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Using the script editor

Spell Slate’s script editor uses Fountain format behind the scenes, a plain-text screenplay standard. You type scene headings, action, dialogue, and character names using simple syntax. The editor formats everything automatically. This page explains the editor interface, element types, keyboard rules, and hot keys. For Fountain syntax details, see Fountain formatting and script elements. Script editor with toolbar and formatted script

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Element types

What you type maps to screenplay elements. The editor recognizes them and applies the correct formatting.
  • Scene Heading: INT. KITCHEN - DAY. Starts a new scene. Type “int”, “ext”, or “int/ext” plus space and it auto-converts to INT., EXT., INT/EXT.
Scene Heading element and toolbar
  • Action: Stage directions and description. Normal paragraph text.
Action element and toolbar
  • Character: Who’s speaking. Type in CAPS, centered. Use Tab from an empty action line to start a character.
Character element and toolbar
  • Dialogue: What they say. Indented under the character name. Press Enter after the character name to go here.
Dialogue element and toolbar
  • Parenthetical: (whispering). An aside in dialogue. Use Tab from dialogue to add one. Parentheticals use standard screenplay indent, set slightly inside the character cue.
Parenthetical element and toolbar
  • Transition: CUT TO, FADE IN. Right-aligned. Use Tab from an empty character line to insert one.
Transition element and toolbar In Action and Dialogue, select text to apply bold, italic, or underline with the floating toolbar. Floating toolbar for bold, italic, and underline

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Enter and Tab rules

Enter and Tab move you between element types. This is the core of fast screenplay writing. Enter key:
  • Scene heading → Action (and saves scene/location to breakdown if the slugline is complete)
  • Character → Dialogue (and saves character to breakdown)
  • Parenthetical → Dialogue
  • Dialogue → Action. Use Shift+Enter for a new line within the same dialogue block.
  • Transition → Scene heading
  • Action → New Action (or an empty action becomes Character)
Tab key:
  • Action (empty) → Character
  • Action (empty) after an interrupted dialogue block by the same speaker → Tab still creates a normal blank Character line. If you type the same speaker cue again, the editor auto-adds (CONT'D).
  • If you confirm the same interrupted speaker from Character autocomplete, the accepted suggestion also auto-adds (CONT'D).
  • (CONT'D) assist only triggers after action/parenthetical interruptions. It does not trigger after scene heading or transition interruptions.
  • Action (with content) → New Action, then next Tab → Character
  • Character (empty) → Transition
  • Dialogue (empty) → Parenthetical ()
  • Dialogue (with content) → Parenthetical after the dialogue
  • Parenthetical → Dialogue

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Focus mode

Click the viewfinder icon (four corner brackets) in the top-right of the toolbar, or press Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + F, to enter focus mode. The top navigation and project navigation hide, giving the script editor the full height of the screen. Script editor in focus mode with the active focus mode icon highlighted Click the icon again or press the shortcut again to exit. Spell Slate remembers your preference, so the editor reopens in focus mode if that is how you left it.

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Page width and preview consistency

Spell Slate keeps screenplay pages at a fixed screenplay width in the script editor, lined script view, and shot list builder preview. This keeps line length and spacing consistent between writing, reviewing, and coverage work. On smaller laptop screens, the script area scrolls horizontally instead of resizing the page width.

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Hot keys

  • Cmd/Ctrl + S: Save script
  • Cmd/Ctrl + F: Find & Replace
  • Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + F: Toggle focus mode
  • Cmd/Ctrl + B: Toggle bold on selected text in Action or General
  • Cmd/Ctrl + I: Toggle italic on selected text in Action or General
  • Cmd/Ctrl + U: Toggle underline on selected text in Action or General
  • Cmd/Ctrl + Enter: Insert manual page break
  • Cmd/Ctrl + Z: Undo
  • Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + Z or Cmd/Ctrl + Y: Redo
  • Escape: Close Find & Replace panel
  • Backspace on empty parenthetical (): Remove parenthetical; cursor moves to end of character line

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Find & Replace

Click the magnifying glass in the toolbar or press Cmd/Ctrl + F. You can:
  • Search and replace across the script
  • Filter by element type (Scene Heading, Action, Character, Dialogue, etc.)
  • Match case or whole words only
  • Replace one or all. Use Undo (Cmd/Ctrl + Z) to restore after Replace all.

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PDF continuation markers

When dialogue is split across a manual page break or automatic page overflow, PDF export adds standard continuation cues:
  • (MORE) at the end of dialogue on the previous page
  • CHARACTER (CONT'D) at the top of the next page before continued dialogue
This keeps exported pages aligned with common production formatting. When a manual page break is placed between dialogue blocks that look like a continuation, the editor shows a boundary hint ((MORE)/(CONT'D) split expected on export) so you can see likely export behavior before generating a PDF.

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Autocomplete

As you type, the editor suggests:
  • Scene headings: INT, EXT, INT/EXT, etc.
  • Locations: After the scene prefix (e.g. INT. KIT… → KITCHEN). Uses your breakdown locations and ones from the script.
  • Time of day: After the hyphen in a slugline: DAY, NIGHT, DAWN, DUSK, CONTINUOUS, LATER.
  • Characters: In a character element, shows existing characters filtered by what you type.
Use Arrow Up/Down to navigate suggestions, Enter or Tab to accept, Escape to dismiss.

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Scene heading tips

  • Type “int”, “ext”, “int/ext”, “ext/int”, or “i/e” followed by space or a period. The editor converts it to INT., EXT., INT/EXT., EXT/INT., or I/E.
  • A complete slugline (location + dash + time of day) + Enter saves the scene and location to your breakdown.
  • Supported prefixes: INT, EXT, INT/EXT, EXT/INT, I/E.