I’ve just dumped Word for RoughDraft,¹ at least when it comes to stories and scripts. So far, RoughDraft is much, much better than a typical word-processor for writing prose and scripts, and a decent replacement for (and certainly cheaper than) FinalDraft or Movie Magic Screenwriter.²

I haven’t worked much with FinalDraft, but MMS does have more automated features, including note/scene cards that can be rearranged and dumped into the script. Still, I’m finding RoughDraft very helpful right now with the story I’m writing, and I’ll probably have the same to say about it when I start my next script.

Some of the features I really like:

• First of all, it’s quick. The two “big boys” in scriptwriting software may have lots of fancy features, but there’s a lot to be said for a fast, light program that handles the basics well and gets the job done. When I’m ready to write, I just want to open to the text and start typing.
• The “Pad” lets me keep notes running along the side of the document. This is where I put reminders about research needs, plot outlines, random ideas, or chunks of writing that don’t seem to work but that I’m not yet ready to delete.
• The auto-format features are particularly helpful for scripts (and easily cycled: just keep hitting tab).
• The instant backup feature lets me dump backups onto my USB thumb drive with a single mouse click.
• The Find in Files feature lets me search for items across files in a folder, so if I save each chapter of a novel in the same folder, I can quickly search all the chapters without having to open them all (or worse, keep the novel in one huge file).
• AutoWords is great for dropping in character and place names that are tricky for the fingers, and I’m sure very helpful for scripts.
• I can keep the text single-spaced in the editor and just set the print function to print it as 1.5 or double-spaced without having to change the text. (I hate writing in double-space mode.)

1. Yes, I know I’m late to the party. As far as I can tell, the last release of RoughDraft was in 2005. Still, it’s a good program! [back]
2. Each is over $200 to purchase, and near $100 to upgrade. [back]

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