Turn notes into a rewrite plan: diagnose the current draft, rank problems by blast radius, map affected scenes, revise in passes, and define what the next draft must prove.
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# Screenplay rewrite plan ## Draft identity - Project: - Draft / save point: - Date of read-through: - Target for the next draft: ## 1. Read the draft before fixing it Write the experience of the whole screenplay in a few sentences before opening individual scenes for edits. - What movie / episode is currently on the page? - Where does the central character make the story's major choices? - Where does your attention drop or become confused? - What does the ending currently resolve? ## 2. Reverse outline | Scene | Character objective | Turn / new information | Consequence | Keep / cut / move / rewrite | |---|---|---|---|---| | | | | | | ## 3. Translate notes into diagnoses Do not treat a proposed fix as the diagnosis. | Raw note | Observable problem | Likely cause | Scenes affected | Confidence | |---|---|---|---|---| | | | | | | ## 4. Rank by blast radius ### Priority 1 - Diagnosis: - Why it is upstream of other problems: - Scenes / relationships affected: - What success would look like: ### Priority 2 - Diagnosis: - Why now: - Scenes / relationships affected: - What success would look like: ### Priority 3 - Diagnosis: - Why now: - Scenes / relationships affected: - What success would look like: ## 5. Rewrite in passes ### Pass A — premise, objective, and ending - Decisions to make: - Scenes likely to disappear or change function: ### Pass B — structure and causality - Major turns to rebuild: - Setups / payoffs to move: ### Pass C — character and relationships - Objectives to sharpen: - Relationship changes to track: ### Pass D — scene work - Scenes entering too early: - Scenes leaving after the turn: - Repeated beats to compress: ### Pass E — dialogue and voice - Character voices to separate: - Exposition to convert into action, conflict, or implication: ### Pass F — continuity and polish - Names / props / time / locations to verify: - Formatting / typo pass after structural work is stable: ## 6. Protect list What already works and should not be accidentally flattened while solving other problems? - ## 7. Next-draft proof Before calling the rewrite complete, answer: - What three things did this draft need to prove? - Which scenes provide the evidence? - Which priority remains unresolved? - What should the next reader evaluate instead of re-litigating solved questions?
A plan helps separate upstream story problems from downstream symptoms. If a character's objective changes, dozens of lines may change with it; polishing those lines first creates work you may immediately throw away.
It is the number of other choices a problem influences. An unclear protagonist objective can affect structure, scene conflict, dialogue, and the ending, so it usually deserves attention before a local wording problem.
Yes. Put each raw note in the diagnosis table, group notes that point to the same observable problem, and decide the underlying cause before choosing a fix.
