14.1 Polishing Your Screenplay for Submission

Proofreading is the final step in the writing process that involves carefully checking a document for errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and formatting. This meticulous review ensures that the screenplay is polished and ready for submission, enhancing its professionalism and clarity. It also helps identify inconsistencies or mistakes that could distract the reader from the story.

editing: Editing refers to the process of revising content for clarity, structure, and flow, which may involve reworking sentences or reorganizing scenes.

formatting: Formatting is the arrangement of text according to specific guidelines, including font size, margins, and spacing, ensuring the screenplay adheres to industry standards.

beta readers: Beta readers are individuals who read a screenplay prior to submission to provide feedback on its content, characters, and overall impact.

Spell-check is a digital tool used to identify and correct spelling errors in written text. It enhances the quality of a screenplay by ensuring that words are spelled correctly, which is essential for clear communication and professionalism when submitting a script. Using spell-check helps avoid embarrassing mistakes that can distract readers or diminish the credibility of the writer.

Grammar Check: A feature that checks the grammar of the text, providing suggestions for corrections to improve sentence structure and overall clarity.

Formatting: The arrangement of text and elements in a screenplay, following industry standards to ensure readability and presentation quality.

Proofreading: The final review process where a document is checked for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and formatting errors before submission.

A grammar check is a process or tool that reviews written text for grammatical errors, punctuation mistakes, and stylistic issues. It helps writers ensure clarity and correctness in their scripts, making them more professional and easier to understand. Using a grammar check can significantly improve the overall quality of a screenplay, enhancing its chances for submission success.

Proofreading: The final step in the writing process where a writer reviews their work to catch any remaining errors before submission.

Formatting: The arrangement of text and layout in a screenplay, which must adhere to industry standards for readability.

Editing: The process of revising a script to improve clarity, flow, and structure, often involving significant changes to content.

Formatting consistency refers to the uniform application of specific style rules throughout a screenplay, ensuring that elements like fonts, margins, character names, and scene headings are applied in the same way across the entire document. This attention to detail is crucial because it creates a professional appearance, making it easier for readers to engage with the script. Proper formatting can also reflect a writer's understanding of industry standards, which can influence how the screenplay is perceived by producers and agents.

Screenplay Format: The specific set of guidelines and conventions that dictate how a screenplay should be structured and presented, including font type, margins, and spacing.

Style Guide: A set of standards for the writing and design of documents, which may include guidelines for grammar, punctuation, and formatting in screenplays.

Final Draft: A widely used screenwriting software that helps writers adhere to industry-standard formatting rules, making it easier to achieve consistency throughout their script.

Character consistency refers to the degree to which a character's actions, dialogue, and decisions align with their established traits and motivations throughout a screenplay. It ensures that characters behave in a believable manner that reflects their psychological makeup, thereby creating authenticity and relatability for the audience. This consistency not only strengthens character development but also enhances the overall narrative by maintaining logical continuity.

Character Arc: The transformation or inner journey of a character over the course of a story, often involving growth or change.

Motivation: The driving force behind a character's actions and decisions, often shaped by their desires, needs, or circumstances.

Backstory: The history of a character that influences their personality, motivations, and decisions within the story.

Redundant words are unnecessary repetitions or superfluous phrases in writing that do not add value to the content. Eliminating these redundancies enhances clarity and ensures that every word serves a purpose, making the screenplay more engaging and easier to read.

Conciseness: The quality of expressing ideas clearly and briefly, without unnecessary words or details.

Clarity: The quality of being easily understood, which is crucial in screenwriting to convey the story effectively.

Editing: The process of reviewing and revising a screenplay to improve its structure, clarity, and overall quality.

Ambiguous sentences are phrases or statements that can be interpreted in multiple ways due to unclear wording or structure. They often lead to confusion or miscommunication because the reader or viewer might take away different meanings than intended. In screenwriting, clarity is crucial for conveying a story effectively, making it important to minimize ambiguity to ensure that the audience grasps the intended message without misunderstanding.

clarity: Clarity refers to the quality of being easily understood, free from ambiguity or confusion, which is essential in effective writing.

subtext: Subtext is the underlying meaning or theme that is not directly stated but is implied through dialogue, action, or context in a screenplay.

tone: Tone is the attitude or emotional quality conveyed in the writing, which can influence how an audience interprets a sentence or scene.

Screenplay terminology refers to the specialized language and conventions used in writing screenplays, including specific formatting, character descriptions, dialogue structure, and scene headings. Understanding these terms is essential for polishing a screenplay for submission, as they enhance clarity, professionalism, and adherence to industry standards, which can greatly impact a writer's success in getting their work read and produced.

Slug Line: A line at the beginning of a scene that indicates the location and time of day, guiding the reader through the screenplay's structure.

Action Line: Descriptive text that conveys what is happening visually on screen, providing essential context and pacing for each scene.

Dialogue: The spoken words between characters in a screenplay, formatted to clearly indicate who is speaking and how they are saying it.

Scene headings, often referred to as slug lines, are essential elements in a screenplay that indicate the location and time of day for a scene. They help organize the narrative and provide critical information to the production team, guiding decisions about setting, lighting, and overall mood. A well-formatted scene heading follows industry standards, typically written in capital letters, and is crucial for ensuring clarity in screenplay formatting.

slug line: Another term for scene heading, used interchangeably in screenwriting to denote the beginning of a new scene.

action lines: Descriptive text that follows a scene heading, detailing what is happening in the scene and how characters interact.

screenplay format: The specific layout and structure required for writing a screenplay, including margins, font, and spacing, which ensure readability and adherence to industry standards.

Character introductions refer to the initial presentation of a character in a screenplay, showcasing their personality, motivations, and relationships. These introductions are crucial because they set the tone for the audience's understanding and expectations, ensuring that characters are memorable and impactful from the very beginning.

Character Arc: The transformation or growth a character undergoes throughout the story, which is often highlighted during their introduction.

Exposition: The information presented in a story to give context to characters and plot, which often occurs during character introductions.

Inciting Incident: An event that sets the story in motion, which can be influenced by how characters are introduced and their initial motivations.

Scene trimming is the process of reviewing and cutting unnecessary elements from a screenplay scene to enhance its overall effectiveness. By tightening dialogue, removing redundant actions, and focusing on key story elements, writers create a more engaging and efficient narrative that keeps the audience's attention. This careful refinement is crucial for ensuring that each scene contributes meaningfully to character development, plot progression, and emotional impact.

Pacing: The speed at which a story unfolds, influenced by the length of scenes and the rhythm of dialogue.

Subtext: The underlying meaning or themes present in a scene that are not explicitly stated but inferred through dialogue and actions.

Show, Don't Tell: A writing principle that encourages writers to convey emotions and ideas through actions and visuals rather than direct exposition.

A story arc is the chronological construction of plot in a narrative that typically involves a character's journey, presenting the rise and fall of tension and conflict. It serves as a framework for the progression of the story, guiding the audience through key events and emotional shifts, often culminating in a climax followed by resolution. Understanding story arcs is crucial for polishing a screenplay, as they help ensure a cohesive and engaging narrative flow.

Character Development: The process of creating a believable and complex character who undergoes growth or change throughout the story.

Conflict: The struggle between opposing forces that drives the narrative and creates tension within the story.

Climax: The turning point or most intense moment in the story, often where the main conflict reaches its peak.

Scene transitions refer to the methods used to move from one scene to another in a screenplay, impacting the narrative flow and pacing of the story. These transitions can create emotional shifts, provide visual cues, or help maintain continuity, thereby influencing the audience's experience. Effective scene transitions are crucial for controlling the rhythm of a screenplay and ensuring that the story unfolds in a coherent and engaging manner.

Cut: A direct transition from one shot or scene to another, often used to create a sharp change in time or location.

Fade In/Out: A gradual transition to or from a blank screen, used to signify the beginning or end of a scene, often implying a passage of time.

Dissolve: A transition where one image gradually fades into another, suggesting a connection between two scenes or a passage of time.

Visual descriptions are detailed accounts of what can be seen on screen, helping to create vivid imagery in the audience's mind. They focus on conveying the physical aspects of settings, characters, and actions, allowing the reader to visualize the story as it unfolds. These descriptions enhance the screenplay's storytelling by painting a clear picture of the scene, which is essential for the proper use of screenplay elements and for presenting a polished submission.

show, don't tell: A writing principle that encourages writers to convey emotions and actions through visual imagery rather than direct exposition.

action lines: The part of a screenplay where visual descriptions of the setting and characters' actions are written, typically in present tense.

tone: The overall mood or emotional quality conveyed through visual descriptions and dialogue in a screenplay.

Dialogue polishing is the process of refining and enhancing the dialogue in a screenplay to ensure it sounds natural, engaging, and authentic to the characters. This involves adjusting word choice, rhythm, and pacing to create more believable interactions that resonate with the audience. By focusing on dialogue polishing, writers can elevate their script's emotional impact and character development.

Subtext: The underlying meaning or message in dialogue that isn't explicitly stated, often conveying deeper emotions or conflicts.

Character Voice: The unique way a character expresses themselves through language, reflecting their personality, background, and motivations.

Show, Don't Tell: A writing principle that encourages writers to convey emotions and information through action and dialogue instead of direct exposition.

On-the-nose dialogue refers to lines in a screenplay where characters express their thoughts and feelings explicitly and directly, without any subtlety or nuance. This type of dialogue often lacks depth, making it easy for the audience to understand but can detract from the complexity of character development and story progression. It's important to strike a balance between clarity and sophistication in writing.

Subtext: The underlying meaning or context behind a character's words, adding layers to dialogue and enhancing emotional depth.

Character Voice: The unique way a character speaks, reflecting their personality, background, and emotions, which can be undermined by on-the-nose dialogue.

Exposition: Information conveyed through dialogue or narration to provide background or context, which can become too obvious when relying on on-the-nose dialogue.

Subtext refers to the underlying meaning or implicit ideas conveyed in dialogue or action that are not explicitly stated. It adds depth and complexity to characters and their interactions, allowing audiences to infer emotions, motives, and relationships beneath the surface.

Context: The circumstances surrounding a conversation or scene that influence its meaning, helping to clarify the subtext present within the dialogue.

Symbolism: The use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, allowing deeper layers of meaning to emerge alongside the subtext in a narrative.

Foreshadowing: A literary device used to hint at future events or outcomes, which can create subtext by suggesting potential conflicts or resolutions before they occur.

Dialogue tags are phrases used in screenplays to indicate which character is speaking and often include verbs like 'said' or 'asked.' These tags help clarify the speaker's identity, provide context for the dialogue, and can convey tone or emotion when crafted carefully. They are an essential part of dialogue writing, linking characters to their spoken lines and influencing the flow and rhythm of the script.

Character Voice: The distinct way a character expresses themselves through their choice of words, tone, and speech patterns, which can be enhanced by effective dialogue tags.

Subtext: The underlying meaning or unspoken thoughts behind dialogue, which can be highlighted through the strategic use of dialogue tags to convey emotional layers.

Pacing: The speed at which a screenplay unfolds, which can be influenced by how dialogue tags are used to control the rhythm and flow of conversations.

Action line tightening is the process of refining and condensing the descriptions of actions in a screenplay to enhance clarity and efficiency. This technique involves eliminating unnecessary words, focusing on vivid imagery, and ensuring that each action line propels the story forward. By tightening action lines, a screenwriter can create a more engaging and visually stimulating script that keeps the reader's attention.

Show, Don’t Tell: A writing principle emphasizing the importance of conveying emotions and actions through visuals and actions rather than through exposition.

Conciseness: The quality of being brief and to the point, often essential in screenwriting to maintain pacing and keep the audience engaged.

Visual Storytelling: A narrative technique that uses visual elements to convey the story, often prioritizing images over dialogue to engage viewers.

Passive verbs are verbs that indicate an action is being done to the subject rather than the subject performing the action. This construction can make sentences less direct and less engaging, which is crucial to consider when refining a screenplay. In screenwriting, active voice typically drives the story forward more dynamically, allowing characters and actions to take center stage.

Active Voice: A grammatical structure where the subject of the sentence performs the action expressed by the verb, creating more direct and impactful writing.

Show, Don't Tell: A writing principle that encourages writers to illustrate actions and emotions through sensory details rather than simply stating them, enhancing the engagement of the narrative.

Sentence Structure: The arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences, which affects clarity, pacing, and the overall impact of the writing.

Strong verb choices refer to the selection of powerful, specific verbs that convey action, emotion, and clarity in writing. Using strong verbs enhances the impact of dialogue and narrative, making the screenplay more engaging and vivid for the audience. Choosing precise verbs can also eliminate the need for excessive adverbs, resulting in tighter, more effective writing.

Active Voice: A grammatical structure where the subject of the sentence performs the action of the verb, creating a direct and dynamic connection.

Show, Don't Tell: A writing technique that encourages writers to use descriptive actions and sensory details to convey emotions and experiences instead of simply stating them.

Character Development: The process of creating a well-rounded character by exploring their motivations, backstory, and relationships, which can be enhanced through strong verb choices in dialogue and action.

Pacing review refers to the process of analyzing the rhythm and flow of a screenplay to ensure that scenes unfold in a way that keeps the audience engaged. It involves examining the timing of events, dialogue, and emotional beats to create a balanced progression that maintains viewer interest throughout the story. Effective pacing can heighten tension, enhance character development, and provide a satisfying narrative experience.

Scene Length: The duration or number of pages devoted to a specific scene, which can impact the overall pacing of the screenplay.

Tension Building: The technique of gradually increasing suspense or conflict within a story to maintain audience engagement and anticipation.

Dialogue Rhythm: The natural cadence and timing of conversations between characters, which can influence how scenes feel in terms of pacing and engagement.

Act structure is a framework used in screenwriting that divides a screenplay into distinct sections, typically three acts, each with its own purpose and narrative arc. This structure helps to create a cohesive story by guiding the pacing and progression of the plot, ensuring that essential elements like conflict, climax, and resolution are effectively incorporated.

Inciting Incident: The event that sets the main story in motion, often occurring at the end of the first act and leading to the central conflict.

Climax: The peak of emotional intensity in a story, usually found at the end of the second act, where the main conflict reaches its turning point.

Resolution: The conclusion of the story where conflicts are resolved and the characters’ arcs are completed, typically occurring in the third act.

The inciting incident is a pivotal moment in a screenplay that sets the main story in motion by introducing a conflict or challenge faced by the protagonist. This event disrupts the balance of the character's world, compelling them to take action and propelling the narrative forward into the rising action.

Protagonist: The main character in a story, often facing conflicts and undergoing significant growth or change throughout the narrative.

Climax: The turning point in a story where the tension reaches its highest point, leading to a resolution of the conflict.

Plot Point: A significant event that occurs in a screenplay, changing the direction of the story and affecting the protagonist's journey.

The midpoint in screenwriting is a pivotal moment in the story that usually occurs halfway through the script, serving as a turning point that significantly shifts the narrative's direction. It acts as a bridge between the first and second halves of the story, often revealing critical information or changing the protagonist's goal. This moment typically escalates conflict and engages the audience, ensuring they remain invested in the unfolding drama.

Plot Point: A significant event that alters the direction of the story, often leading to a change in the protagonist's journey.

Inciting Incident: The event that sets the story into motion, introducing the main conflict and the protagonist's goal.

Climax: The most intense point of the story where the main conflict reaches its peak, often resulting in a resolution.

Tension and conflict are critical elements in storytelling that create a sense of unease and drive the narrative forward. Tension refers to the suspenseful anticipation of events or outcomes, while conflict embodies the struggle between opposing forces, whether internal or external. Together, they keep the audience engaged, as they want to see how the characters navigate these challenges and ultimately resolve their issues.

Dramatic Irony: A situation where the audience knows more about a character's situation than the character does, creating tension as the audience anticipates the character's reaction.

Character Arc: The transformation or inner journey of a character throughout the story, often driven by the conflicts they face.

Climax: The point of highest tension in a story, where the main conflict reaches its peak and leads to the resolution.

Character arcs are the emotional and psychological journey that a character undergoes throughout a story, reflecting their growth or change from the beginning to the end. This transformation often influences the narrative, showcasing how characters react to challenges and experiences, and is essential for creating relatable and engaging stories.

Protagonist: The main character in a story who drives the plot forward and often experiences the most significant change or growth.

Antagonist: A character or force that opposes the protagonist, often acting as a catalyst for the protagonist's growth and development.

Conflict: The central struggle between opposing forces in a narrative that drives the plot and prompts character development.

A final read-through is the last step in the screenplay polishing process, where the writer reviews the entire script to ensure it flows well, is free of errors, and meets industry standards before submission. This crucial step involves checking for pacing, character consistency, dialogue authenticity, and any lingering plot holes, making sure the screenplay resonates with its intended audience.

Script Coverage: A written evaluation of a screenplay that summarizes its strengths and weaknesses, often provided by industry professionals to help writers improve their work.

Proofreading: The process of reviewing a text to correct any grammatical, spelling, or formatting errors prior to final submission.

Feedback: Constructive criticism provided by peers or mentors that helps a writer refine their screenplay and address any issues before submission.

Story coherence refers to the logical flow and consistency of events, characters, and themes within a screenplay, ensuring that the narrative makes sense and feels believable to the audience. This concept is essential for maintaining audience engagement, as it allows viewers to follow the plot easily and understand character motivations. Coherence contributes to the overall effectiveness of storytelling by connecting various elements seamlessly, creating a satisfying narrative experience.

Narrative Structure: The framework that outlines how a story is organized, including the sequence of events and the relationships between them.

Character Arc: The transformation or growth that a character undergoes throughout the story, which should align with the overall narrative to maintain coherence.

Plot Holes: Inconsistencies or gaps in the story that disrupt the flow and can confuse the audience, highlighting the importance of coherence.

Emotional impact refers to the ability of a story to evoke strong feelings in its audience, making them resonate with characters and events on a personal level. This connection can enhance the overall effectiveness of the narrative, influencing how viewers perceive and remember the story. Emotional impact is crucial in driving engagement, empathy, and investment in the storyline, leading to a memorable viewing experience.

Character Arc: The transformation or inner journey of a character over the course of a story, which significantly contributes to the emotional impact by allowing audiences to witness change and growth.

Conflict: The central struggle or challenge faced by characters, which creates tension and drives the narrative forward, often heightening emotional responses from the audience.

Theme: The underlying message or central idea explored in a story, which can deepen emotional impact by connecting viewers to universal experiences and truths.

Themes and motifs are fundamental elements in storytelling that give depth and meaning to a screenplay. A theme represents the central idea or message the writer wants to convey, while motifs are recurring symbols, images, or phrases that reinforce the theme throughout the narrative. Understanding how to effectively polish these elements in a screenplay can enhance its emotional impact and coherence.

Symbolism: The use of symbols to represent ideas or concepts, often helping to convey deeper meanings within the narrative.

Character Arc: The transformation or growth that a character undergoes throughout the story, often reflecting the central theme.

Conflict: The struggle between opposing forces in a story, which often drives the narrative and highlights the themes.