If you want to write a shifting script but have no idea what goes in it, start with a template. A shifting script template is a fill-in list of everything you hope to find in your desired reality (DR): who you are, how you look, who is with you, where you live and how you come home.
Free template
Get your shifting script template
Eight short parts, safety lines first. Take your copy now, then keep reading: below we show you how to fill in every part.
Copy the full template PDF (US Letter) PDF (A4)
Keep reading below Fill in each part One-page script Filled-in example 5 writing steps Fandom add-ons
If you have not chosen a method yet, these reality shifting methods for beginners will help you pick one to go with it.
Free Shifting Script Template to Copy and Paste
Here is the full template in eight parts. Copy one part at a time with its own button, or take all eight at once with Copy the full template at the top of the page, then paste it into Notes, Notion, Docs or a notebook. Fill in only the lines that feel important to you and skip the rest. Nothing here is permanent, so you can change any of it later.
We put safety first on purpose. Those are the lines you will most want to remember. So write them before you start imagining anything else.
○ Safety First: Safe Word, Way Back and Time
Your safe word is the word you script to bring you back to your current reality (CR) the moment you say it. Pick something short that you would never say accidentally, like “lighthouse” or “marmalade”. Our guide to choosing a shifting safe word has more ideas, and a plan for the night one feels slow.
Many shifters also script a way back that is an action, such as clapping twice, and decide how time passes while they are away (for example, a whole day in the DR for one minute here).
Be honest with yourself about what these lines can do. They are what shifters write so they can relax, a promise you make to yourself rather than a guarantee.
Your real body and your real life always come first. If anything hurts or feels wrong in your body while you practice, stop and tell an adult, whatever your script says.
- SAFETY
- My safe word:
- My way back, an action (optional):
- How time passes (optional):
- I can come back to my CR whenever I say my safe word.
- I will always come back to my CR.
- I am safe in my DR, and nothing there can seriously hurt me.
- Any pain I feel in my DR is mild and never lasts.
- If my body or anyone in my CR needs me, I come back at once.
- I can always tell my DR from my CR, and I remember both clearly.
- I will not get too attached to my DR, and I am happy to come home.
○ About You in Your DR
Start with the basics. Your DR name can be your own or a new one, and your DR age can be different from your age today. If your DR is a fandom world, you will find additional lines in the fandom add-ons further down.
- ABOUT ME
- My name in my DR:
- Nickname (optional):
- My age:
- My birthday (and star sign, optional):
- My gender and pronouns:
- Where I was born:
- Nationality and background (optional):
- Languages I speak:
- My accent (optional):
- What I am (human, witch, demigod, hero or something else):
○ How You Look and Feel
Describe yourself the way you would describe a favorite character, in a few words. Many shifters keep their own face and change only small things, like their hairstyle or their clothes. If you like how you look now, the first line covers it and you can skip the rest. Once you know how your DR self looks, the mirror shifting method has you meet them face to face before you cross over.
We left out sizes and measurements on purpose. This part is about feeling comfortable in your body, not about numbers.
- HOW I LOOK AND FEEL
- I look the way I do now (optional).
- Hair (color, length and style):
- Eyes:
- My face in a few words:
- My smile:
- Glasses, braces or contacts (optional):
- Freckles, birthmarks, tattoos or piercings (optional):
- My style of clothes:
- My favorite outfit:
- Shoes and accessories:
- How my voice sounds (optional):
- How I feel in my body:
- Something about how I look that I love:
○ Personality, Skills and Powers
Your DR personality can be braver, calmer or funnier than you feel today, or completely yourself. Write it the way you want to be, even if it sounds silly on paper.
Powers only belong here if your DR has them (a quiet seaside life does not need a fire quirk).
- PERSONALITY, SKILLS AND POWERS
- My personality in a few words:
- How I act with my friends:
- How I act with my family:
- How I act when I am alone:
- What I am best at:
- Other skills and talents:
- Hobbies:
- What people know me for:
- Goals I have already reached:
- What I am working toward now:
- Powers or magic (only if my DR has them):
- The limits of my powers (optional):
- A small flaw that makes me feel real (optional):
○ Your People
Relationships are a big part of why a DR feels like home. You can bring the people you love from your CR and leave the arguments behind. But some shifters skip this part entirely, and that is fine too.
If friends plan to shift with you, group shifting depends on writing one shared script together and making sure everyone agrees on every detail.
- MY PEOPLE
- My parents or guardians:
- Brothers and sisters:
- Other family (optional):
- My best friend:
- My friend group:
- Love interest or crush (optional):
- Mentor or favorite teacher (optional):
- My pet:
- A rival (optional):
- People from my CR who are in my DR too (optional):
- How the people in my DR treat me:
- Everyone I love in my DR is safe and well.
○ Your Desired Reality and Daily Life
This is the world itself. It might be a real city, a fictional world or simply your own street, made a little better.
Picture an ordinary morning there, not only the big moments, because small everyday details are what convince your imagination that a place is real. What do you hear when you wake up, and what does the kitchen smell like?
- MY DESIRED REALITY
- My DR in one line:
- The world, fandom or setting:
- When it takes place (era, season or point in the story):
- The town or city I live in:
- My home:
- My bedroom:
- School, college or job:
- What a normal day looks like:
- I have everything I need to live comfortably.
- Something I am looking forward to:
- Where I wake up when I arrive:
- What I see, hear and smell when I arrive:
- Events I want to happen (optional):
○ Your Clone and Extra Rules
Your clone is the stand-in that, many shifters believe, keeps your CR running in your absence. Shifters picture it going to school, talking to your family and feeding the cat.
Not everyone wants one. If the idea makes you uncomfortable, you may prefer to script no clone and let your CR wait for you instead. If you are thinking about a one-way trip, read permashifting and your CR self before you fill this part in.
Extra rules are anything else you want to be true in your DR. Keep the ones that make you feel calm and protected, and cross out the rest.
- MY CLONE
- Do I have a clone (yes or no):
- What my clone does while I am away:
- My clone is kind to everyone I love and looks after my body, my health and my schoolwork.
- My clone does not make big decisions for me.
- When I come back, I remember everything my clone did.
- EXTRA RULES
- If I fall asleep in my DR, I wake up in my DR.
- I understand every language spoken in my DR.
- If I feel homesick, the feeling is gentle.
- My own rules:
○ Affirmations
Affirmations are short, present-tense lines you read or repeat before you shift, as if they are already true. Keep the ones that feel right and write a few of your own.
Our 90 powerful shifting affirmations give you plenty more to choose from.
- MY AFFIRMATIONS
- I am shifting to my DR.
- My DR is real, and it is waiting for me.
- I am calm, safe and ready.
- Shifting is easy for me.
- I let go, and my mind knows the way.
- I am already there.
- My own affirmation:
- My own affirmation:
Basic One-Page Shifting Script for Beginners
The full template might feel like a lot at first. If it does, start here. This quick version fits on one page and covers what matters most for a first try: getting home safely, where you are and who is with you.
We suggest beginners start with this one. You can grow it into the full template later, one section at a time.
- SAFETY
- My safe word:
- I can come back to my CR whenever I say my safe word.
- I am safe in my DR, and nothing there can seriously hurt me.
- How time passes (optional):
- ME AND MY DR
- My DR in one line:
- My name and age in my DR:
- How I look, in a few words:
- Where I live:
- The people with me:
- What I do on a normal day:
- The first thing I notice when I arrive:
- MY AFFIRMATION
- I am already in my DR, and I feel calm and at home.
- My own affirmation (optional):
Shifting Script Example (Filled In)
Here is the quick script filled in for a peaceful DR, a little town by the sea where you own a bookshop. It is the same DR we use to explain what reality shifting is, so you can read the script and the first try side by side.
- SAFETY
- My safe word: lighthouse
- I can come back to my CR whenever I say my safe word.
- I am safe in my DR, and nothing there can seriously hurt me.
- How time passes (optional): one whole day in my DR is one minute in my CR
- ME AND MY DR
- My DR in one line: a small seaside town where I run a bookshop
- My name and age in my DR: Maya, 21
- How I look, in a few words: the way I do now, with long hair and my yellow raincoat
- Where I live: the room above my bookshop, two streets from the harbor
- The people with me: my best friend Ari (we run the shop together), my older brother (he owns the café next door) and a ginger cat called Biscuit
- What I do on a normal day: open the shop after breakfast, sort the new books, read by the window when it rains and walk on the beach at sunset
- The first thing I notice when I arrive: cold floorboards under my feet, gulls calling outside and Ari downstairs sorting new books
- MY AFFIRMATION
- I am already in my DR, and I feel calm and at home.
- My own affirmation (optional): I live above my bookshop, and the sea is at the end of my street.
Notice how short each description is. A few words that make you feel something will do more for you than a paragraph you have to work hard to picture.
Free Printable Shifting Script Template (PDF)
If you like pen and paper, the printable has the quick script on page one and the full template after it, with blank lines for your handwriting. It comes in US Letter and A4, and you can download it straight from this page with no sign-up.
A paper script is also the easiest kind to slip under your pillow.
How to Write a Shifting Script in 5 Steps
First, a question almost every beginner asks. Do you need a script at all?
No. Plenty of shifters never write one, and some keep everything in their head.
But for most beginners a script helps, because it gives your mind a clear picture to hold and settles the safety questions before you start.
- Write your safety lines first. Your safe word, your way back and the line that says you always come home. Everything else can change later, but these should be clear before your first try.
- Pick where you are going, then picture one ordinary morning there. Start with where you wake up. Then fill in the people and places surrounding it.
- Fill in only what you can feel. If a line leaves you blank, skip it. On Reddit, shifters’ scripts run from nothing at all to ninety pages, and one shifter with a thirteen-page script admitted that reading it before every try had become a chore. Short and organized beats long and messy, which is also what our shifting tips for beginners say about scripts that turn into a novel.
- Write it in the present tense. “I live above my bookshop” feels much closer than “I will live above a bookshop”. Use whatever language you naturally think in.
- Read it slowly and calmly, then let it rest. You do not need to memorize it. Read it as often as you want (some shifters read it once before each try, others only when they change it), and edit it whenever you like. Your DR may grow in your head as you go, and lots of shifters keep adding to their script as it does.
Shifting Script Ideas and Fandom Add-Ons
Many DRs are fandom worlds, and each one needs a few extra lines. Add these to the full template, under About You or Your Desired Reality. Where a fandom line covers the same thing as a general one (your pet or your powers, say), keep the fandom line and skip the general one.
○ Hogwarts
Hogwarts comes with so many details (houses, wands, Patronuses) that it has its own full Hogwarts shifting script. If you only want the basics, add these lines.
- HOGWARTS
- My house:
- My year at Hogwarts:
- My wand (wood, core and length):
- My Patronus:
- My pet (owl, cat, toad or something rarer):
- Favorite subject:
- Quidditch position (optional):
○ My Hero Academia, Camp Half-Blood, Marvel, K-pop and More
These are some of the other worlds shifters love to script, from superheroes to idols. If your DR is not here, the last group works for any story world.
- MY HERO ACADEMIA
- My quirk:
- What my quirk can do:
- My quirk’s limit or drawback:
- My hero name:
- My class at U.A. (1-A, 1-B or another):
- My hero costume:
- CAMP HALF-BLOOD
- My godly parent:
- My cabin:
- My weapon:
- Powers from my godly parent:
- A quest or prophecy (optional):
- MARVEL
- Where I arrive in the timeline:
- Who I am (hero, agent, student or civilian):
- My powers or skills:
- My team:
- My base (a New York apartment, Avengers Tower, Wakanda or somewhere else):
- K-POP
- Trainee or debuted:
- My group (one I love or my own):
- My position (vocal, dance, rap, visual or leader):
- My stage name:
- Life in the dorm with my members:
- STRANGER THINGS
- Which season of the story I arrive in:
- My house in Hawkins:
- My friends in Hawkins:
- Whether I know about the Upside Down:
- ANY OTHER WORLD
- The world, and the point in its story when I arrive:
- My role in the story:
- Characters I am close to:
- What I change in the story (optional):
○ Waiting Room and Better CR
Some shifters break the trip in two and stop first in a waiting room, a space of their own design where they can rest, plan and get used to the feeling. Our waiting room guide explains everything you need, and these 15 waiting room ideas will get you started on yours.
A better CR is this life with a few upgrades: the same town and family, perhaps, with a closer friend or a different school. We think it is one of the gentlest DRs to start with, because so much of it is already familiar. For a longer better CR template and real ideas, see how to shift to a better CR.
- WAITING ROOM
- What my waiting room looks like:
- What I can do there:
- Who or what keeps me company (optional):
- How I get from my waiting room to my DR:
- BETTER CR
- What stays the same as my CR:
- What is different:
- How my days feel now:
Using Your Script With a Shifting Method
A script works with any shifting method.
The method is the door, and your script decides what is on the other side of it. Here is how it fits with five favorites.
- In the Pillow method, the script is the method. You write it on paper and sleep with it under your pillow.
- For the Raven method, read your script first, then lie in a starfish position and count slowly to 100, with affirmations between the numbers.
- The Julia method rests on “I am” statements, so turn your favorite script lines into them: “I am living above my bookshop.”
- In the Sunni method, you persuade your brain that you are already lying in your DR, and your script’s first-morning scene gives it the details to believe.
- In the Alice in Wonderland method, the person who leads you down the rabbit hole can come straight from Your People.
One of our readers asked whether they could keep their script under the pillow and do the Raven method at the same time. Yes, and many shifters do exactly that. Once the paper is under your pillow, the Pillow method asks nothing more of your attention, so it sits happily alongside the Raven method’s counting.
What gets difficult is running two methods that both need your focus, like counting for the Raven method while you picture the rabbit hole. Your attention splits in two, so choose one method and give it a few calm nights.
And if you have already tried many times without shifting, you are in good company. Taking a break for a while is never a failure.
Before Your First Try
Some people start a script because something in their life hurts right now, at home or at school. If that is you, this part is for you. A script can give your mind a lovely place to rest, but shifting is not a way out of something unsafe.
Tell an adult you trust what is going on. That could be a teacher, a school counselor, an aunt or uncle, or a parent, and they can do what a DR cannot. If you are ever in danger, call your local emergency number first.
Our guide to the risks of reality shifting covers the rest, including which feelings mean it is time to stop.
More Guides for Scripting Your Desired Reality
Once your script is written, these guides help you fill in the details:
- Desired reality ideas and how to choose the one that fits you
- How to shift to Hogwarts, a favorite desired reality for many shifters
- The waiting room, a calm in-between space you can script too
- Subliminals for shifting to listen to while you relax
- Crystals for shifting that shifters like to keep nearby
- The reality shifting symbol and what it means to the community
Fill in one box tonight, and leave the rest for another evening. Your DR will wait.
Frequently Asked Questions about Shifting Scripts
What language should my script be in?
Any language you feel at home in. Your script is only for you, so many shifters write in their first language, and some mix two languages the way they do when they talk. If your DR has a language you do not speak yet, you can script that you understand it perfectly there.
Do I need to script every detail?
No. Script the things you can picture or feel easily, and leave out anything that feels forced. Many shifters trust their subconscious mind to fill in the gaps, so a missing detail is nothing to worry about.
How long should a shifting script be?
There is no right length. Some shifters write a single line, and others fill a whole notebook. For a first try, we suggest the one-page quick script on this page. You can always add more later if you enjoy writing it.
How do I remember my script?
You do not have to learn it word for word. Read it slowly a few times until each line brings a picture to mind. Many shifters say that after a while, a small cue is enough to bring the whole scene back. The one thing worth knowing by heart is your safe word.
Can I write my script on my phone?
Yes. Notes, Google Docs, Notion and similar apps all work, and the template on this page pastes straight into any of them. If you want to keep your script private, a notes app with a lock or a notebook in a drawer both work well.
Can I change my script later?
Yes, whenever you like. Many shifters treat their script as something that grows with them, adding new people, places and rules as their DR becomes clearer in their mind.
What is a good safe word?
A word you would never say by accident, that is easy to remember and that makes you feel calm. Words like “pineapple”, “moonstone” or “lantern” work well. Some shifters pair their safe word with an action, so they have two ways home.
Can I use my script with any shifting method?
Yes. Many shifters keep it under the pillow for the Pillow method or read it just before the Raven method. Just try one method that needs your focus at a time.
i have tried to shift at lease 15 times. it hasn’t worked. should i give up at this point? also, are you able to do more than 1 shifting method at the same time? like having your script under your pillow and doing the raven method.
I know I am 8 months late, and I hope you have managed to shift by now, but shifting takes time! Don’t give up.
hey 11 months late but i strted shifting 3 tears ago and just recently actually shifted good luck on your jurney dont give up