I have a debate going on with a couple of friends on the use of "cont'd" or "more" when writing dialogue. A new writer has told some of us that they been told in order to save white space, it's now more common to NOT use the "cont'd" and to remove that setting from Final Draft when writing.
Thoughts?
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I'd recommend removing both. "Cont'd" is useful if the dialogue spills over onto the next page but that's about it.
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It has been slowly phasing out for some time. I advocate only using it for when dialogue continues onto the next page.
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Yeah I use it...nobody complained so far...
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Nobody cares...and you don't save space on the page. Worry about craft.
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I've never been too concerned about it. I just kick back and let Final Draft do its thing.
Once you've really polished your script five dozen times, those nuggets should long since have disappeared.
They are distracting formatting artifacts that would detract from the reading experience.
It's a red flag saying "this block of dialogue is TOO LONG."
As we read our own scripts to ourselves out loud, if I hear myself saying "MORE" or "CONTINUED" it sounds like I need to take a fresh look and get rid of that clutter,
it's not just about the white space it's simply basic craft of continuous improvement.
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I use CONT'D and (MORE) in my scripts, Tim Barley. I have it set so they automatically appear in Final Draft 12.
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Thanks for the conversation! I try to keep the dialogue clean and only break it up when absolutely needed (letting FD place it when needed) and concentrate on making the script as best as possible!
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Anyone who doesn't earn their living doing something, should not be listened too.
Besides, if it was incorrect, why would it be in FD and every other screenwriting software?