How to Outline a Screenplay in 6 Steps: Guide to Script Outlining

In screenwriting, a script outline or screenplay outline is a scene-by-scene breakdown of your movie. The outline helps you turn your premise and logline into a full-fledged story. A thorough script outline may include:

• Plot points and story beats: Typical plot points and story beats include an inciting incident, a rising action, and a climax.
• Scene descriptions: Broad strokes descriptions of action within a single scene.
• Character arcs: Emotional arcs for key figures in your story, particularly your main character.
• Dialogue snippets: Key lines of dialogue to employ when the actual scriptwriting begins.
• Act breaks: Most half-hour television shows use a three-act structure, hourlong shows favor a five-act structure, and movies tend to fall within a three-act structure.

A screenplay outline keeps you focused and organized and helps you foresee problems before they come up in the writing process. This allows you to ensure that your story progresses logically and prepares you to write efficiently when the time comes to get your screenplay on paper.

A good outline can also help you keep track of a character's growth. Audiences respond to dynamic characters who change over the course of a story. By creating a scene-by-scene outline of your script, you can keep tabs on multiple characters and make sure they undergo the growth they deserve.

Screenwriting software generally provides a step-by-step outlining tool to help scriptwriters through the story development process. As you create your outline, there are several things to keep in mind to make sure you're getting the most out of the outlining process.

1. 1. Start with a beat sheet. A beat sheet is a condensed version of your overall screenplay. It's longer than a logline, but it's usually only a few pages long. Use a beat sheet to jot down broad strokes descriptions of the action and character growth in your screenplay.
2. 2. Move on to index cards. Index cards are a tactile way to track the various plotlines in your script. Use colored index cards to represent the different narratives you'll be tracking in your script. Assign your A-story to one color, and use a different color card to track your B-story, C-story, and any other narrative threads you want to track. Write down basic story beats on the cards, then arrange them in chronological order. This helps you visualize the story as you create it.
3. 3. Start writing a document, scene-by-scene. With your beat sheet and index cards as guideposts, you are now ready to actually outline a screenplay in your word processing software. Your goal is to include every scene that will be a part of your TV or film script, so start each outline entry with scene headings, just as you would do in your actual screenplay.
4. 4. Describe actions and revelations. Under each scene heading, describe what actually happens in the scene and what the characters and audience learn. Who takes what actions? Who learns what information? How do emotions shift for relevant characters?
5. 5. Insert dialogue as it comes to you. Although you aren't formally drafting your screenplay yet, you'll inevitably start thinking of lines of dialogue as you outline the plot. Include that dialogue in your outline, and call upon it when writing your first draft.
6. 6. Use your outline as a tool. Some screenwriters write detailed outlines that end up being half the length of a finished script. Others write minimal outlines, preferring to focus on dialogue and minute action when they're actually drafting the script. Either way, don't obsess over your page count. Writing a screenplay is hard work, and an outline is simply a tool for you. Whether you prefer a 20-page outline or a 50-page outline, remember that you're doing this to make the actual writing process as smooth as possible.

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