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Revision tracking in Inkwell helps you mark script changes for production, rewrites, or collaboration. This guide covers revision marks, color coding, and exporting revised scripts.

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What are revisions?

In professional screenwriting, revisions indicate which lines have changed between drafts. Productions use revision marks to:
  • Track script changes during shooting
  • Identify new dialogue or scenes
  • Coordinate updates across departments (actors, crew, etc.)
Inkwell’s revision system follows industry standards, making your scripts production-ready.

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Enabling Revision Mode

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Toggle Revision Mode

Before you can mark revisions, you need to enable Revision Mode: From the Titlebar (fastest):
  1. Click the pencil icon in the top-right titlebar
  2. Click the toggle switch to enable Revision Mode
  3. The button turns colored when active
From the menu:
  • Screenplay → Revision Mode (toggle on/off)
The pencil icon shows the current revision color when Revision Mode is active. Click it anytime to change colors or toggle the mode.

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Choose Your Revision Color

Inkwell offers 9 industry-standard revision colors:
  1. Blue - 1st revision, marker: *
  2. Pink - 2nd revision, marker: **
  3. Yellow - 3rd revision, marker: ***
  4. Green - 4th revision, marker: ****
  5. Goldenrod - 5th revision, marker: *****
  6. Buff - 6th revision, marker: ******
  7. Salmon - 7th revision, marker: *******
  8. Cherry - 8th revision, marker: ********
  9. Tan - 9th revision, marker: *********
To change colors:
  1. Click the pencil icon in the titlebar
  2. Select a revision from the list
  3. Future marks will use this color
The number of asterisks indicates the revision level. First revision = *, second = **, and so on. This appears in the right margin when printed.

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Revision basics

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How revisions work

Revisions mark individual lines that have been edited. Marked lines appear with:
  • Colored highlight behind the text (in editor)
  • Colored background matching the revision color
  • Asterisks in the right margin (when printed/exported)
    • * for Blue (1st revision)
    • ** for Pink (2nd revision)
    • *** for Yellow (3rd revision)
    • And so on…

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When to use revisions

  • Production rewrites: Track changes after a script is locked for shooting
  • Collaborative editing: Show what changed between drafts
  • Agent/producer notes: Highlight implemented feedback
Revisions are optional. Most spec scripts and early drafts don’t need revision tracking. Use revisions when your script enters production or professional review.

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Mark lines as revised

1

Enable Revision Mode

Click the pencil icon in the titlebar and toggle Revision Mode ON. Choose your revision color (default is Blue).
2

Edit your script

Make changes to your script. As you type:
  • New text is highlighted with the current revision color
  • Deleted text leaves an invisible deletion marker
  • The margin shows asterisks (*, **, etc.) indicating revision level
3

Manually mark existing text

To mark text that’s already written:
  1. Select the lines you want to mark
  2. Press Cmd/Ctrl+[ or go to Screenplay → Mark Selection Revised
  3. The lines are marked with the current revision color

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Automatic vs Manual Marking

Automatic (Revision Mode ON):
  • All new typing is automatically marked
  • Deletions create invisible markers
  • No need to manually select and mark
Manual (any time):
  • Select existing text
  • Press Cmd/Ctrl+[
  • Useful for marking text written before enabling Revision Mode

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What gets marked

Revision marks apply to entire lines:
  • Scene headings: The entire heading is marked
  • Action: The full action paragraph is marked
  • Character + Dialogue: Both the character name and their dialogue are marked together
You cannot mark individual words within a line—revisions always apply to complete screenplay elements.
Inkwell automatically tracks which color you’re using. If you mark lines, change to a different color, then mark more lines, both sets of revisions are preserved with their respective colors.

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Clear revision marks

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Clear selected marks

1

Select revised lines

Highlight the lines whose revision marks you want to remove
2

Clear marks

  • Go to Screenplay → Clear Selected Markers
  • Or press Cmd/Ctrl+]
The revision marks disappear from the selected lines.

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Clear all marks

To remove all revision marks from your entire script:
1

Select all

Press Cmd/Ctrl+A to select the entire script
2

Clear marks

Press Cmd/Ctrl+] or go to Screenplay → Clear Selected MarkersAll revision marks are removed.
Clearing revision marks is permanent and cannot be undone. Make sure you’ve exported a revised PDF before clearing marks if you need a record.

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Revision colors

Inkwell uses 9 industry-standard revision colors in this order:
  1. Blue (#4dabf7) - marker: *
  2. Pink (#f06292) - marker: **
  3. Yellow (#ffd43b) - marker: ***
  4. Green (#51cf66) - marker: ****
  5. Goldenrod (#fcc419) - marker: *****
  6. Buff (#e9ecef) - marker: ******
  7. Salmon (#ff6b6b) - marker: *******
  8. Cherry (#e03131) - marker: ********
  9. Tan (#d6936d) - marker: *********

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How production uses colors

In professional production:
  • White: Original script (no revision marks)
  • Blue: First set of changes (e.g., “Blue Revision - Jan 15”)
  • Pink: Second set of changes (e.g., “Pink Revision - Jan 22”)
  • And so on through subsequent colors
Each revision “set” is distributed with colored pages matching the revision color, making it easy to identify what changed.

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Changing revision colors

1

Open revision picker

Click the pencil icon in the titlebar (top-right)
2

Select a new color

Click any revision in the list (Blue, Pink, Yellow, etc.)
3

Mark new revisions

All new edits and manual marks will use the new color. Previous marks stay unchanged.
The pencil icon shows the current revision color. Click it anytime to see which color is active or switch to a different one.
Example workflow:
  1. Write your script (White)
  2. Make first-round edits, mark them as Blue
  3. Export “Blue Revision” PDF
  4. Make second-round edits, switch to Pink, mark new changes
  5. Export “Pink Revision” PDF with both Blue and Pink marks visible

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Export revised scripts

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Export to PDF with revisions

1

Open Print/Export

  • Go to File → Export → PDF
  • Or press Cmd/Ctrl+P and click Export PDF
2

Enable revision marks

In the export options, check Include Revision Markers
3

Export

Click Export. Your PDF will include:
  • Asterisks (*) in the right margin next to revised lines
  • Optional: Color-coded marks (if your PDF viewer supports color)

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Export to Final Draft (FDX) with revisions

Final Draft preserves full revision data, including colors and dates.
1

Export to FDX

Go to File → Export → Final Draft (.fdx)
2

Open in Final Draft

The exported file includes all revision marks and colors. Final Draft users can continue tracking revisions from where you left off.
Fountain format does not support revisions. Exporting to .fountain strips all revision marks. Use PDF or FDX if you need to preserve revisions.

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Import scripts with revisions

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Import from Final Draft (FDX)

Inkwell can import Final Draft files with existing revision marks.
1

Import FDX file

Go to File → Import → Final Draft (.fdx) and select your file
2

Review revisions

Imported revision marks appear in Inkwell with their original colors preserved
3

Continue tracking

You can add new revisions in a different color or clear existing marks

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Import from Fountain or PDF

  • Fountain: Does not support revisions. Imported Fountain files have no revision marks.
  • PDF: Inkwell can import PDF files, but revision marks are not preserved (PDFs are visual-only).

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Revision workflow example

Here’s a typical production workflow using revisions:
1

Initial script (White)

Write your first draft and export as PDF. This is your “White” script—the baseline.
2

First revision (Blue)

After notes from the director:
  1. Make changes to specific scenes
  2. Select the changed lines
  3. Mark them as revised (Blue)
  4. Export as “Blue Revision - [Date].pdf”
  5. Distribute to cast and crew
3

Second revision (Pink)

After actor feedback:
  1. Make additional changes
  2. Change revision color to Pink
  3. Mark the new changes (Blue marks remain from previous revision)
  4. Export as “Pink Revision - [Date].pdf”
  5. Distribute updated pages
4

Production shooting

Cast and crew can see:
  • Unmarked lines: Original (White) script
  • Blue asterisks: Changes from first revision
  • Pink asterisks: Changes from second revision
This helps everyone track what’s changed between drafts.

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Best practices

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Do use revisions for:

  • Production scripts: Once a script is locked for shooting
  • Collaboration: Showing changes to co-writers or producers
  • Rewrite passes: Tracking which scenes changed between drafts

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Don’t use revisions for:

  • Spec scripts: Agents and contests don’t need revision marks
  • Early drafts: Revision tracking adds complexity during creative development
  • Personal drafts: If you’re the only one reading it, revisions aren’t necessary

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Tips

  • Clear marks between major drafts: Before starting a major rewrite, clear all marks and start fresh
  • Export before clearing: Always save a PDF with revision marks before removing them
  • Use notes for context: Add inline notes explaining why lines changed (e.g., [[ Note: Changed per director's request ]])
  • Lock the script: Use Screenplay → Lock Script to prevent accidental edits once revisions are finalized

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Common revision questions

No. Industry-standard revision tracking marks entire lines, not individual words. This matches how Final Draft and professional productions handle revisions.
After using all 9 colors (Blue through Tan), start over with Blue. Most productions never need more than 3-4 revision colors. If you’re on your 10th revision, consider consolidating changes into a new “White” baseline script.
Not in the current version of Inkwell. You can track dates manually by exporting PDFs with date-stamped filenames (e.g., “Blue Revision - Jan 15.pdf”).
No. Revision marks are visual indicators only—they don’t add pages or change formatting. Your page count remains accurate.
Yes! Immediately after marking lines, press Cmd/Ctrl+Z to undo. Once you’ve moved on, use Cmd/Ctrl+] to clear marks manually.

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Try it yourself

Practice exercise:
  1. Write a short scene (10-15 lines)
  2. “Edit” a few lines by selecting them and pressing Cmd/Ctrl+[ to mark as Blue
  3. Export to PDF and verify the asterisks appear in the right margin
  4. Change the revision color to Pink
  5. Mark a few more lines
  6. Export again and see both Blue and Pink marks
You now understand how to track revisions like a professional production!

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Next steps

Exporting files

Save your revised script as PDF or Final Draft

Formatting basics

Master Fountain syntax and screenplay elements

Navigation & productivity

Speed up writing with shortcuts and tools

Printing options

Customize print settings and page headers