John August

Archives for 2004

Survey up for screenwriting software

Formatting, News

The ongoing conversation about screenwriting software, prompted by the release of Final Draft 7.0, has gotten a lot of readers wondering why a better program isn’t out there. After all, compared with the complexity of editing video or managing a website, simply formatting a script should be cake. It’s just words, after all. And there’s no shortage of good ideas for what the ideal screenwriting software should do.

What’s missing from the discussion is any sense of the real numbers. How many writers use which programs and how satisfied are they? What features matter, and which could you live without? And most importantly, is there really a market for an innovative competitor? The only way to find out is to ask, which is why I set up a brand-new survey. (**Update: Survey was completed in 2004, and no longer online.)

It’s short — it should take five minutes, tops. Once we hit a critical mass of responses, I’ll post the results here for everyone to mull over. In the mean time, do your part.

New Wiki for discussing better screenwriting software

Geek Alert

While I intend to continue the discussion on this site about how to make better screenwriting software, interested readers might want to check out a new wiki on the topic, which an interested reader forwarded to me yesterday.

For those who’d never used a wiki (and I hadn’t), it’s essentially a series of interlinked web pages which anybody can edit. It’s chaotic and not especially pretty, but it may be a good place to share ideas about what you’d like to see in your dream screenwriting software.

**Update March 2011:** Dead links. Article retained for historical interest only.

Writing on the Coast Starlight from Los Angeles to Seattle

Projects, Tarzan

amtrakLast week, I took Amtrak’s [Coast Starlight](http://www.amtrak.com/trains/coaststarlight.html) train from Los Angeles to Seattle, which meant 36 hours on the rails. That’s a very long time to spend in linear motion, but it was worth it.

My goal was to get some quality, uninterrupted writing time for the oft-delayed Tarzan, and I got it. I wrote long-hand, as I usually do on first drafts, and faxed the pages back to Los Angeles once I got to Seattle. Once everything was typed up, I had 41 more pages finished, which is good for three day’s work.

I’d recommend the train for any writer looking for some good alone time. Some caveats:

1. American trains are much, much slower than their European counterparts. We averaged 35.6 miles per hour.
4. My train was 2.5 hours late getting to Seattle, which is apparently the norm. So don’t expect to make it somewhere at a specific time.
1. You absolutely need a sleeping car. I have no trouble flying coach, but beyond hour ten, you’ll be pulling your hair out if you don’t have a door you can shut.
2. The dining car seats parties of four, so they’ll put you with strangers. Everyone I ate with was friendly and talkative.
3. Bring a pillowcase. The Amtrak linens are scratchy.
5. Cell phones work almost everywhere, except parts of Northern California.

I flew back from Seattle, which was always my plan. As much as I enjoyed my Amtrak time, I don’t know if I could have taken another 36 hours of train so soon.

Met the guy who runs Final Draft

Formatting, Geek Alert

Last night, I co-hosted a benefit for [The Story Project](http://www.storyproject.com/), a very worthwhile organization that promotes teen literary in Los Angeles. One of the guests was introduced to me as, “This is the guy who runs [Final Draft](http://www.finaldraft.com/).”

I resisted the urge to tell him how crappy his latest release was. I’m too polite sometimes.