# Scrivener Scriptwriting > When the user wants to write a screenplay or script in Scrivener, work with script mode, or move scripts in and out as Fountain. Use when the user says "screenplay", "script mode", "write a screenplay in Scrivener", "compile to Fountain", or "import a Fountain file". For assembling/exporting the Draft (Fountain out), see scrivener-compile. For bringing a Fountain file in, see scrivener-import. For why a blind font/format change can break script docs, see scrivener-formatting. - Skill: `donnfelker/scrivener-scriptwriting` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 3 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add donnfelker/scrivener-scriptwriting` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/donnfelker/scrivener-scriptwriting/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: donnfelker (https://skillmd.com/u/donnfelker) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/donnfelker/scrivener-scriptwriting --- # Scrivener Scriptwriting You help the writer use Scrivener 3's **script mode** to draft screenplays, stage plays, and other formatted scripts, and to move that work in and out as **Fountain** (the plain-text screenplay format). The core idea to teach: in script mode, the **element of each line — Scene Heading, Action, Character, Dialogue, and so on — is encoded by the paragraph's formatting**, so any tool that rewrites formatting blindly can quietly destroy a script. Most of the dedicated script tooling is **planned**, not yet in the CLI. Be honest about that and steer the writer to the closest available command. ## When to use this skill - "I want to write a screenplay in Scrivener." / "Turn this document into script mode." - "Set the whole Draft to script mode." / "What script-format settings is this using?" - "Compile / export my screenplay to Fountain." - "Import this `.fountain` file as a screenplay." - Before any **project-wide formatting change**, to check whether script docs are in scope. ## How script mode works (teach this) - **Script mode is a per-document flag**, stored in the binder item's `` / `` inside the `.scrivx`. One document can be in script mode while its neighbors are normal prose — it is not a project-wide switch. - In a script-mode document, every paragraph is one **script element**. Scrivener recognizes the element **by the paragraph's formatting** (indents, alignment, spacing, caps), not by markup or a hidden tag. Standard elements: | Element | What it is | |---|---| | Scene Heading | `INT./EXT. LOCATION — TIME` slugline | | Action | description / stage direction | | Character | the speaking character's name (cued above dialogue) | | Parenthetical | `(beat)` / delivery note under a Character | | Dialogue | the spoken lines | | Transition | `CUT TO:` etc. | | Shot | camera direction | - The mapping of element → exact formatting (and Tab/Return cycling between elements) is the document's **script-format settings**, which **persist in the `.scriv`** (script-settings / `.scrformat` data) so the format travels with the project. ## The formatting hazard (most important warning) Because elements are defined by paragraph formatting, a **blind project-wide font/format rewrite breaks scripts.** If `scrivener-formatting` runs something like `format set-font --scope project` or re-aligns/re-indents every paragraph across the whole project, it will overwrite the very indents and alignment that *are* the script elements — Scene Headings, Character cues, and Dialogue stop being recognized as those elements. So, whenever a bulk formatting change is requested: - **Identify script-mode documents first** and **warn the writer** that they are in scope. - **Exclude script docs** from the bulk change (scope to specific non-script subtrees or documents instead of `--scope project`), or change them only through their **script-format settings**, never with direct formatting. - This is the same caution `scrivener-formatting` raises from the other side — keep the two skills in sync. ## Fountain in and out [Fountain](https://fountain.io) is a plain-text screenplay markup. It is the supported script interchange format (Final Draft `.fdx` is a deferred non-goal). The element ↔ Fountain mapping is in `references/scriptwriting.md`. At a glance: | Script element | Fountain | |---|---| | Scene Heading | line starting `INT`/`EXT` (or forced with `.`) | | Character | UPPERCASE line before dialogue (or forced with `@`) | | Parenthetical | `(in parens)` under a character | | Dialogue | the lines after a Character cue | | Transition | UPPERCASE ending in `TO:` (or forced with `>`) | | Action | any other line | ## Toolkit support 🔜 **Planned (not yet in the CLI) — describe the workflow, say it isn't built, offer the fallback:** - `script set-mode --on|--off` — toggle a document's script-mode flag. - `script settings` — read/set the per-document script-format settings (element → formatting map) that persist in the `.scriv`. - **Fountain import** — handled via **scrivener-import** (`import … --to fountain` workflow), not yet wired in the CLI. - **Compile to Fountain** — handled via **scrivener-compile** (`compile --to fountain`), also on the roadmap. There is **no available-today command** that toggles script mode or reads/writes Fountain. Until those ship: - To inspect a document, use `scrivener-inspect`'s `read ` and report whether the text reads like a script; you cannot yet flip the flag from the CLI. - For Fountain interchange, the manual path is to set script mode and choose Fountain in Scrivener's own Import/Compile dialogs. ```bash # Available today: inspect the document you intend to put in script mode. python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/tools/scrivener/cli.py read --project "" # Planned (NOT yet in the CLI) — shown so the writer knows the intended shape: # python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/tools/scrivener/cli.py script set-mode --on --project "" # python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/tools/scrivener/cli.py compile --to fountain --project "" --out screenplay.fountain ``` ## Safety - **Close the project in Scrivener** and let **cloud sync (Dropbox/iCloud) finish** before any write — editing a `.scriv` mid-sync can corrupt or conflict it. - Writes auto-backup (zip) the project and auto-snapshot a document before overwriting its text. Never regenerate a rich/script document from plain text — append or snapshot and pass `--allow-destructive`. - **Binder titles are not unique** — use a UUID for any mutating command when a title is ambiguous. - Most of this skill is roadmap. Do not claim a script/Fountain command ran when it is planned — name it as planned and offer the closest available step. ## Related skills - **scrivener-compile** — assemble/export the Draft; the planned home of `compile --to fountain` (Fountain out). - **scrivener-import** — bring outside material in; the planned home of Fountain import (Fountain in). - **scrivener-formatting** — direct formatting; coordinate with it so a project-wide font/format change **excludes script-mode documents** and does not break their element formatting.