.
How to write a synopsis for a screenplay, with an example
What a synopsis is, how it differs from a logline and a treatment, how long it should be, a one-page structure to follow and an original example with the ending included.
How to write dialogue in a screenplay, with examples
How to write dialogue for the screen: distinct voices, subtext, exposition without speeches, interruptions and silence, plus how dialogue is formatted in a screenplay, with before and after samples.
How to write a film treatment, with an example
What a treatment is in film, how it differs from a synopsis and an outline, how long it should be, what goes in it, how to write one and an original short treatment example.
How to write a scene in a screenplay
How to write a scene: what a scene is, the goal, conflict and turn every scene needs, why to enter late and leave early, a step-by-step method and an original sample.
How to write a short film script
How to write a short film: how long the script should be, why it needs one idea, how to write for limited locations and cast, a simple short structure, step-by-step method and examples to read.
Short film ideas you can actually shoot: 40 prompts by constraint
Forty original short film ideas and prompts grouped by production constraint, a method for generating your own ideas, how to test an idea before you write it, and how to turn a prompt into a script.
Templates
Character profile template for screenwriters, with an example
A copyable character sheet template with nine fields, a filled original example and how to use a character bible while you draft without letting it replace the script.
Shot list template: columns, abbreviations and a filled example
The ten columns of a working shot list, what WS, MS, CU, ECU, OTS, POV and insert mean, a filled example for an original scene and how to build one step by step.
Storyboard template: panel fields, layouts and a filled example
What goes in a storyboard panel, how to lay out a page, a filled text storyboard for an original scene and how to go from script to boards without drawing skills.
Story outline: templates for screenplays and novels
What a story outline is, scene-by-scene vs sequence outlines, a copyable screenplay outline and novel outline template, a filled example and how to keep the outline in step with the draft.
Worldbuilding template: rules, places, history and a filled example
The sections of a worldbuilding template and story bible, a filled example for an original series, how a series bible differs and how to keep the bible short enough to use.
Story bible template: what goes in a series bible (with show bible examples)
The sections of a story bible template — logline, tone, world rules, characters, arcs, locations and an episode map — a filled show bible example, TV versus novel series bibles, and how to keep the bible matching the script.
Script breakdown: elements, marking a scene and breakdown sheets
How to do a script breakdown: the element categories, how to mark up a scene, a copyable breakdown sheet template, a filled example and how breakdowns feed the schedule and budget.
Call sheet template: what goes on it, with a filled example
What a call sheet is, a free call sheet template with the sections every one needs (calls, location and safety, schedule, cast, crew, notes), how to build it from the breakdown and schedule, and a filled example.
Choosing software
How to choose the best screenwriting software: an honest guide
There is no single best screenwriting software, only the right fit. These are the criteria that matter, the questions to ask before you commit and where Scenaloom does and does not fit.
Looking for a Final Draft alternative? What to check
Moving from Final Draft is mostly about your .fdx files. Here is what carries over, how to check a round trip, a migration checklist and when desktop software is still the better choice.
Novel writing software: how to choose, and where Scenaloom fits
Five criteria for choosing novel writing software, questions to ask in a trial, what each kind of tool is good at and exactly what Scenaloom's novel mode does and does not do.