Mike Will Downey

Here is a great Character Building Questionnaire so you can develop your next awesome character for your story: What's your character's name, middle initial, and nickname?  What are his or her physical characteristics?: Height, weight, eye color, hair color, etc. Are there any strange or unique physical attributes?  What's their favorite clothing style or outfit?  Where does he or she live? What is it like there?  Defining gestures / movements (i.e. curling his or her lip when he or she speaks, always keeping his or her eyes on the ground, intense energy bursts.) Things about his or her appearance he or she would most like to change.  What are your characters' pet peeves?  What is their food preference? What do they order for lunch or dinner? What are their relaxing activities? Hobbies and interests? What's your character's vice? Maybe they are a compulsive spender, innocuous, habitual over-consumption of sweets. Your character's situatio...

Storytelling is an art that has evolved over thousands of years. Main characters have ups and downs to shape a story. Vivid images are painted in words.  The human brain processes images 60x faster than words. the brain releases dopamine when there are emotional stories. Neural coupling activates our brain to give our own meaning to stories. Knowing this, you need quality content and a compelling story! Timeline of Storytelling The origin of storytelling goes back to prehistoric times. Cavemen told each other stories orally, and through sign language or rock drawings, for mystical rituals or before hunting. In ancient Egypt, storytelling was used for communications, entertainment, and religious purposes. The Greeks used their stories to explain natural occurrences in the form of myths. Home, the greatest of ancient Greek poets, created the Iliad and Odyssey, two epic poems that lie at the beginning of Western literature.  In Asia, there's a long tradition of s...

Writing a screenplay is not easy. You will need discipline and you will need to learn the structure, character development and format. Not to worry, that is why I have condensed ten years of experience, hundreds of books and movies, into this article. I have written seven screenplays now, two television scripts, and two music video scripts. Only one of those films has made it to the big screen. Breaking into screenwriting often times requires persistence and focus and many, many years. Story logic, character development and structure are paramount when writing a traditional script. Each film follows a six stage plot structure. Robert McKee's Story tells us that you must be good at the nuts and bolts of a scene. Each scene hinges upon the other scene and everything must continue to move forward. A good story is a detective story - the audience wants to know what is going to happen next? Keep them guessing. You never want to be predictable. Scenes need to turn on at leas...