Final Draft Blog

All the tips, tricks and information you need to inspire your writing!
Read interviews with the pros, catch up with industry news, and listen to Write On: A Screenwriting Podcast by Final Draft.

Staying Motivated as a Screenwriter

May 2, 2023

The life of the screenwriter isn’t always an easy one.

Screenwriting Homage Vs. Screenwriting Stealing

April 25, 2023

Many screenwriters like to insert homages to past films into their screenplays, but the king of the cinematic homage has to be Quentin Tarantino.

Big Break's Crash Course on Writing Loglines for Your Script

March 29, 2023

It's seemingly one of the simplest tasks connected with screenwriting. In comparison to writing a TV pilot or feature-length script, it's a minor chore, something to be dashed off hurriedly at the last moment when suddenly required. I'm talking about...

Where Are They Now: Big Break Winner Greta Heinemann Has Since Worked For NBC, Apple and Netflix

March 27, 2023

Screenwriter Greta Heinemann was one of the Grand Prize Winners of the 2017 Big Break Screenwriting Contest for her thriller/horror feature script, "City Under Fire.”

Big Break Judge Jeff Portnoy On Why Screenwriters Should Enter Contests

March 27, 2023

According to Jeff Portnoy, literary manager at Bellevue Productions and a judge for this year’s Final Draft’s Big Break, what makes Final Draft’s competition stand out from other screenwriting contests is its emphasis on outreach and advocacy for tho...

Narration: How Voiceover Can Sometimes Make a Script Better

February 19, 2023

During my screenwriting education, we were urged to avoid the use of narrators in our scripts. There was a good reason for this: "baby writers" tend to over-rely on narrators to provide easy exposition or bypass actual character development as they s...

5 Tips To Making Your Screenplay Look Professional

February 14, 2023

In a highly competitive marketplace, decisions about a screenplay are made quickly and sometimes even based on a cursory glance. This is why it’s important to make sure your script looks as professional as possible. It’ll not only lead to an easier a...

5 Tips To Finishing a Screenplay

January 30, 2023

In my article “5 Tips To Starting a Screenplay,” I offered advice on how an aspiring screenwriter can start writing, which is often the most difficult part of the process. However, a lot of writers — whether they’re aspiring or seasoned professionals...

5 Tips For Handling Exposition in Your Screenplay

January 10, 2023

One of the trickiest and biggest challenges for a screenwriter is how to best handle exposition. What is exposition exactly? It’s the insertion of expository information into a narrative; this information can be about the characters’ past or current ...