Screenwriting Library

Screenwriting guides and templates

Help for each stage of a script, from the first sentence about the idea to the page you finally send. The guides show real pages, the templates come in the formats you already work in, and none of it asks for your email.

From idea to contest

A project tends to move through these steps in roughly this order. Every page in the library ends by pointing you to the next one, and the steps still marked as coming are being written.

Format

How a script looks on the page, and the awkward cases every script runs into.

How to format a screenplay Every rule of screenplay format shown on real pages, with the measurements for US Letter and A4. Cheat sheet and example script Screenwriting glossary INT., V.O., CONTINUOUS, wryly and nearly ninety other terms, each in a line or two. One-page PDF Screenplay title page What goes on the title page and where, for an original, an adaptation, a team and a TV pilot. Template: PDF, Word, Final Draft, Fountain How to write a montage The standard layout, a series of shots, and montages across places or under a voice, on real pages. Examples: PDF, Final Draft, Fountain How to write a phone call One side or both, the voice on the line, INTERCUT, video calls and voicemail, on real pages. Examples: PDF, Final Draft, Fountain How to write text messages Texts in the action or as dialogue, INSERT and SUPER, typing, group chats and emojis, on real pages. Examples: PDF, Final Draft, Fountain How to write a flashback Labelling the heading, getting back, flash cuts, flashback sequences and dreams, on real pages. Examples: PDF, Final Draft, Fountain Voice-over and off-screen V.O. against O.S., narrators, phones, recordings and pre-laps, on real pages. Examples: PDF, Final Draft, Fountain How long is a screenplay Page counts for features, TV and shorts, how pages become minutes, and honest ways to cut. Spec script vs shooting script What a spec leaves out, what a shooting script adds, and how a script crosses from one to the other.

Story

How a story is built, beat by beat.

Beat sheet The fifteen beats in plain words, a calculator for any length, and a worked example. Template: PDF, Word, Excel Three-act structure What each act does, where the turning points fall, and how to keep the long second act moving. Template: PDF, Word The hero's journey The twelve stages in plain words, the archetypes, and The Wizard of Oz traced through every stage. Template: PDF, Word Dan Harmon's story circle The eight steps, the circle as a clock, and worked examples for a short, a drama and a TV episode. Template: PDF, Word

Development

The documents written around a script, to plan it and to sell it.

How to write a logline What a logline needs, a formula to start from, and examples from stories everyone knows. Worksheet: PDF, Word How to write a treatment What a treatment is, how long it runs, what goes in it, and a complete example. Template: PDF, Word Character profile template The fields that change a scene, a worked profile, and a sheet for supporting characters. Template: PDF, Word How to write a synopsis The one-paragraph and one-page synopsis, with a complete example and the mistakes readers notice. Template: PDF, Word Screenplay outline template The step outline, the scene list and index cards, with a full outline of a short film. Template: PDF, Word, Excel Series bible What a pitch bible holds, how long it runs, and a short one for an original drama written out in full. Template: PDF, Word Pitch deck The usual slides in order, how much to write on each, using images legally, and a short film's deck. Template: PowerPoint, PDF, Word Script coverage What a reader's report holds, a full example on a short drama, and how to take your own. Template: PDF, Word Query letter Who takes queries, the five parts of the email, and a full example beside a weak one. Template: Word, plain text, Excel

Templates

Every template in the library in one place, ready to download.

Screenplay template A title page and three pages with every element in place, ready to type over. PDF, Word, Final Draft, Fountain Short film script What a short can hold, how long it runs, writing for the budget, and a four-page example. Example: PDF, Final Draft, Fountain TV script templates One-hour drama, half-hour single-camera and multi-camera sitcom, each as a template. PDF, Word, Final Draft, Fountain Script breakdown template Eighths of a page, the colour code, a scene worked through, and a breakdown sheet with a scene list. Template: PDF, Excel Title page template Placeholders for the title, the credit and your contact details. PDF, Word, Final Draft, Fountain Logline worksheet The four parts as boxes to fill in, three passes, and five tests. PDF, Word Beat sheet template The fifteen beats with their pages, and room for your own story. PDF, Word, Excel Treatment template Every part in place, with a note in each on what it is for. PDF, Word Three-act sheet The acts and turning points, with page targets for 90, 110 and 120 pages. PDF, Word Hero's journey sheet The twelve stages with a page target each, and the archetypes to cast. PDF, Word Story circle sheet The circle as a clock with a box for each step, and columns for an A and a B story. PDF, Word Character profile template Every field with a note on what it is for, plus a voice test and three supporting characters. PDF, Word Synopsis template The story in eight boxes, then a clean page for the finished synopsis. PDF, Word Step outline template A row for each scene: heading, what happens, what changes, pages. PDF, Word, Excel Series bible template A page for each part, from the logline and the engine to the seasons after the first. PDF, Word Pitch deck template Twelve slides, each with its purpose and a note on what to put there. PowerPoint, PDF, Word Coverage template The header, logline, synopsis, ratings grid, comments and verdict, ready to fill in. PDF, Word Query letter template The email with a gap for each part, and a tracker for every query you send. Word, plain text, Excel

Tools

Things to use rather than read.

Title page maker Type your details and print a correctly laid out title page, on US Letter or A4. Free, no account Free screenwriting software Scriptopus Free beside the other free versions, and the five checks to make before you choose. Checked 22 October 2026 Screenplay formatter Paste or upload a script and get it back properly formatted, as PDF, Word, Final Draft or Fountain. Free, no account

Opportunities

Where a finished script can go next.

How to copyright a screenplay What protects a script from the day you write it, and what US registration, the WGA Registry and the registers in Europe add. Checked 22 October 2026 How to choose a screenwriting contest Signs a contest is worth the fee, the warning signs, fellowships and labs, and a budget for a year of entries. Checked 22 October 2026 Screenwriting events Contests, fellowships, labs and conferences around the world, with deadlines and fees. Updated every day

Free, and in the format you use

Every template downloads without an account or an email address. Use them for any script, including the ones you sell.

Scripts come in US Letter for North America and A4 for everywhere else, as PDF, Word, Final Draft and Fountain. The planning documents come as PDF to print and as Word or Excel to fill in.

The script pages and files are made by the same layout code that prints a script in Scriptopus, so what you download is exactly what a screenwriting program would give you.

Keep the whole project in one place

In Scriptopus the logline, the beat board, the treatment and the script live in the same project, and every line of the script lands in its place as you type. The editor is free on Mac and Windows.

Start Writing Free See what it does

Every element in its place, with Tab, Enter and Ctrl+1 to 6.
Beat Board, Treatment and Synopsis in the same project as the script.
Six title page layouts, Industry Standard first.
PDF, Final Draft, Fountain and Celtx exports.