In Plot every line has an element type, and the type decides the formatting: where the line sits on the page, whether it is capitalized, how much space follows it. You never format by hand; you change the type, and the page follows industry layout.
The elements
| Element | What it is | Plot recognizes it when |
|---|---|---|
| Scene heading | Where and when — INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT | A line starts with INT., EXT., or the other standard prefixes |
| Action | What we see and hear | The default for any line that is not something else |
| Character cue | Who is about to speak | An all-caps line followed by dialogue |
| Dialogue | What they say | The line after a character cue |
| Parenthetical | A short direction inside dialogue — (beat) | A line in parentheses after a cue |
| Transition | CUT TO:, FADE OUT. | An all-caps line ending in a colon |
| Centered | Text centered on the page — THE END | Set by shortcut |
| Section | A structural label for you, not the reader — an act or sequence marker | Set by shortcut; never exported to the script |
Changing a line's type
Three ways, all from the keyboard:
- Tab on an empty line cycles to the next likely element. After a character cue, Enter already gives you dialogue and Enter again gives you the next cue, so most scenes need no Tab at all.
- The number shortcuts set a type directly: CtrlAlt1 scene heading, CtrlAlt2 action, CtrlAlt3 character, CtrlAlt4 dialogue, CtrlAlt5 parenthetical, CtrlAlt6 transition, CtrlAlt7 centered, CtrlAlt8 section.
- The element menu in the toolbar shows the current type and lets you pick another.
Dual dialogue
Two characters speaking at once sit side by side. Put the cursor in the second character's cue and press CtrlD; press it again to separate them.
Writer commands
A few conveniences from other screenwriting tools carry over: CtrlShiftD duplicates the current block, CtrlShiftQ wraps a selection in quotes, and CtrlShiftM moves a selection to the end of the document to deal with later.