Screenwriting : Best script writing software ? by Ariella Crots

As far as software is concerned, I recommend using Final Draft.

https://www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/Best-Screenwriting-Software

https://www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/Screenwriting-books

FWIW, I love Celtx. Save the Cat and The Hollywood Standard are my book essentials. People can disagree on software, but The Hollywood Standard is irreplaceable. .

There is really no best, its what you feel comfortable using and how much are you willing to invest in your career.

If you can afford it, Final Draft is what the pros use. BUT any screenwriting software is acceptable because most scripts end up being sent as a PDF anyway.

Personally I use WritersDuet, a web based software that has both free and paid accounts. I write mostly on the go, so I being able to use several devices to push out a first draft is important. I use Final Draft on my main PC to edit and do final checks.

I use a Celtx ... It's still puts your script into the correct industry standard and also has a free version incase you didn't want to pay all the additions straight away. What Anthony said, it's what you feel comfortable using most screenwriting tools put your script into the correct format. Look around trial some out.

Rian Johnson, Craig Mazin, Kelly Marcel, Rawson Marshall Thurber, Gary Whitta, F. Scott Frazier.

They use Fade In Pro.

Look. Use what you want. But if you're just starting out, why spend hundreds of $$$ on Final Draft when all you need is a simple software that can format your script? All you're sending to potential managers, agents or producers is a .pdf.

No problema. I'll just call up the script on Fade In Pro, then export it as an .fdx file.

Problem solved.

By the way, it's also possible to give notes on a .pdf.

And how can anyone tell the difference between a Fade In Pro .pdf and a Final Draft .pdf?

Inquiring minds want to know.

If you read enough, you can. The Courier Final Draft font has a weight, leading and look like no other font. The closest is Courier Prime, but it defaults to 11.5 point that shaves pages off the final script.

I use the 12 point font in Fade In Pro. Or if I'm feeling particularly bold, I'll change it to something else.

I use Final Draft. Trelby is free and quite good though I have read it's not strictly format but I don't know if that's true it looks fine to me. I've read a lot of books and I'll be honest other than Mckees story which I read twenty years ago I've never finished one of them. They all just spout the same thing to me. I really like Larry Wilson ( Beetlejuice/ The Addams Family ) You can find work shops in Amsterdam and there's a good interview at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6bAiU66Mvw you won't find much on structure there but when you've blocked yourself into a depressive corner after reading all the rest he's a breath of fresh air.

Spring for Final Draft. You will never regret it. Pick up The Screenwriter's Bible by David Trottier, you will have script format embedded in your brain by the time you're done and it is a really easy read.

Final Draft and the 3 Save the Cat books.

If people can afford it Final Draft is probably the best because if you sell a screenplay or write one on assignment you'll probably have to end up getting a copy of the Final Draft. I never read David Trotter's "The Screenwriter's Bible" but everyone says it is great.

My recommendation is the Final Draft and Stage 32 Writers' Room.

...how can anyone tell the difference between a Fade In Pro .pdf and a Final Draft .pdf?

Metadata buried inside the .pdf structure can provide more info than a writer might wish to disclose.

S32 member Jeff Yates made available for download his Since You've Been Gone TV Pilot. Simple examination of the .pdf shows that it was generated on 4/26/2019 at 12:26:17 PM from Final Draft 7 on Mac OS X platform.

S32 member Stephen L. Cleary generated The Seaglass Accords on 4/24/2019 at 9:43:33 PM from celtx via the jsPDF driver.

S32 member Shawn Decker generated T.V. Mitaka on 8/15/2018 on 6:22:35 PM from FadeIn Pro 3.0.592.

Anybody seriously gonna claim that Jeff, by "virtue" of using FD, is more of a "pro" than Stephen or Shawn?

It's highly doubtful that any serious player in the Big H is gonna give a sh!t to the extent of doing such nosy file forensics to verify the "professionalism" of a given writer. If a screenwriting prog can export (& import) a .fdx (as FadeIn Pro does), yer good to go.

From what I've heard, Final Draft is the go to if you can afford it, but there are many others. I personally use Celtx, and I've encountered no problems thus far. Effective and efficient enough for me at the moment. I do however intend to make the upgrade to Final Draft when the time arises. Here's a link for the free download of the desktop version of Celtx: https://softfamous.com/celtx/

I find WriterDuet much nicer to use and it's cheaper.

It occurred to me that this discussion might be better served if there were more opinions from actual working screenwriters. As an example…

John August’s podcasts with Craig Mazin (two working and well-known writers). They are notorious Final Draft haters. Here is an excerpt from one of their podcasts:

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https://johnaugust.com/2018/scriptnotes-ep-349-putting-words-on-the-page...

John: Absolutely. A thing we haven’t talked about at all so far is Final Draft. So, if you want to hear the history of John and Craig and Final Draft you can go back to the one with the episode, the one with the guys from Final Draft.

I had to use Final Draft this past year for – I did a small little rewrite on a superhero movie that was in production. And so there was no getting out of just dealing with the Final Draft file they sent. And so I could have converted it and like, nope, it was going to make everything much worse if I tried. So, I did it in Final Draft with revisions on. It reminded me of why Final Draft is so maddening.

Craig: So bad.

John: To try to move stuff around, it was just not a good experience.

Craig: Ugh, the worst. I just went through it myself. I was rewriting something. The director had written a draft and was asking me to do a new draft. And I just needed to stay in Final Draft for them. And, first of all, you feel like you’re going back in time.

John: Yep.

Craig: For sure. There were moments where I would delete something, or I would say, “Oh you know what I’m going to do, I’m going to take this line of dialogue here. It’s the second sentence of this dialogue block and I’m going to actually add it in front of the first sentence of this” and it thinks, “Oh, you’re trying to make a character name that’s 14 words long.” And I’m like, what? Why would you think that’s what I want to do? Why would you think that? Who adds things onto a character’s name with cut and paste? It’s the dumbest – oh god.

John: Yeah. So in general I find trying – after working in Highland I get really frustrated sort of going back to that stuff because it is – every line has a definition of like what it is and you’ve had to declare like this is a character name, this is dialogue. And it’s not doing any logic about what could you actually be intending here.

Craig: Right.

John: And that just gets really frustrating. And sometimes trying to delete across things gets to be hard because–

Craig: The worst.

Dash. They don't have a clue how to use the program.

Celtex is free, if you're new why pay a lot of money for something you can get free? Pay for a better one in time. I like Word Dancer on YouTube, her videos are fun and she's a successful screenwriter as well. Good luck, happy writing!

Dan,

Actually, it's their previous use of Final Draft that led them to look for alternatives. And I'm pretty sure these pros know what they're doing.

Here are some other comments from users:

http://messageboard.donedealpro.com/boards/showthread.php?t=84091

http://messageboard.donedealpro.com/boards/showthread.php?t=82949

Rather than beat a dead horse, let's circle back to the request by the OP. She, like many of us, is just starting out. So if she's looking for a good screenwriting software program, there are many available that are either free or a fraction of the cost of Final Draft. They all can do the job.

Why should she spend hundreds of $$$ when she doesn't need to?

When she sells her first script, then it may make sense to get Final Draft. But if all you're doing at this point is sending out a properly formatted .pdf to prospective execs, why does she need to spend the extra money when she doesn't have to?

Hi Ariella, I use Final Draft after many pages of scribble on yellow legal pad. "The Screenwriter's Bible" never leaves my desk. Also, "The Writer's Journey" from Vogler and "The Anatomy of Story" from Truby are worth the read. Have fun!

I agree with Michael Ellis. When I first started out I didn't know if I was going to stick with screenwriting so I purchased the cheapest screenwriting software I could find at the time. I used to land an agent and option a couple of screenplays. I didn't purchase Final Draft until I got my first writing assignment.

Kay. Kay. Kay.

I guess you glossed over my comments where I wrote that there are many programs available that can get the job done for someone just starting out that are either free or a fraction of the cost of Final Draft.

Again, here is what I wrote in my original post:

"Look. Use what you want. But if you're just starting out, why spend hundreds of $$$ on Final Draft when all you need is a simple software that can format your script? All you're sending to potential managers, agents or producers is a .pdf."

If that makes me a schill, well...

Dash,

Just because they are professionals doesn't mean they know how to use that particular software program. What they said they found frustrating is actually very simple to do. I was a Staff Writer and worked for two different production companies so I am pretty sure I know what I am doing as well.

I really like Final Draft. I got a laugh out of the August/Mazin commentary. We are so spoiled with an abundance of riches in the age of software. My grandfather wrote at Fox from the thirties through the fifties. He'd do the initial draft in long hand, then type it up. Then a script editor would make a pass. Then three secretaries would type it again with carbon paper copies for Zanuck and the executives. Then it would go to the Script Department for duplication. We take it for granted we can make a revision and the whole script repaginates, asterisks magically appear and there's a spell checker.

Ultimately it doesn't matter what software or even medium you write it in as long as it helps your productivity. If sitting by the pool and writing in long hand gets your creative energy flowing, that's the right tool. I just find Final Draft a good stable product with lots of useful features and a lot of people use it which helps when it comes to sharing drafts. It's worth the money. However on the day they move to a monthly subscription fee, I'm out.

I Use Fade in .

Final Draft is the most popular and the most used. It's all I've ever used so I can't really speak for any others.

A good book is The Anatomy of Story by John Truby.

Francisco, are you suggesting that a new user start with Amazon Storywriter (not Typewriter), then when they decide they want to pursue screenwriting they should upgrade to Fade In then when they get really good they should upgrade again to Final Draft?

If money is no object, then buy a professional software in the beginning, and a couple of the books already mentioned. And when your first script is done, have a reputable professional consultant give your script a critique.

If money is a consideration, and you are kinda new to screenwriting, you may want to consider how you are going to finance your new endeavor, and what will be the best use of your funds over the first year.

First thing first: what is screenwriting? Learn that through the books already mentioned; reading some scripts from your favorite films (preferably modern scripts that reflect the formatting times); view some Youtube videos that you can find on the Stage32 Youtube channel, the FilmCourage Youtube channel, and maybe another channel, like the Writer's Guild Foundation channel. The first thing I'd watch is UCLA Professor Richard Walter's "It's All about Story and Nothing Else" on the FilmCourage Youtube channel. I love that guy. There are many great interviews with writers/producers/filmmakers/teachers on each of those channels.

So after learning a bit about the basics of screenwriting/drama/format, and after you've written/re-written your first story, then maybe get a professional consultant's critique/advice on your story. Not only will you learn how your story stands up, but you'll also receive insights into drama/story/market, and how today's professionals regard and consider scripts. You will love that, and even if your story is picked to pieces, as it should be. Welcome to the next level! And Stage32 has a whole group of reputable consultants available to you, too, if you look under that "Script Services" tab at the top of this page.

So I'd consider those steps, based on my funds, and in the appropriate strategic order. Do I spend $100 - $250 on software first, and maybe $50 on books, and then, a few months later, spend $250 on a script critique? Do I start with the free software, or the low-priced software? Do I wait on the software that costs as much as a reputable critique?

It's all based on my funds, and strategy. If funds were tight, I'd go the free software route first, and spend my first $50 on the books, and then my next chunk of funds on a script critique.

Hope that helps, and much good fortune to you, and welcome to the world of screenwriting!

Unless I misread your comment, you suggested upgrading twice, and I just wanted to clarify because obviously, that would be a crazy thing to do. But I guess that's not the case.

Software is irrelevant. Most people send around PDFs and everything saves in FDX ( final draft format).

I agree software is irrelevant until you find yourself working with other people in the industry. However it shouldn't matter because your making money doing this crap.

I mentioned this thread to an acquaintance affiliated with GCC Productions, the maker of FadeIn Pro. Their response included the following; make of it what you will:

Almost everything in that thread is wrong. I particularly like the part where someone assumes John and Craig — two exceptionally smart guys who between them have probably written more script pages than everyone else in that thread combined, and for A-level Hollywood productions, to boot — don’t know how to use Final Draft.

Fade In has been used for a ton of movies at this point, including THE LAST JEDI. It’s used for a number of HBO shows, including the entirety upcoming CHERNOBYL It’s been used by Rawson Thurber for the two biggest writer-director spec sales (SKYSCRAPER and RED NOTICE) in recent memory that I can think of. And so on and so on.

Final Draft is undoubtedly the most popular screenwriting software, as it has been for years. Just like WordPerfect was once used by every single person in an office, and no one had any idea what Microsoft Word was. There are simply better alternatives now, like Fade In.

I like to outline, define my characters and sketch out scenes in SAVE THE CAT and then export into FINAL DRAFT for the final drafts since it's the industry standard.

A.S. Maybe your acquaintance with GCC Productions didn’t read the article. Those two guys are the ones who said they found performing a relatively simple task on Final Draft frustrating. If they weren’t lying about that then they probably aren’t that familiar with Final Draft. That wouldn’t surprise me at all since they said they don’t like using Final Draft. Since I only use Movie Magic and Final Draft, they are the only two programs I recommend. I am sure there are some other ones that are just as good and maybe even better, but I would have a clue which ones they are so I couldn't recommend them. Fortunately for me I could careless what other people use to write their screenplay since I am not going to read them anyway. So, if they want to find a big rock and chisel their screenplays in stone that's fine with me.

Love the Brian Koppelman video. That's so true. For the above question about writing software and books....I recommend starting with Word or Pages or writing by hand in proper format. Just look up (download if you can't do it yourself) the templates you need. With Pages today, you can import and edit in FD later. FD is useless for first drafts. I am currently using Highland 2 and love it. Jamie uses Word or Pages in templates we've set up. For books....you should basically just read anything William Goldman wrote regarding the Screentrade. You'll learn more about writing from those couple of books than you needed to know and you'll be highly entertained along the way and won't even realize you are learning until afterwards. Other than those two things, I say watch that Brian Koppelman video and enjoy. He's spot on. (For the record, I have three current screenplay options and a sale pending and I'm working two different scripts that I am producing in 2019. I am paying for one out of pocket. A single producer got financing for the other one. No one commented that "You didn't use Final Draft" on any of them. One person, on the biggest option, emailed me to confirm I was using Highland 2 so he could tell the line producer doing the budget. That's the only professional comment I've heard related to what program I write in. At some point, I was told something was "off" in a contest I entered. The person commented I should use Final Draft (I was) That script was the only Final Draft Script I've ever used for anything. Moved back to Pages after that.)

The best school is reading scripts in my opinion and about softwares, there're lot (Final draft, writer duet, celtx...). Depends how much bucks you got, some are free some ain't.

Trelby software. It's free, easy, and simple.

"Scrivener" and "fade In"