Free screenwriting tool
Screenplay Formatter: Text to Script Format
Paste a script you wrote in Word, Google Docs, Notes or an email and this screenplay formatter turns it into standard screenplay format: scene headings, action, character names, parentheticals, dialogue and transitions, each in its place. You see the formatted pages as you type, then save a PDF, a Word file, a Final Draft file or Fountain.
Used by 11 writers this week
Written and reviewed by ScriptLix Editorial
In short
To put a script from Word or Google Docs into screenplay format, paste it here as plain text: lines starting INT. or EXT. become scene headings, names in capitals or names with a colon become dialogue cues, and the rest becomes action. You get a formatted preview and can save it as PDF, Word, Final Draft or Fountain for free.
Runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
INT. LAUNDROMAT - NIGHT
Every machine is spinning except one. NORA (30s) sits on it, reading the instructions like a contract.
THEO
Is that one broken?
NORA
(not looking up)
It is thinking.
Theo sits on the machine next to hers. It starts to shake.
THEO
Mine likes me.
CUT TO:
EXT. PARKING LOT - CONTINUOUS
Rain. Nora carries a basket of wet clothes to a car that is not hers.
How to use it
- 1
Paste your script as plain text. Put each scene heading, action line, name and speech on its own line.
- 2
Check the preview on the right. Fix any line it read wrong by editing the text on the left.
- 3
Give it a title and save it as PDF, Word, Final Draft or Fountain.
How can I convert my script from Word or Google Docs into screenplay format?
Copy the whole script out of Word or Google Docs and paste it into the box above. The formatter reads it line by line. A line that starts with INT. or EXT. becomes a scene heading. A name on its own line in capitals, or a name followed by a colon like "Maya: Where were you?", becomes a character cue with the dialogue under it. A line in brackets inside a speech becomes a parenthetical, and lines like CUT TO: or FADE OUT. become transitions. Everything else is action.
When the preview looks right, download the PDF to send, or the Final Draft or Fountain file to keep writing in a screenplay app. The Word file uses screenplay margins so you can keep editing in Word if that is where you are comfortable.
What does standard screenplay format look like?
Courier 12 point on a letter page. Scene headings in capitals at the left margin, action across the full width, character names in capitals about two inches in, dialogue in a narrower column under the name, and transitions on the right. One page of this layout runs about a minute of screen time, which is why readers care that it is right.
The formatter handles the layout. It cannot judge content, so a scene heading without INT. or EXT., or a name written in lower case on its own line, will read as action. Fix those in the text and the preview updates.
What are the limits?
It is a set of rules, not a reader. Odd layouts, like dialogue on the same line as the name without a colon, or a whole scene written as one paragraph, need a quick tidy first. Dual dialogue, title pages and page numbers beyond the basics are left to a full screenplay app. Run the result through the format checker if you want a second look.
Questions writers ask
Is this screenplay formatter free?
Yes. No signup and no limit. It runs in your browser, so your script is never uploaded or stored.
Can I paste a script from Google Docs?
Yes. Select all in Google Docs, copy, and paste here. Indents and tabs are cleaned up, and each paragraph is read as one line of the script.
How do I write dialogue so the formatter picks it up?
Put the character name on its own line in capitals with the speech on the next line, or write Name: speech on one line. Both become a cue with dialogue.
Does it make a Final Draft file?
Yes. Save as Final Draft to get an .fdx file that opens in Final Draft and most screenplay apps, or save as Fountain for plain text apps.
Is it the same as a screenplay app?
No. It converts a draft you already have. For writing from scratch, a screenplay app that formats each line as you type is the better fit.