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Scrivener is a phenomenal place to draft and research. But screenwriting is a mode there, not the point. Compile to FDX or Fountain, import to Arqo, and write in a tool built for screenplays — on every device, not just the desktop.
Scrivener formats scripts through a compile preset. Arqo is a screenplay engine: real Fountain underneath, FDX that round-trips, industry-standard pagination — not a styling layer over a long-form draft.
Scrivener is desktop with an iOS companion. Arqo is the same editor on iOS, Android, Windows, and any browser. Your phone is the editor, not a viewer.
Character index, location index, the through-line — surfaced when you ask, hidden when you don't. Arqo Assist answers questions about your script. It does not write your dialogue.
Two scripts, full editor, your FDX out via Account → Export everything, no nag. Pro at $9/mo — per-script export from the editor, lossless round-trip — if you outgrow it.
In Scrivener: File → Compile → Final Draft (.fdx), or Fountain (.fountain) for a screenplay project. FDX preserves more production metadata.
Scripts → Import → drop the .fdx or .fountain. Scenes, characters, and elements land in place.
Spot-check the first three scenes — sluglines, character cues, transitions. Export FDX back any time.
Sign in on iOS or Android. Same editor, same script. No "mobile mode" with half the features.
Yes — that's the cleanest flow. Outline and research in Scrivener's binder, compile the screenplay to FDX or Fountain, and draft in Arqo. Round-trip back any time.
No. The binder and corkboard are Scrivener's flagship and we don't replicate them 1:1. Arqo imports the screenplay text and structure via FDX/Fountain — not your research folders. Arqo's mind map and scene list are the closest equivalents.
FDX if your project has dual dialogue, revisions, or locked scene numbers — it carries more production metadata. Fountain is fine for a clean draft with standard elements.
No. Arqo is screenwriting-only by design. If you write across forms, keep Scrivener for prose and bring the scripts to Arqo.
In Arqo, yes — today. Named presence, live cursors, live co-typing, threaded comments, and suggest mode / track changes, per script. Free has no co-writers; Pro is 2 per script (taking turns — the live room is Studio), Studio is 5 with live cursors. Scrivener is single-writer by design, so this is one of the clearer gaps between the two.
Two scripts on Free. Full editor. Full export. Bring your FDX, see how it lands.