Free Scriptwriting Software: celtx

A company named celtx has released version 1.0 of their free (and open source) scriptwriting software of the same name. The website is a little plain-jane, go to the Features Tour page for videos of what the software can do.

I've downloaded and played around with it a little bit. They've included a couple of samples projects so you have some real stuff to check it out with. Looking good so far!

It supports the following formats:

• Screenplay
• Stage Play (international and US standard)
• AV scripts (documentaries, music videos and advertising)
• Audio Play (radio plays and podcasts)
• Comic Book
• Plain Text

But it's more than just formatting, it also does story boarding, tracks characters and does scene breakdowns. A full set of features listed here: http://www.celtx.com/features.html

Although Celtx isn't overtly intended for book writing some of the tools look like they could be useful for book authors. If you've ever wished for tracking tools it might be worth checking out. The caveat is your working style needs to match the celtx workflow .

celtx also has online publishing and collaboration services, which where they make their money. One of the more intriguing services is the ability to view a project via an iPhone.

I'm looking forward to trying some real work on a podcast project to see if there's some substance to the flash.

Tip of the hat to Podcasting News (Free Open Source Scriptwriting Software).