Screenplay Mistakes Checker: What Readers Hate

Format gets you read. Habits get you put down. This check finds what script readers complain about most: “we see”, camera calls, parentheticals that direct the actor, characters who talk before we meet them, CUT TO: on every scene and action blocks nobody reads. Each note comes with its page and a fix.

Written and reviewed by ScriptLix EditorialUpdated October 2026

How to use it

1
Drop a PDF, Final Draft, Fountain, Word or text file anywhere on the page, or paste a few pages.
2
The check runs in a second or two. Nothing is stored and there is nothing to sign up for.
3
Start with the Check items. Style notes are habits worth a second look, not rules.

What gets flagged and why readers care

Habit	Instead
We see Beth frown.	Beth frowns.
CLOSE ON the letter.	The letter. One word circled in red.
(angrily) Get out.	Get out. Let the line carry it.
DANNY speaks before the action meets him	DANNY (30s), coat still wet, takes the last stool.
CUT TO: after every scene	Just the next scene heading.
Six-line action block	Split it where the picture changes.

Why do readers care about “we see”?

A reader moves through a script fast. “We see” and “we hear” add words without adding picture, and they remind the reader they are reading instead of watching. Cutting them almost always makes the line stronger: “We see Beth frown” becomes “Beth frowns.”

There are good exceptions. “We do not see the photograph” can be a deliberate choice about what the audience is kept from. That is why the note says check, not fix.

Are camera directions always wrong in a spec script?

No, but they are a red flag. A spec is sold to a reader, not shot by a crew, and lines like ANGLE ON or PUSH IN read as directing the director. If the shot matters to the story, write what the audience notices instead and the reader will see it.

Shooting scripts are different. If you are directing it yourself and this is a production draft, ignore these notes.

How many parentheticals is too many?

There is no hard number, but when one dialogue block in four carries a parenthetical, readers start to feel you are directing the actors. Tone words ending in “ly”, like (angrily) or (sarcastically), are the first to cut, because the line should already carry that. Keep parentheticals for what an actor cannot guess, like who the line is aimed at.

Questions writers ask

Which files can I check?

PDF, Final Draft (.fdx), Fountain, Word (.docx) and plain text, up to 15MB. You can also paste a few pages straight into the box.

Is this the same as the format checker?

No. The format checker finds lines that break screenplay format, like a scene heading missing INT. This check finds lines that are formatted fine but still bother readers. Run both before you send a draft out.

Why is a voice-over character not flagged?

Characters heard on the phone, on the radio or in voice-over often never appear on screen, so they do not need an introduction in the action. The check skips any cue marked V.O., O.S., O.C. or on the phone.

Does it judge my story?

No. It only looks at habits on the page. For notes on story, character and structure, run a free coverage scorecard on the same file.