You've worked so hard to get a movie going in the head of the reader, but a simple mistake sends the reel crashing to the ground; it burns the film. The savvy screenwriter checks his spelling, and edits and proofreads, or gets someone to edit and proofread his script.
Spell Check
Just what major malfunction or what mental block out there keeps new writers from checking their spelling--when they now have every sort of technological aide available to do just that--is hard to comprehend or to fathom. No amount of warning, guidance, needling, or even gradual nudging seems to get the point across.SPELL CHECK YOUR GODDAMN SCREENPLAY!!
There, that feels a little better.
Seriously, you are sabotaging all of your good work with the first misspelled word. It all goes down the drain in a single flush when the Hollywood reader encounters the very first word that you spelled incorrectly. Hard to believe? Start believing it.
Run your spell checker on your computer. Better yet, have it run itself automatically as you type. Even better yet, get some screenwriting software that will do it for you. But always keep a good dictionary handy for those tough calls that the modern marvel can't resolve.
One area of difficulty you run into when relying on the technical equivalent of a well-spelling brain is that devil of a word, the one that really should have a printer's term to describe it. That's the word that's actually spelled correctly, only for some other use. They occur often in a language like English which has so many foreign root words to pull from. A word like 'there' can be spelled perfectly, the problem is you meant to use 'their'. For these words you'll need to rely on your own internal editor, or read on . .
Editing
After running a spell check on your computer, with the help of a handy-dandy dictionary, you'll need to subject it to a thorough edit. This you can do yourself, but only after you've had a rest. Perhaps a full night of restful sleep, or simply a break while you went and did something else to give your brain a rest.If you're not the persnickety sort, or editing is just not your thing, you'll need to bring in somebody else. This may be your spouse, your mate, your roommate, a family member, a workmate, perhaps someone from your writing group. But it needs to be someone that a) has an interest and talent in editing lengthy manuscripts; b) can make flexible allowances for screenplay format and Hollywood-speak--with your ample guidance; and, c) won't go for your jugular every time a 'mistake' is encountered.
More importantly than all this is to find someone who can keep the necessary focus on 'look and feel' and away from a complete rewrite of story, character, and dialogue. Unless that's your charge, and you have the time, energy, and willingness to do an overhaul. The horrible truth is, it might really need it. But one hopes you're at the stage now where it doesn't.
Have someone else edit the script, with your careful guidance, even if you have to pay for it. It's worth it. You don't want the reviewer turning on the internal editor, distracting from the movie you're trying so hard to get going in his head.
PET PEEVES
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Proofreading
Only a part of editing is 'proofreading', but 'proofreading' might be a better way of explaining what you're after at this stage of the game. It requires an intense focus on spelling, grammar, syntax, and style, rather than on concept and 'story arc'. It is the final polish.The difference between 'editing' and 'proofreading' lies mainly in the person doing the job. Some people just have the persnickety gene, the obsessive desire to get the seemingly miniscule bits right about someone else's writing. This job is not for everyone, though.
Those who have a bit of both skills--to consider the overall scope of your work, and to be highly detail-oriented--might be converted to your task by the way you dole out the assignment, by the nature of your direction. Your 'proofreader' might find it hard to turn off her 'editor', so you may welcome comments from her on the sweep of your story, or your use of dialogue. But that's not why you hired her, and she should know it from the outset.
Some of the services that will edit and proofread your screenplay for you include . .
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