A lot of people say they hate rewriting.

For whatever reason, I have always enjoyed rewriting more than most other parts of the entire writing process.

I want to show you why I believe rewriting is fun for me, and why I believe it can actually be a lot easier than you think.

When I ask people why they hate it so much they tell me it’s boring and difficult. I ask them what their strategy, plan, or process for rewriting is and they go, “uh. I don’t really have a process for rewriting. I just go through the script and change what doesn’t work or what I don’t like.”

Well, no wonder it sucks for you. If you don’t have a process and a framework for rewriting, it’s probably super overwhelming and hard. Like, where do you start? What do you change? How do you even make the script better in the rewrite?

Have a plan for your rewriting. So many people just go into rewriting fixing anything and everything at the same time. It’s overwhelming. It’s impossible to juggle everything that goes into making a good script work in your head all at once. 

So, the following is the framework that I have found extremely practical for my rewriting. I hope it can help you too make your scripts better and the task of rewriting a little less overwhelming.

First things first

First, I write the first draft. I never edit during my first draft. I treat the first draft purely as a vomit draft. I write it as fast as I can and I don’t stop to make corrections. It just needs to get out on paper. Of course, before I even write the first draft, I have already developed the characters, the world, the show idea itself, and broken down the story into beats, a logline, a springboard, and an outline.

After the first draft, I take 1 week off from the script.

Then, it’s time to rewrite.

As a comedy writer, I break the rewriting down into 7 steps (7 revisions):

1. Story
2. Characters
3. Funny pass
4. Dialogue
5. Action lines
6. Funny pass 2
7. Lass call

Each step is a new draft of the script. So, think of the first draft, the vomit draft, as Draft 1. Then, “Revision 1: Story” would be Draft 2. “Revision 2: Characters” would be Draft 3, and so on.

After I finish a new draft, I usually take the rest of the day off from the script. But never more than that. The next day, I get right into the next step/revision.

Revision 1: Story

When I’m in the story revision, these are the things I look to improve and rewrite:

Structure: Is the story working or not?

First scene: Is the hook interesting and hook-y enough?

Scenes: Do all scenes serve a purpose for the story? Do they advance the story? Do they have emotional change?

Acts & Midpoint: Sort of the same as structure, but more specifically whether or not these beats are hit correctly. Do the characters recap what happened before the act break in the start of the next act? Do we end and begin the acts with the A story? Are the stakes raised during the midpoint?

Theme: Is the theme clear throughout the story?

Stakes: Are the stakes high enough? Do we actually care?

Setups & Payoffs: Are there interesting setups, payoffs, and call backs throughout the story?

Whiff of change: Do we sense things have changed from the beginning of the first act to the end of the third act?

.Checklist: The .Checklist is a document I always create before writing my script. It basically includes all things I want in my story. Did I include everything I wanted in the script? (why do I put a “.” in front of “Checklist”? That’s a story for a different day, kids.)

Before we jump into “Revision 2: Characters”, do you see how much more effective and less overwhelming an approach like this is? Just go through all of the points above, one by one, and fix/move/add/cut anything that needs to be fixed/moved/added/cut in order to improve your script. It’s so much better than blindly attacking the rewrite with no plan in mind.

Revision 2: Characters

Here, I look at the following things:

Wants, Needs, Motivations Are all of these clear? Especially for the main character.

Introductions: Are the character introductions interesting? Are they introduced with their main traits in mind?

Rooting resume: Are the characters likable? Do we want to root for the main character?

Three dimensional: Are the characters three dimensional and not just flat, uninteresting archetypes?

Whiff of change: Do the characters change at the end? Do they learn the lesson (theme) of the story?

Dynamics: Are their relationships with each other interesting enough?

.Checklist: Again, another look through the .Checklist document. This time specifically for everything I wanted included regarding the characters.

Revision 3: Funny Pass

This one is pretty straightforward. I write comedy so of course I need to make sure the script is actually funny.

What I do here is I go through the script and highlight every time something funny happens. 

I operate from the rule of at least 4+ jokes per minute in my shows. By highlighting all the funny stuff in my script I have an easy overview of where I need to insert more funny business.

Maybe you don’t write comedy. If you don’t, you can skip this revision. Yay, less work. Or maybe you’re writing a sci-fi thriller where you would like a few light moments with some laughter. This is your moment to work on the funny.

Revision 4: Dialogue

Straightforward, right? Take this chance to go through all the dialogue and perfect it. Some of it may even have been cleaned up in the funny pass, as lots of the jokes happen in the dialogue.

Revision 5: Action lines

Yup. Exactly what it sounds like. Are your descriptions clear? Are you giving a vivid depiction of the setting?

Pro tip: always go for clear over clever. Don’t write fancy prose in your action lines. This isn’t a novel for god’s sake.

Revision 6: Funny Pass 2

What do ya know – another funny pass. This one works just like the first one. Maybe it’s just because I’m insecure, but I always go through the funny stuff one more time to see if I can punch things up a bit. Again, if you’re not writing a funny script, skip this one. I envy you.

Revision 7: Last Call

Check for typos and grammar

Double check for any formatting issues

Script length: Does it need to be cut down even more?

Last minute changes: Are there any last things you really want to do with the script? Any dialogue you still feel like could be improved? One last look at a joke that isn’t working as well as you’d want it to? Maybe the protagonist’s goal isn’t as clear as you first thought it was?

.Checklist: One last look

If I make major changes in the Last Call draft, I do a second Last Call. If I make major changes in the second Last Call draft, I do a third Last Call. If I do major… you get the idea.

And that’s that. But wait… there’s more!

With each step you can feel your script just getting better and better and better. I think that’s what makes rewriting so fun. I really enjoy seeing my script go from a steaming turd (draft 1) to something less steaming and smelly. Hopefully into something half decent.

It’s of course not always easy to rewrite. It can still be incredibly frustrating and make your brain hurt. But it’s easier when you break the process down into smaller, more digestible steps.

It’s also worth mentioning that the more thorough you’ve been before your first draft (outline, story beats, etc.) the easier the rewriting will be.

When I’ve rewritten the script 7-8 times, following the steps above, I send it out for feedback to people I trust to give me honest notes. That’s right, I don’t show anyone my script until all of that work above is done. 

I let my script sit for 6 weeks after the final rewrite. That’s how long I give people to read the script and send me their notes.

Then, I rewrite the script once more with all of the notes and feedback I’ve gotten.

When rewriting from feedback, I isolate each point of feedback and go through them one by one. I won’t go too much into detail on how to receive feedback now, but if that’s something you’d like me to talk about, let me know.

Badabing badaboom! The script is done! Sort of…

Fade out.

Wait! There’s… even more?

SUPER: 12 months later

After a year, I will pull out my script again and look through it.

After reading it with super fresh eyes, I then decide whether or not it needs an update. I decide whether or not I should start over with a page 1 rewrite or if it’s just a matter of punching it up a little. 

If it’s a punch up rewrite, I simply go through the 7 steps of rewriting again and, when done, I send it out for feedback again.

If it’s a page 1 rewrite, well, then I start from the very beginning of writing: breaking down the story into beats, logline, springboard, outline, first draft, and then the 7 steps of rewriting.

I hope this process is helpful. It’s been a game changer for me. Peace.