How does the Story interview turn my own story into a series brief?

Short answerAnswer about ten short questions, one at a time, in your own words and any language. Dawnwood then writes an editable series brief (title, logline, premise, characters, audience, what stays true) and you create the series from it. The interview is free and takes about 5 to 10 minutes.

Who it is for

The Story interview is the starting point for something you lived through, or an idea you keep arguing for: a company you built and shut down, a family rift, a career change, a comeback. Most people can tell what happened, but find it hard to write a premise from it. The interview asks the questions a story editor would ask, so the inner story comes out.

If you already have a premise or a script, you don't need the interview. Use Write a premise instead on the first screen, or see How do I write a premise that produces a good bible?.

How it works

1. Start. Open console.dawnwood.ai/story and click Start the interview. If you've already written a paragraph, click I already have a paragraph and paste it first. The questions then build on it.
2. Answer one question at a time. A few sentences per answer is plenty. You can answer in any language. Skip any question, or click That's enough — write my brief whenever you feel you've said the important part. The progress bar shows which themes are covered: what happened, the hardest decision, who stood against you, who helped, what you believed then versus now, the turning point, and what viewers should keep.
3. Get the brief. When the questions are done, Dawnwood writes the series brief. This usually takes under a minute.
4. Edit the brief. Every field can be changed: title (with alternatives to pick from), logline, premise, characters, audience, tone, when and where, the theme, and the true vs dramatized notes. You can also ask for a fresh draft of the brief up to three times.
5. Create the series. Choose the dialogue language, Live-action or Comic look, and how you want to make it: - Auto: we write the story, you approve it once, and we make the episodes. See Auto mode. - Advanced: the step-by-step wizard, where you steer the bible, scripts, cast and art.

Real people are renamed by default

Each character in the brief is marked real person (renamed), composite of real people, or invented. Anyone based on a real person gets a new name and changed details, and the brief lists who was renamed or merged. Don't type real names into the character fields. By creating the series you confirm it uses no real person's likeness or name.

The Keep true and OK to dramatize lists record your decisions: usually the feeling, the choice and what it cost stay true, while events, timing and dialogue get compressed into scenes. The writing guide How do I turn my own life story into a short drama? goes deeper on this.

What it costs

The interview and the brief are free and use no credits. Writing the story bible is free too, and free accounts get scripts for episodes 1–2 (the rest of the season is written after your first purchase). Credits are used when you render video; new accounts start with 500. See Credits, free trial and render rates and the pricing for current prices.

If you stop halfway

Your answers are saved. Come back to console.dawnwood.ai/story on the same device to continue, or use the link in the reminder email from any device. Start over begins a new interview; the old one stays saved.

Still stuck? Email support@dawnwood.ai with your account email, the series, the episode and the segment or group — see what to include.