I remember my 1st and 2nd year in senior school we had typing on those old typewriters as an hour-long lesson. Then things got really exciting and we got to play on black screens with barely legible green font while being told this was the future... yeah, right.

I remember those old computers (we must be about the same age), black vdu screens with green text. So boring.

Quoted from AnthonyCawood Many people like to use dedicated software, then it's written in screenplay format from the start... no need to convert to anything, so need for yet more software to convert it into something... and of course ultimately whatever you use, you'll then need to convert it into PDF to send it anywhere... So personally I like to see it in write format as I go and then press a button to get a PDF. But of course writing in a text editor and converting works for some people, like Scar, so if you wanted to investigate that option then details of Fountain can be found here https://fountain.io/

With screenplay software, you always have to convert everything, from one package to another, from one version to another, to PDF etc

With text as your master file, it is instantly compatible with each and every screenplay software, plotting/structure software every computer, phone, forum and wordprocessor software.

Using Fountain, packages like Contour, Dramatica, Scrivener, all the Novel plotting software etc re all compatible with your single file.

It means you can write anywhere, on anything...even this forum...free having to press cumbersome buttons to tell the software what you are writing (Hit return, scroll down to choose character etc..repeat ad nauseum)and then just stick it in a screenplay software where it automatically converts to standard format.

It's a lot better. Faster, better, future proof, more versatile, free.

We know Scar, you love a good text editor

However,

I write in FadeIn, the documents are stored in Dropbox as part of the software features so I always have access to the correct version of my script (on all the devices I use), no converting anything to anything and I've never had to convert a FadeIn file because the software has been upgraded.

I don't import my files into any of the programs you mentioned because I've absolutely no need to... but if I did I can very easily by exporting them.

When writing in my software it intuitively understands what my likely next line is, it autocompletes Names of characters (which a text editor doesn't do), and formats everything in a nice standard way. I don't see this an encumberance but a genuine benefit.

As a personal preference I also like seeing it as a script as I write, again something I'd lose in a text editor scenario.

So I write in FadeIn (on all my devices), all docs are synced with Dropbox, it directly converts to an industry standard PDF of my script whenever I need it to.

If I was to try your way (and I have) I would need to...

Write in any text editor or even a web page on my machine, BUT to save it or continue writing on a different machine I would have to save it manually to Dropbox (or similar cloud)... on the second device I would then need to manually log in to Dropbox to get the file, and then continue with it on whatever txt editor I have access to on the second device. once happy with the file I would need to export it into another program that can convert it to a script format, then I'd need to check it to make sure none of the formatting has gone awry in the conversion process and once I've done that I can then convert it to a PDF.

Sorry, but there is no bit of that process that feels quicker! And when I tried it out it was long winded and inconvenient.

We all write in whatever software, or text editor, that works for our own circumstances and our own writing process... but to assert your way is better and faster isn't true for many screenwriters... even the free bit doesn't cut it when CeltX, Trelby, WriterDuet and Amaszon all have free scriptwriting packages of obe flavour or another.

Havng said all that... vive la difference!

EDIT: Sorry and if you are writing in a text editor and using Fountain type notations, then you need to actually learn all the notations and remember when/how to use them.

You can sync Dropbox to everything, just the same.

My scrivener is synced with Dropbox, jotter pad on the android is synced with Dropbox. So you can work on the same file anywhere.. Even if you don't have your favourite screenplay software to hand.

Then when you update on one, it updates on all.

We've all used screenplay software. Using Fountain is just so much faster for me as you can actually just write. I'd forgotten what it was to just write and not go through the clunk of dedicated software.

I've got Fade In on both the laptop and mobile. It's alright. Nothing wrong with it, but it's slow as arseholes. I press return and it takes a second to react on mobile. Its also hard to jump from one scene to a later scene you've just decided to write. You are largely forced to do things linearly, one after the other.

I'm just not willing to put up with the sluggishness and lack of features when I don't need to.

Autocomplete characters is definitely a bonus. A text editor based screenplay software that just had that feature would be perfect. That's the only thing I miss.


I'm not trying to force people to use it, brother (why would I care?). I'm just offering an alternative because it's been very freeing for me...particularly as I can write non-linearly.

Going back to traditional screenplay software feels like going back in time.

Peace.

Glad it works better for you Scar, all you can ask for really.

I write mostly in Celtx but I've been using Google Docs with an added screenplay format app as a way of collaborating live while I write. Haven't met a producer yet that's required me to pay for software.

If I ever work on a Hollywood script and they ask for it, well, by then, screenwriting will have paid for that program a hundred times over, so I wouldn't mind.

I'll write in Word... producers don't give a shit.

I'm still a newbie at screenwriting, but I do have experience with other kinds of writing. Word is my favorite for has-headings-but-not-really-structured stuff like stories, reports and articles. Highly structured things like computer code benefit from a good text editor with syntax checking/highlighting, and for this I like Notepad++ or Sublime, both of which are free. Highly specialized things like math notation have their own editors (MathType, Scientific Word, and math analysis engines like Mathematica or MATLAB).

Screenplay format is reasonably structured, but not quite to the level required to take advantage of a syntax checker. On the other hand both text editors I mentioned do have word completion, which could be helpful in keeping character and location names straight.

I started screenwriting using a Word template, then switched to Final Draft when I got a good discount on it. For me, having spent a little actual money helps me take my screenwriting side project more seriously, if that makes sense to anyone.

Quoted from DustinBowcot Then things got really exciting and we got to play on black screens with barely legible green font while being told this was the future... yeah, right.

Quoted from HyperMatt I remember those old computers (we must be about the same age), black vdu screens with green text. So boring.

- Ah yes, brings me back, a simpler time. There was a certain purity to those machines, a clarity. No barrages of pop up advertisements for a new type of razor or betting agencies, or webpages choked with widgets, bells and whistles. Buffering hadn't even been invented yet!

It heartens me to see so many people using different types of screenwriting software too. I entered a contest once which marked against entrants for not using Final draft. I was worried that had become the standard and everyone had converted, paid for or otherwise. I use software that works with Word, been using the 2007 version since its inception. Way too stubborn to change now so I'd resigned myself to plough on with it despite the risk of obsolescence.

Quoted from FrankM I'm still a newbie at screenwriting, but I do have experience with other kinds of writing. Word is my favorite for has-headings-but-not-really-structured stuff like stories, reports and articles. Highly structured things like computer code benefit from a good text editor with syntax checking/highlighting, and for this I like Notepad++ or Sublime, both of which are free. Highly specialized things like math notation have their own editors (MathType, Scientific Word, and math analysis engines like Mathematica or MATLAB). Screenplay format is reasonably structured, but not quite to the level required to take advantage of a syntax checker. On the other hand both text editors I mentioned do have word completion, which could be helpful in keeping character and location names straight. I started screenwriting using a Word template, then switched to Final Draft when I got a good discount on it. For me, having spent a little actual money helps me take my screenwriting side project more seriously, if that makes sense to anyone.

It does to me. I use FD and glad I bought  it.

I had no formal education in screen writing and FD was an excellent tool to get me started and assisted in learning the craft (to say it inversely, if you already have a strong background, doesn't matter what you use - I didn't.).

As I progressed I found the tools on FD invaluable - everything from scene reports, to index cards, to the number of words spoken by each character, to script compare helped in the editing process.  

Again, to each his own.