The Words of the Trade
- Déborah Braun
- May 7
- 1 min read
Script doctor, script consultant, script editor, story consultant, writing support…
When I first started out, the term story consultant felt the most appropriate. So I named my company 90pages script consulting, in English, because I also work internationally.
Then I discovered that in France, where I live, the most commonly used term was script doctor. And yet, in Canada and the United States, a script doctor is someone who steps in to rewrite or “save” a script (often without receiving any credit). So I settled on a bilingual approach: script consultant for English, script doctor for French.
Later on, I came across the term script editing I had never heard before, and it struck me as the most accurate. Coming from a background in film editing, I know that editing means accompanying, suggesting, exchanging ideas. It’s about seeking coherence and precision, rhythm and point of view all within the existing material, and always in line with the intention.
But this term is barely used in France, and mostly employed in the UK. So I tucked it away in a drawer, a little sadly.
In the end, labels aren’t what matter most. What does is the clarity of the intention.
The ability to accompany and serve the script, according to the needs, the stage of the process.
The care and insight we bring to reading a script.
