Let's get right to it. Back when I started screenwriting I did it with pencils and a notepad. I was quite relieved to finally have some digital writing tools although even then I only had access to Microsoft Word. As a poor boy I then finally managed to get hold of an ACTUAL screenwriting tool thanks to the free version of Celtx.
By Celtx I mean the original Celtx. The one you downloaded onto you computer and was genuinely free with no online subscriptions like today. But the catch is that the tool was riddled with bugs and other issues.
That being said, it was with that free tool that I made a lot of progress with my screenwriting skills, writing features and shorts and who knows what else.
Eventually I ventured to other tools and that's why I am now writing this blog to give you my first hand experience, compare the pros and cons and leave you with what I think is the best option for budding screenwriters.
So to clarify, today we are comparing Final Draft, Writer Duet, Celtx and even facing them off against our very own Film Industry Gateway tool that we've aptly named 'Screenplay writer' (shameless plug, because you can get it completely for free when you join Film Industry Gateway (which is also free)).
CELTX
First off, let's talk about Celtx. And we're talking about the CURRENT version of Celtx. Or at least the latest one that I had used and I haven't used it maybe for just over a year perhaps. Maybe 2 years.
Let's talk about some of the pros of Celtx:
Firstly, one of the best things about Celtx is how easy it is to collaborate with another writer. I had the privilege of co-writing a feature film and a couple of short films with a good friend of mine, something I hadn't done before.
Thankfully our ideas and egos complimented each other quite well instead of clashing. But what helped just as much was Celtx. One person creates a project, invites another and they can both continue writing it in their own time.
So my friend and I would each take turns writing various scenes. I might write a scene and if there was anything I was insure of I'd put a note in brackets. I'd then come back to it a couple days later to see it had all been filled in and additional scenes added. Twas bliss.
But then there are of course... the cons. I don't mean con artists but simply just things that continually got on my nerves until I decided it was finally time to search for an alternative.
The main issue is the way they do their billing. Now maybe they've changed some of this, but a brief look at their pricing page makes me think otherwise.
I was annoyed that every extra little thing cost more money. If you want extra tools and extra features and blah blah blah.
I know that's a common thing for businesses to do. It just felt like there were so many different optional things to pay for and it made me wish for a tool that I could just buy once and I'd have access to it forever (something that is increasingly rare these days and soon to be impossible to find).
There are other reason I left Celtx as well which might not be applicable to you. But here it is anyway. I run businesses, one of which is Film Industry Gateway (the site you're on right now) and through my YouTube I would hold competitions every now and then and I really wanted to gift people with free screenwriting tools. Celtx didn't have the ability to send someone a paid subscription as a gift. If I paid for it and gave it to them, it would also contain my own payment details etc. So that's not an option.
FINAL DRAFT
So eventually I went searching which then led me to finally have a go at one of the industry leading screenwriting tools; Final Draft.
Final Draft was instantly a breath of fresh air... but like everything... the honeymoon period came to an end and the rose coloured glasses were lost.
But let's start with the pros. Coming off the back of Celtx the biggest pro is that I only had to pay for it once, it was not a monthly subscription and it was mine... all mine. my own... my preeecious.
However, just like the one ring... there was an evil lurking within.
When I was writing, things were great. The software made sense. It took a normal amount of time to readjust and become familiar with the slight changes in where the buttons are compared to Celtx. And Final Draft made it incredibly easy to purchase the tool as a gift and connect it to someone else's email. So I was able to continue with the YouTube competitions.
But a major issue for me... and I don't know how common this issue is, but I read a few forum posts to know it wasn't just me at least.
Every now and then (actually most of the time) Final Draft simply just wouldn't work. I'd need to do things like deleting caches, uninstalling and reinstalling etc. I even reached out to support who also just advised to delete my cache.
Which annoyed me. I shouldn't need to do that every time I want to do some writing. So then over time I realised that Final Drafts simplicity. It's simplicity with pricing, it's simplicity with it's layout was all due to the fact that it's actually just an outdated tool that is likely run by someone who is stuck in the past (at least when it comes to screenplay formatting). The more I used it the more it felt rigid. The formatting was fine of course. During the times that it DID work, the screenplay part of it worked as you'd expect.
But the technical issues with the tool drove me into the arms of another woman... Writer Duet...
WRITER DUET
Now Writer Duet I don't have a lot to talk about. Perhaps Writer Duet was more of a rebound until I found something better. But let's talk about the small time that we were together.
I started out with a free plan. It's reassuring to know that they even HAVE a free version and they don't try to hide it like Celtx did.
And as I usually do, I filled up those 3 free projects in short time... but I craved more and so I signed up for their Plus subscription. Which gives unlimited projects, allows collaboration and pretty much just gave me everything that I needed and I appreciate that the price made it very accessible... because while I started as a poor boy, I have now grown up to be a poor man. So $9.99 is good. Now I'm probably shooting myself in the foot by mentioning a price because companies changes things all the time. But hey, let's look at it as a historical record so 10 years from now we can look back and compare $9.99 a month to the $1098 per month price in 2036. (Note to future Adon: check pricing... also, I hope you're not poor anymore. If you're not, congrats... if you are then WHAT THE HELL MAN?!)
Anyway, where was I. Yes. Writer Duet.
As I mentioned, it worked well. The tool was easy to learn, I maybe didn't use it long enough to find any real downsides, it's affordable and left me feeling fulfilled... or did it. The more I wrote the more I realised that none of these tools quite had what I might image from the perfect screenwriting tool. A lot of these tools are great for writing. But the famous quote (famous?). I don't know if it counts as a quote. But SOMEONE said a thing once, maybe. 'Writing is rewriting'.
And by golly that's true.
And while these screenwriting tools are good at writing, I didn't feel like any of them were optimised for 'rewriting'. Making it easy to swap things around, keep track of changes, swap things out, convert scenes into new ones, or combine them etc.
Maybe they DO and I just hadn't look deep enough. and if that's the case, let me know in the comments.
But it got me thinking that I should write down all the things that I would personally want in a screenwriting tool and start figuring out how to make one.
I was already building the NEW Film Industry Gateway platform and creating various tools and resources for filmmakers. I had pondered the idea of making an entirely different website just for a dedicated screenwriting tool.
But NAY! I realised the whole point of Film Industry Gateway is to have EVERYTHING a filmmaker would need in the one place. And so I had to find a way to build a screenwriting tool inside this platform. And voila!
SCREENPLAY WRITER by Film Industry Gateway
The Screenplay Writer was born. Now with everything in it's infancy, this tool needed to learn to walk. When I first published it, it had lots of issues. But I've been working on it almost every day, writing my own screenplays, shorts and features to test what works and what doesn't.
To the point where we now have a working screenplay tool. Now while it isn't perfect we also make it incredibly easy to provide feedback. If you have a Film Industry Gateway FREE account, you can use the Feedback tab which will send a message directly to me! And I will get right onto it.
A free Film Industry Gateway account gives you access to everything you would need as a filmmaker. A screenwriting tool that is also FREE!
But not only that, it's something we can build together.
Sure, you can go to Final Draft support, tell them your woes. Maybe they actually reply, maybe they make a note of what you've said and MAYBE that note goes somewhere and MAAAAAAAAYBE someone actually does something about it but only if another 1000 people also have the same issue so they know it's an issue big enough to worry about.
Sorry. I got a bit worked up...
But with Film Industry Gateway, you can contact me directly at adon@filmindustrygateway.net and say 'Hey Adon, You're a really cool guy. But also, there's [description of issue] with the [name of tool]. It would be amazing if you could fix it... oh yeah. Not sure if I mentioned... but you're really cool'
Then I would fix that specific thing as soon as I can. It's a tool that we can all build together. If there's something you need, you let me know and it happens.
So for the Film Industry Gateway Screenplay Writer, I can't give you pros and cons because I would be biased. So I double dog dare you to go and try it yourself.
...
Go on... give it a go. What have you got to lose?
Here it is - https://filmindustrygateway.net/go/screenplay-writer
Oh and also... you're pretty cool too. 😎
