draft2final

Focus on your writing. Get a book that's ready to publish.

draft2final is a professional typesetting tool built for writers who want to stay focused on their content, yet demand output that is polished and perfect. It turns plain Markdown files into publication-grade PDFs for novels, memoirs, film scripts, and academic papers—without the complexity of LaTeX or the inconsistencies of word processors.

Why draft2final?

• Industrial-Strength Engine: Built on a state-of-the-art native typesetting engine—not a browser-based hack. It offers clinical precision in layout, margins, and vertical rhythms that rivals high-end publishing software like InDesign.
• Micro-Typographic Excellence: Professional-grade handling of font opticals, kerning, and advanced pagination logic that respects the traditions of fine bookmaking.
• Zero-Friction Infrastructure: A purely native solution. No Chromium, no Puppeteer, and no "font emergencies." It just works, beautifully, every time.
• Global-Ready from Day One: Native, high-fidelity support for mixed scripts including Arabic, Chinese, Devanagari, and Thai with correct contextual shaping and bidirectional layout.

Quick Start

1. Install

npm install -g draft2final

2. Scaffold a New Project

# For a novel or memoir
draft2final --new story.md --as manuscript

# For a film script
draft2final --new script.md --as screenplay

3. Render your PDF

# Render with default settings
draft2final story.md

# Render as a specific type
draft2final story.md --as manuscript

(Render completes in ~0.3s for a typical chapter)

Preparing Existing Files

If you have an existing Markdown file and want to add the required front matter and recommended configuration:

draft2final --prepare story.md --as manuscript

This will:

1. Add/update the as: manuscript key in the front matter.
2. Inject a commented-out block of recommended settings for that specific format (boilerplate), making it easy to discover and tune options without leaving your editor.

Choosing your "Form"

Use the --as flag to define the structural "Form" of your work. This is the structural DNA of your document:

• manuscript: The gold standard for prose submissions.
• screenplay: Effortless script formatting with dual-dialogue support.
• academic: Precise layout for research drafts and formal papers.
• literature: Clean, elegant book designs for poetry and prose.

The Screenplay Workflow

draft2final handles screenplay syntax with effortless sophistication. It supports full industry formatting conventions—action, characters, parentheticals, and dual-dialogue—all derived from clean, semantic Markdown.

## INT. COFFEE SHOP - DAY

Rain drums against the glass.

> @ELIAS
> If this script doesn't render perfectly, I'm taking up carpentry.

> @RIN
> Relax. It's draft2final.

Aesthetics

The --style flag (or style: in your frontmatter) is where the "Aesthetic" lives—the visual skin of your document:

draft2final script.md --as screenplay --style classic

Full Documentation

For the complete guide on syntax, advanced styles, and theme customization, visit the User Guide.

Part of the VMPrint Ecosystem

draft2final is the official CLI for VMPrint — a native, high-performance typesetting engine for Node.js. If you need direct access to the layout engine, PDF context, font management, or document transmuters, visit the VMPrint repository.

License

Licensed under the Apache License 2.0.