You Finished Your Screenplay—Now What?

How Screenwriting Masters Revise for Excellence

Turning a Rough Draft into a Studio-Ready Script

So you’ve typed “FADE OUT.” You’ve finished your screenplay. Congratulations—seriously, that’s a major milestone. But in the words of Aaron Sorkin, “You’re not writing it until you’re rewriting it.” The draft you’ve just finished is only the beginning of your real work: revision. This is where your raw ideas are refined into a compelling, professional story.

How do the pros do it? What can you learn from their process? Let’s explore revision techniques used by top screenwriters like Sorkin, Greta Gerwig, Quentin Tarantino, and others, to help take your script from good to great.

The Rewriting Mindset: Detach to Improve

Aaron Sorkin has said many times that writing is rewriting—and that detachment is essential. “You have to fall out of love with your own writing,” he notes. When you’re too attached to your words or scenes, it’s hard to see the flaws. Step one in rewriting? Step away. Give yourself at least a week or two before returning to your script with fresh eyes.

When you come back, read your screenplay as if it were written by someone else. Does it grip you from page one? Do you care about what’s happening? If not, why? Are you confused at any point? If you are, assume your reader will be too.

Tip: Read it aloud—or better, get actors or friends to read it aloud. You’ll immediately hear what sounds off.

Re-Examine Structure: Does It Hold?

Even screenwriting veterans like Greta Gerwig emphasize how crucial structure is—whether or not you use a formal framework like Save the Cat or the Hero’s Journey. Gerwig told The New York Times that she writes “instinctually but then reverse-engineers structure in later drafts.”

At this stage, outline your screenplay from scratch—scene by scene. Does each scene move the story forward? Do you hit major turning points by pages 25, 55, and 85 (give or take)? Are stakes escalating? Are setups paying off?

Sorkin often breaks his story into “intent and obstacle.” Every scene should be about a character who wants something and is having trouble getting it. If you can’t identify the intent and obstacle in a scene, it may not belong.

Ask Yourself:

• What does each character want in this scene?

• What stands in their way?

• What changes by the end of the scene?

Strengthen Character Voice and Conflict

Dialogue is Sorkin’s signature, and he revises it obsessively. His advice: make sure your characters don’t all sound like you. Each voice should be distinct and consistent. He even reads scenes over and over, changing single words until the rhythm and tone feel right.

But dialogue isn’t just about sounding clever—it’s about revealing character and advancing conflict. Look at Quentin Tarantino’s scripts, where every line crackles with subtext and tension. What are your characters not saying? What’s at stake beneath the surface?

Exercise: Rewrite a scene in silence—no dialogue. Then add only the essential lines. You’ll sharpen both action and conversation.

Cut Ruthlessly: Kill Your Darlings

Stephen King may have coined the phrase “kill your darlings,” but every great screenwriter lives by it. Just because you wrote a scene you love doesn’t mean it serves the story. If it doesn’t advance character, conflict, or plot—it goes.

Ask yourself:

• If I cut this scene, would anything break?

• Is this moment surprising, necessary, and emotional?

• Could I tell this more efficiently?

Greta Gerwig once cut entire subplots from Lady Bird that she “loved deeply,” because they didn’t serve the arc. And the script won her an Oscar nomination.

Get Feedback—Then Use It Wisely

Sorkin is blunt about notes: “Most people who give you notes don’t know what they’re talking about. But that doesn’t mean the note’s not right.” Your job is to listen carefully and decode feedback.

Find 2–3 trusted readers who understand story and film. Ask them specific questions: Did the pacing drag? Did the ending land? Were any characters confusing? Then look for patterns. If multiple people are confused by the same scene—something’s off.

You don’t need to take every note. But you do need to stay open and curious.

Polish: Format, Grammar, and Readability

This is the final stretch. A great script is also easy to read. It flows. The formatting is clean. Action lines are sharp and visual. Scene headings are consistent. There are no typos.

Sorkin, who teaches screenwriting at masterclass.com, urges writers to remember: “You’re not just writing for a director or actor—you’re writing for a reader first.” That could be a studio exec, agent, or competition judge. Make their experience seamless.

Final Thoughts: Write, Rewrite, and Rewrite Again

Aaron Sorkin’s first draft of The Social Network was over 160 pages long. He rewrote it nearly a dozen times before filming. Greta Gerwig revised Lady Bird more than 40 times. Rewriting isn’t a flaw—it’s the craft.

A finished script is a moment of celebration. But if you want it to live on screen, it’s also the beginning of the real artistry: rewriting with courage, clarity, and intent.

Further Reading:

• "Aaron Sorkin’s Guide to Screenwriting" – MasterClass

• "Greta Gerwig on Lady Bird, Writing, and Directing" – The New York Times