I have been using Celtx to write my comic book scripts for quite some time now, and find one of its most useful features to be the ability to keep character, prop, and scene information seperate from the main body of the script but with hyperlinks to move to and from the script. Celtx also allows you to attach notes and annotations to elements of your script.
As with any piece of software however, there are drawbacks, and my key gripe with Celtx is that you can’t easily redefine the templates for characters, props, scenes, etc. Whilst the software is quite well optimsed for movie production, filling in the little forms isn’t really suitable or applicable to creating a comic book.
This prompted me to explore the notion of using a Wiki to write my scripts – free from the constraints imposed by Celtx’s formatting and functionality, but with all the functionality to create links between points in the script and additional information.
I knew I wanted a file based Wiki, probably using Javascript, that had no requirement for a server install. I also knew that I wanted it to be open source, so that I could change it if I wanted to and support it if I had to. I had a thought that possibly TiddlyWiki was what I needed, but no ideas beyond that.
Enter WikiMatrix.
WikiMatrix is a fantastic site that documents the functionality of all the major Wiki platforms, both closed and open source, and provides a comparison matrix that can be used to compare features and functionality.
Possibly its more powerful feature is the ability to select a Wiki using a wizard based series of questions, providing you with statistics as you answer each question as to how many wikis you have discounted with each answer.
Predictably, TiddlyWiki came back as the obvious answer for me, but WikiMatrix also threw up a number of other options that are all worthy of investigation before I settle on what might be my new writing platform.
So, whilst I may or may not be changing platform from my beloved Celtx, I will certainly be returning to WikiMatrix.
