Working in the Industry

For the past month, I've been luckily (blessed) enough to be working in the industry doing exactly what I set out to do. I've landed a position as a writer/level design with a RPG mod group and have learned something new everyday. The position has also bolstered my confidence that working in the video game industry is precisely what I want to do with my career, it may be hard work and long hours but I'm loving every minute of it.

Over the past few weeks I've written a wide array of content and wanted to share my experiences because they've been very different than what I expected.

Besides writing dialog, item descriptions, quest material and character sketches you may also be called on to write 'design documents'.

In any game, before the level was created, a writer had to create a long, complex, detailed document that lays out everything and everyone in the level, which allowed level designers to create the content the player will see. In a design document, a writer has to specify the general feel of the level, all the characters within the level, any locations that are subsets of the area, any quests associated with the area (that start or end) and any assets that may be used (dialog/scripts/FX). This document has to be detailed enough that a designer can build the world you create in words.

If you're creating your own game or just want to show potential employers that you can create a design document, you have a few options.

1. Create a design document for a game that you're familiar with. Pick any level/area in the game and write up a design document for that area.
2. Create a design document that details a level/area in the game you're working on.

To write a design document...

1. Start with an overview of a main area (ie. a town, a city neighbor hood or an outdoor level). Where is it located in the world (or your game), how does it 'feel', what do the buildings and people look like, who inhabits the area, how challenging of an area is it for the player, etc? Include brief art direction and history if you feel that your description has missed important pieces of your vision for the area.
   
2. List and detail all the areas connected to the main area. For example, if you're writing a design document on a town, what shops and homes are in the town that the player can enter. If the player can transition from the main area into a smaller subset of the level describe how the player can get there, what the area looks like, who inhabits it etc. These are mini-versions of your main overview for all the areas correlated to your main area.
3. List and detail all the characters in the area. Include who they are, what they do, appearance, stats (height, eye color, hit points, etc) and how they interact with others.
4. List and detail all the quests/missions that take place in the area. If a quest starts or ends in the level, explain what the quest is, what the player is expected to do and how the player can complete said quest. Be sure to include any information that is important to the quest. If the player needs a key from the bartender, include that information.
5. List and detail all the assets needed for the level. Assuming that you game has dialog, you'll need dialog files, which count as assets. However, you may also need scripts to run when a mission is completed or when a player enters an area that is plot related. If something happens in your area that isn't static and needs to be written/coded into the level, list that something.

• Just as a note: A design document, depending on the size of your area, can be a monstrous document. Writing a design document may seem overwhelming at first, so just deal with bite sized amounts and all the little pieces will fall into place and you'll end up with a document that fully and imaginatively details the area you can see so vividly in your imagination.
  

Courtney Keene

Courtney Keene has a personal blog / resume of her experience with narrative design and her transition from being a fiction writer to a game writer. She has some great insights and 'how tos' but most importantly she was kind enough to post sample material of her work, which is invaluable and a great resource of aspiring writings. Read through her posts and be sure to check out her resume material here.

The Job Hunt

GameDevMap is an invaluable tool for locating game developers and producers around the world. You can search for companies by name, city, state/province and country. Obviously, this becomes an invaluable tool for anyone searching for companies to apply to within close proximity. Sadly, studios tend to be clustered together, so if you're unfortunate enough to live away from a game 'hot spot' you might be applying to studios far from home.

Check the site out at...
GameDevMap


Gamasutra is the Monster.com for the game industry. You can search for jobs, post a resume and contact companies that you'd like to apply to. If you're not already a member, sign up and create a resume.

Sign up at...
Gamasutra

My Application

Just yesterday I submitted my application, to the developer that I've been hoping to work for all these weeks. Having finally sent in my application has left me with numerous mixed feelings.

On one hand, it's wonderful knowing the stress of preparation is temporarily over. I'm giving myself a few days to relax from the editing, drafting and polishing that has taken over my evenings. On the other hand, it's terrifying that I can't polish my work any more and that it's finally going to be reviewed by someone who may or may not decide to employ me. Regardless of the outcome however, I'm determined to continue working until I finally fulfill my aspiration.

I remember in college, meeting classmates who simply knew what they wanted to do - the pre-med student who gladly studied for hours because she knew she wanted to be a doctor or the computer science kid that coded during lunch because he loved it. I was always jealous of them. I wanted to feel that passion, that excitement for one single goal. Now, finally, I have that passion. I know that I want to be a Narrative Designer, so if this application is turned down, sure I'll be upset, but I know that I'll keep at it as long as it takes. Which is comforting.

Finally, I'm having the classic conflict of feeling woefully under prepared and qualified but contrastingly absolutely confident that I would make an amazing Narrative Designer. I know that all I need is a chance to prove myself, a chance which is understandably difficult to grant to an applicant such as myself. So I'll simply keep on working hard but I'm not beyond having friends cross their fingers for me.

To anyone in a similar position, I wish you luck and hope that your hard work pays off!

Script Writing

Since script writing isn't something that you learn in school or have (if you're like me) ever been brave enough to attempt, I've compiled some links to introduce you to the style of writing and how to format your script. Once you get started, script writing is actually a blast!

• Script Frenzy
• Script Frenzy offers a much more relaxed introduction to script writing. I would suggest reading the (linked) introductory page and then move about the site leisurely taking in the excellent tips.
• Scriptologist
• This is a fairly straightforward script formating article but since formating is important, give it a quick read through.
• Daily Script
• A great piece of advice is to read scripts from movies that you enjoy, to better acquaint yourself with how scripts are written. Enjoy!
  

Further tips

I've been extremely fortunate to be in contact with a game writer, who I won't name in fear of others spamming him for help, and he's been instrumental in aiding me with the fine reworking of my portfolio. Not wanting to hog all the valuable insight, I've posted below the information that the very kind writer passed on.

Note: this information is pertinent to a portfolio in my style (the contents of which are mentioned in a previous post).

1. You have 5 mins of the readers time. Literally. As such, you're portfolio needs to be 5-6 pages max and those pages cannot be text heavy. Your portfolio is a rapid fire introduction to your writing. For my packet of writing my mentor suggested cutting down my work to a 5 page document. 1: the game bible and a map of the world 2: a scenario 3: screenplay (or a scripted cutscene) 4,5: Storyboard.
   
2. Any introductory sections need to be short and sweet, with just enough information to acclimate the reader to your story/world and to provide them the basics needed to understand the rest of your piece. In addition, your introduction needs to sell the game your writing for. Something to think about - what makes your game special? what would make someone want to play it? why are the occurrences/characters/races unique in this story?
   
3. A quest (scenario design) should be laid out on one page using ~300 words. Artistic detail and game play management should be left out, stick to the story basics. It's important to remember, that as a writer, you'll be working with a team of artists who'll already know what a location should look/feel like.
   
4. In a cutscene 1 page = 1 minute, therefore, excise any excess description that can be condensed. If you can, shorten a paragraph down to a sentence. Not only will it save paper and the reader's time, it'll make the scene feel more 'real'.
5. If you're submitting several different writing pieces as a packet use distinguishing font and format. i.e. while a scenario design may be in Times New Roman, a scene should be written in Courier New.
   
6. About storyboards - "Not necessary, but people have this (wrong) subconscious notion that a better picture means the story is better too... If you've got more time and talent, polishing the drawing wouldn't hurt."
7. "If you have the dedication to polish and study and polish some more, you'll end up with something fun to read. And one day, with something fun to play." An excellent adage to work by.
   

More links

I've promised to keep this updated with every new resource I find, so here's another two links.

The Writers Cabal Blog is filled with helpful snippets. The majority of the entries are focused on how to deal with co-workers (other writers or programmers/artists). Most of the information may seem to be common sense, but a quick read through offers up a few interesting points that you might have overlooked. In addition, to those of us who've yet to break into the industry, the blog provides a quick glance at what we may be required to deal with and how to do so professionally.

Stephen E. Dinehart has a personal blog. He's a Narrative Designer with Relic and while most of his posts are stream of consciousness type rambling... every few sentences he'll throw out an idea or thought that makes you stop and think.