Writing Screenplays in Forme
Forme Markdown brings Fountain-based screenplay markup into a modern, streamlined editor built around how writers actually think and work. Instead of a traditional software environment that asks you to click and format every element manually, Forme interprets your text as you type, using Fountain rules for structure and layout while extending them with additional tools to help writers draft faster and navigate long scripts more intuitively.
The experience is intentionally minimal and writer-first. You write in plain text, and Forme handles the screenplay formatting. You outline in the same document, and Forme visualizes that structure in the Outliner. You revise, reorganize, or jump across acts, and Forme scrolls you instantly to the right place. The result is a drafting environment that feels lighter than screenwriting software but more powerful than writing plain text alone.
Because Forme Markdown is modeled on Fountain, it’s instantly familiar to anyone who has written in a markup system before. But Forme also introduces features like Scene Hints, Character Hints, Magic Margins for dialogue, and a formatting menu for users who prefer clicking over remembering syntax. Whether you’re a screenwriter, director, or producer, the system allows you to stay focused on craft while the editor handles layout.
While this article focuses on using Forme Markdown for film and television scripts, one of the strengths of Forme’s approach is that the same underlying Markdown-first, plain-text structure works equally well for novels. If you’ve previously used Forme Markdown for prose or long-form fiction (as discussed in our Forme Markdown for Novels tutorial), you’ll find that your skills and your content transfer seamlessly. The formatting logic remains the same; only the rules for scene headings, dialogue, or formatting change. In that sense, Forme becomes a cross-medium writing workspace, letting you move between novel drafts, screenplay drafts, and structural outlines without changing tools or workflows.
Effortless Formatting that Works as You Type
Forme Markdown follows standard Fountain conventions for all screenplay elements. Scene headings, action, character cues, dialogue, parentheticals, shots, transitions, and sluglines all behave according to their Fountain patterns. You don’t need to apply styling manually. If your lines match the syntax, the editor interprets and formats them immediately.
This is different from traditional screenplay software. There are no rigid modes to switch between. There is no constant manual adjusting. The text tells the editor what to do.
A few core elements behave as follows:
Scene Headings
Any line beginning with INT., EXT., INT./EXT., or their variations becomes a scene heading.
Sluglines
If you want a scene heading without INT. or EXT., you can force it by beginning the location portion with a leading period:
.SOMEWHERE DEEP IN SPACE – LATER
Forme treats it as a proper scene header even though it doesn’t use macro context.
Action
Any non-indented line that doesn’t match another pattern becomes action.
Character Names
Uppercase on its own line:
BOB
Dialogue
Any lines immediately following a character cue become dialogue.
Parentheticals
Any line beneath a character cue beginning with a parenthesis:
(quietly)
Transitions
Any line that ends in TO: becomes a right-aligned transition in both the editor and the PDF preview:
CUT TO:
SMASH CUT TO:
JUMP CUT TO:
Dual Dialogue
Forme supports dual dialogue using this pattern:
BOB
Hello there.
TOM^
Back atcha.
Only the second character’s name requires the caret. Forme aligns the dialogue automatically.
These rules allow writers to move quickly and let the formatting stay out of the way. Everything you type remains readable and revision-friendly as plain text but renders instantly into professional screenplay layout.
Magic Margins and Hinting Features
Forme includes several intelligent features that assist your writing without overriding Fountain’s rules. Magic Margins, Character Hints, and Scene Hints each play a role, but they operate independently so writers can use them in the way that best fits their workflow.
Magic Margins
Magic Margins applies exclusively to character dialogue—specifically to dialogue indentation, character cues, and parentheticals. It ensures these elements indent correctly and cleanly without requiring the writer to space or tab anything manually. Everything else—scene headings, transitions, shots—is formatted through Fountain pattern detection.
Character Hints
Character Hints suggest character names after they appear at least once in the document. They work with or without Magic Margins enabled. This helps maintain naming consistency and prevents small line-level typos from slipping into the script.
Scene Hints
Scene Hints assist with the three structural components of a scene heading:
- Macro context (
INT., EXT., variations) - Location (must already appear in the document)
- Time (
DAY, NIGHT, CONTINUOUS, etc.)
Like Character Hints, Scene Hints function whether Magic Margins is enabled or disabled. They don’t force formatting. They speed up what you were about to type anyway.
These features collectively reduce friction while preserving the plain-text feel of the writing experience.
Structural Outlining with Sections, Synopses, and Notes
One of Forme’s defining strengths is its ability to combine screenplay formatting with deep structural outlining in the same document. Writers can nest, reorder, collapse, and expand structure without interfering with the script pages.
The three structural elements are:
# Sections= Synopses[[ Notes ]]
Sections create the overarching structure—acts, sequences, major beats, or any custom segmentation you prefer. Synopses provide short summaries directly beneath those sections, describing what the section contains or needs to achieve. Notes give you a place for reminders, alternatives, questions, or research without cluttering the screenplay itself.
All three can be used infinitely and nested as deeply as your process requires. Writers working in classic act structure, the twelve-sequence model, or highly customized narrative architecture can build anything they need.
/* Boneyards */ provide a fourth structural tool that writers often use during drafting and revision. A boneyard is written using the Fountain syntax for block comments:
/* This text will be visually subordinate in the Doc Editor and hidden from Preview */
Any text placed inside a boneyard appears visually recessed in the editor and is completely hidden from PDF Preview. Writers often use them to temporarily remove scenes, store alternate lines, collect exploratory writing, or hide research and background material without deleting it. Boneyards do not appear in the Outliner, making them ideal for content you want accessible in the draft but invisible in the document’s structural map.
For writers who think about structure in more abstract or repeatable terms, these same structural elements can also serve as anchors for higher-level narrative patterns. Forme supports this through StoryCode, a lightweight system for tagging and reusing narrative knowledge such as character designs, turning points, thematic beats, or structural functions. StoryCode is optional and does not change how Forme Markdown works in screenplays or novels, but it allows experienced creators to layer durable narrative intent on top of long-form narrative content without disrupting the writing flow.
The Outliner
As you write these structural elements, the Outliner populates automatically on the left of the editor. Every Section appears as a parent item, and every Synopsis, Note, and Scene Header nested beneath it appears as a child item.
Two behaviors matter most for real workflow:
- Clicking any Outliner item scrolls the editor directly to that item
- Any parent item with structural children can be collapsed or expanded
This turns the Outliner into an index of your script—one that updates instantly as you write. When a screenplay grows past 50, 70, or 100 pages, fast navigation becomes essential, and Forme treats it as a natural part of the writing experience.
Writing, Previewing, and Exporting in a Unified Workflow
Forme keeps drafting, previewing, and exporting tightly connected. As soon as Fountain syntax is applied or Magic Margins formats your dialogue, both the editor and the Preview reflect the correct screenplay layout. Writers can switch between drafting and previewing without losing place or worrying about a separate conversion step.
When you export your work, Forme generates an industry-standard PDF that mirrors the formatting you see in Preview. Page breaks, transitions, dual dialogue, character spacing, and action layout all export cleanly. Because the underlying document is still plain text, versioning and branching remain easy. You can duplicate drafts, track variations, or experiment with isolated sequences without worrying about corrupting formatting.
Forme focuses on writer-centered craft, not production tracking. It does not yet support revision pages, color revisions, or A/B scene numbering. What Forme does give writers is a powerful, intuitive drafting tool that respects industry conventions while keeping the process lightweight.
Customizing the Doc Editor and Outliner
The Doc Editor includes a range of settings that let you customize both the interface and the behavior of screenplay formatting. Writers can choose how much structure they want visible, how much of the formatting should be automated, and how much help they want from Hints.
Interface (show/hide)
- App bar
- Formatting menu
- Outliner
Outliner (show/hide)
- Sections
- Synopses
- Scene headers
- Scene numbers
- Notes
Editor (on/off)
- Magic margins
- Character hints
- Scene numbers
- Scene hints
- Bold styling for scene headers
- Underlined styling for scene headers
Preview (on/off)
- Scene numbers
- Bold scene headers
- Underlined scene headers
- Two-lines-before spacing
- MORE / CONT’D indicators
These toggles give writers control over how Forme behaves. Some prefer a clean, minimal view. Others want explicit scene numbers or bolded scene headers visible as they write. Still others prefer to disable hints entirely to stay close to raw text. Forme supports all of these approaches.
Ramp Up On Markdown
For writers who prefer to click rather than type syntax, the Formatting Menu—visible on the right side of the editor—provides one-click access to sections, notes, synopses, boneyards, and more. This makes Forme Markdown accessible not only to experienced Fountain users but also to screenwriters who are newer to markup-based writing environments.
Fullscreen, Fully Immersed
Writers who prefer a completely immersion-first drafting environment can also hide the Outliner, the App Bar, and the Formatting Menu, then enter fullscreen mode. This combination creates a clean, uninterrupted canvas—no side panels, no menus, no interface chrome—so the page and the writing remain the only things in view. It’s the purest writing experience Forme offers, ideal for deep drafting sessions or focus-heavy scene work.
Bringing It All Together
Forme Markdown is designed to feel invisible until you need it. It gives writers the speed and clarity of plain text with the precision of studio-standard screenplay formatting. It supports outlining without forcing structure. It provides navigation without requiring scenes to be broken out into separate files. It lets you draft, refine, preview, and export in one place without losing track of the story’s architecture.
This is a modern approach to screenplay writing: text-first, workflow-driven, and deeply aware of the craft behind the work. With Forme Markdown, writers can stay focused on scenes, emotional turns, pacing, and character—while Forme handles the rest.
