Screenwriting : Proofreading by Mihail Krastev

Hi, Mihail. How are you? I edit my scripts by reading them backwards. I start on the last page and read each paragraph until I get to "FADE IN" on the first page. This helps me catch typos and story problems.

Maurice Vaughan that's a great step to take, it helps raise more ideas about possible bookends in the story that can be recapitulated early on, and as you say it forces you to read each scene somewhat out of context to focus on catching any errors on the page.

'Grammar mistakes?" You're writing a script, not a novel, text book or an English term paper. Spelling and tense are paramount but grammar not so much. A well crafted tight script often includes action lines of a single word (not a complete sentence) and few of your characters ever speak correctly. Remember that you're painting a picture with words.

What Doug said!

Daniel Stuelpnagel, reading a script backwards forces me to see typos and story problems (typos and story problems that I don't see when reading it from the first page).

I used to edit and proofread for a living. It is difficult to catch every typo, even with the help of software. It can be helpful to print it out and go over it the old-fashioned way. Unlike Doug Nelson , I do think grammar matters. You may have "bad" grammar in dialogue, because spoken language is not necessarily grammatically perfect, and that is legit in a script. But I have seen a lot of poor grammar in action lines of scripts, and it can definitely interfere with smooth understanding.

Particularly watch out for verbs not agreeing with the subject and for murky antecedents of pronouns, i.e. sentences where the reader can't be sure who "he" or "she" refers back to. Since short sentences work well in a script, break up sentences to achieve better clarity.

Fresh eyeballs often work. Get into a writer's group and have others look at the script.

Said it in another post but ever since I started using Final Draft's voice reader for revisions I've pretty much eliminated all typos and grammar mistakes (at least with my two most recent pieces).

I do the following:

Cut and paste my script 10 pages at a time into a WORD file and launch Grammarly. The difference in format does not degrade the functionality at all.(Note: if you ise Final Draft - the Format Assistance tool will ID most of your format errors).

Like Mehul - I make one final past by having Final Draft read the script to me - that works really well.

I pay a human screenplay editor. Not a book editor ‘cause majority of book editors have no clue about screenplays. Find yourself a tv script coordinator or Writers Assistant hustling for pocket change income. It is their job to proof scripts.

Mr. Dan MaxXx has the right idea. Anything that is software will miss a lot of problems that are more than just grammar or spelling...especially if you tend to write outside the standard-issue simplified grammar of most modern media, or use a lot of slang or dialects. Only the brain of a trained human can do the job right. Fortunately, these skills are common enough that most of us can afford a professional for our most important projects.

'The past is always tense, the future perfect as grammar is a piano I play by ear ' - Zadie Smith / Joan Didion

@Mike Romoth One thing software misses is the misuse of words – at the simplest level, classic mistakes like principal/principle, there/their, effect/affect etc. Many writers also seem to pick words that sound good to them, without really knowing what those words mean. It can be jarring to readers who do know what the words mean, and software won't catch that.

Either I do it or engage someone else...since most my scripts aren't going directly into production, someone else usually goes pro bono...first time now I've been told gonna have to do it for someone else's production script, so goody - goody :)

If I, a dyslexic who can barely write a sentence without an error, someone who has to re-type pretty much every word and still needs Google to work out what the hell I'm trying to do sometimes, can have a career in this industry, people need to stop worrying.

I spent years fretting about typos and grammar because I was told a few errors would see my scripts go straight in the trashcan. What I've experienced is nothing like that and I've seen the same with plenty of other writers too.

Try your best, put in some effort, but don't go paying people to proof your work unless you have money to throw away.

Also focus more-so on rhythm, flow, and accessibility. I've read plenty of grammatically perfect scripts that are clunky and impenetrable.

The industry is looking for creatives, not typists.

@david thanks for that and i will use that method regarding 10 pages at a time.

It helps to read out loud, to catch grammar mistakes, if that still doesn't work then find some beta readers.

Dyslexics of the world - unite!

It's old school, but it has never failed me - print the sucker out, grab a red pen, and read it out loud, ideally with someone else reading with you. Make changes the moment you see them on the page, and then you can implement them into your digital revision. This is helpful for all sorts of mistakes, but if you comb specifically for grammar and word choice, you hear it before you see it.