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General discussionWriter positions in game companies(33 posts)(33 posts)
(33 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted June 13, 2018
I've been looking at the Careers -tab of many video game company websites and basically none are looking for a writer. I suppose that's because it's a position that doesn't need much expanding and are usually one of the first to be filled. I get that. But it's still a bit disheartening :D

Currently, I'm in a hobby group that is making games and as some of you might remember, we just released our first game, Traum. It got praised for its story and that made me wonder if I could do writing as a living. Shame that hobby groups don't pay the bills. Anyway, I'm looking for suggestions how to proceed. Should I wait for a miracle and that a position appears somewhere in the world? Should I send open applications to the companies and hope for the best? I tried asking for help at the local employment agency thing but they told me to just google things...

Keep writing, I know, I'm already doing that. Still, writing just for myself doesn't bring food to the table. But because Traum is a fully released title that got praised for its story (And Gamespot picked it in their best steam games of the week -video), it might give at least some sort of a stepping stone. Maybe.

Any suggestions?
Posted June 13, 2018
Look up game job sites in particular, like jobs.gameindustry.biz or jobs.gamasutra.com? Or job sites in general, like indeed.com?
You seem to be correct, however, that "writer" doesn't seem to be a posted job very often, and is often combined with games journalist.
Using indeed, I did find a couple, though:
Narrative Writer (on Contract) at EA
Lead Scriptwriter for Playground Games
Senior Writer in the Netherlands (although this one asks for AAA games experience)
Post edited June 14, 2018 by babark
Posted June 13, 2018
First of all... good luck.

I think getting hired as a writer is among the most difficult ways to enter the game industry. That's because good coders are really rare, good visual designers can easily show off and good level designers are often recruited from the modding scene.

Writing however and it's results take a lot of time. A good picture is a good picture and a good level is "simply fun". Good writing however takes patience and leisure to get into. And it's easily destroyed by "the other components" not working. A fun game is a fun game, even if the writing is sub-par. However a bad game is not saved by awesome writing.

My best guess would be to "worm your way in". Work like hell, on different projects - and don't hope for any money. And just keep fingers crossed to be noticed by someone. Most promising would be Indie projects, or mods for very popular games that support it (that's how Bethesda actually recruited people in the past).
Posted June 14, 2018
My meaningless 2c. Get your resume together and send it out. Show off your game your praise from reviewers.

Keep working with your hobby group, too.
Posted June 14, 2018
The vast majority of video games don't care one iota about story or writing quality, so I don't advise you to try to become a "video game writer" since that niche is way too small. Unless you are going to continue to make your own games and write for your own development studio, in which case, then yes, try that.

You'll probably have a tough go of any type of writing career. But keep following your dreams anyway. Just know that you will likely struggle in life.
Posted June 14, 2018
avatar
Ancient-Red-Dragon: The vast majority of video games don't care one iota about story or writing quality, so I don't advise you to try to become a "video game writer" since that niche is way too small. Unless you are going to continue to make your own games and write for your own development studio, in which case, then yes, try that.

You'll probably have a tough go of any type of writing career. But keep following your dreams anyway. Just know that you will likely struggle in life.
Fair enough, I guess you're right. Thanks for the reply!

And thank you all for answering as well :)
Posted June 14, 2018
Piers Anthony, "On a Pale Horse", I think it was. The very back of the book, after the story, he wrote about writing. In particular he claimed he always sells every book he writes, never writes any book that doesn't sell. He does that by selling the story first, then writing it. So, no wasted time writing books nobody else wanted.

If you can find the book, then just skip the story and jump to the end to find that account of how he writes. There's more to it than what I'm recalling. Seems like one time I figured out the number of books he had written and it was more than the number of years he had been alive. I think he was fifty-something when I figured the numbers. Very prolific writer.

Anyway, the point is I'd say have people want to hire you, not someone like you. Hire you because they want you to do what you want to do, rather than only wanting you to build their pyramid they already have in mind.

Not just waiting around to be wanted, which is what merely looking at job advertisements is about.
Post edited June 14, 2018 by thomq
Posted June 14, 2018
Its a pretty difficult task , the best way i see it is going in indie at first get a good series going in , that would lead up to bigger positions and you can always fall back if something goes wrong.
Posted June 14, 2018
Interviewer: "So what skills in game development do you have?"
You: "Ummm, well I like to do creative writing."
Interviewer: "Do you know any programming languages?"
You: "No."
Interviewer: "Do you have artistic skill or the ability to do 3D modelling?"
You: "No. I'm more of an "ideas guy"."

*interviewer throws your resume into the trash the second after you leave the room*
Posted June 14, 2018
avatar
Crosmando: Interviewer: "So what skills in game development do you have?"
You: "Ummm, well I like to do creative writing."
Interviewer: "Do you know any programming languages?"
You: "No."
Interviewer: "Do you have artistic skill or the ability to do 3D modelling?"
You: "No. I'm more of an "ideas guy"."

*interviewer throws your resume into the trash the second after you leave the room*
?
Why would someone go to an interview for a position that they weren't interested in? Or do you think companies call in random people for interviews, and then just fit them in wherever?

The OP has already established themselves as a writer in a game that was well received for its story. And sure, while some writers work in 2 roles (the other often being design, which wasn't in your hypothetical interview), there are many succesful stories of people who did their work solely in game writing- Rhianna Pratchett, Clive Barker, Erik Wolpaw come to mind.

As for followup advice, I'd say if you've got a day job, keep it, or if you've got a secondary skill, keep at it (or do writing jobs other than game writing too- Games Journalism to Video Game Writing is a path many people have taken successfully), and keep applying to game writing positions, and working on writing in games in your free time.
Posted June 14, 2018
avatar
Crosmando: Interviewer: "So what skills in game development do you have?"
You: "Ummm, well I like to do creative writing."
Interviewer: "Do you know any programming languages?"
You: "No."
Interviewer: "Do you have artistic skill or the ability to do 3D modelling?"
You: "No. I'm more of an "ideas guy"."

*interviewer throws your resume into the trash the second after you leave the room*
avatar
babark: ?
Why would someone go to an interview for a position that they weren't interested in? Or do you think companies call in random people for interviews, and then just fit them in wherever?

The OP has already established themselves as a writer in a game that was well received for its story. And sure, while some writers work in 2 roles (the other often being design, which wasn't in your hypothetical interview), there are many succesful stories of people who did their work solely in game writing- Rhianna Pratchett, Clive Barker, Erik Wolpaw come to mind.

As for followup advice, I'd say if you've got a day job, keep it, or if you've got a secondary skill, keep at it (or do writing jobs other than game writing too- Games Journalism to Video Game Writing is a path many people have taken successfully), and keep applying to game writing positions, and working on writing in games in your free time.
I'm making a joke at the fact that writing is not treated like a "real" vocation or profession in gaming, because technically it's "easy" and everyone has an imagination and the ability to write creatively (to some extent). Traditionally, writers in game development have just been programmers, managers, artists or modellers who moonlight as writers. And technically they're right, compare creative writing to programming - one is relatively easy and the other is extremely demanding and requires a high degree of skill, coordination and intelligence, not to mention years of training/education. The practice of hiring dedicated writers for games development is a relatively new practice.
Post edited June 14, 2018 by Crosmando
Posted June 14, 2018
avatar
KneeTheCap: I've been looking at the Careers -tab of many video game company websites and basically none are looking for a writer. I suppose that's because it's a position that doesn't need much expanding and are usually one of the first to be filled. I get that. But it's still a bit disheartening :D

Currently, I'm in a hobby group that is making games and as some of you might remember, we just released our first game, Traum. It got praised for its story and that made me wonder if I could do writing as a living. Shame that hobby groups don't pay the bills. Anyway, I'm looking for suggestions how to proceed. Should I wait for a miracle and that a position appears somewhere in the world? Should I send open applications to the companies and hope for the best? I tried asking for help at the local employment agency thing but they told me to just google things...

Keep writing, I know, I'm already doing that. Still, writing just for myself doesn't bring food to the table. But because Traum is a fully released title that got praised for its story (And Gamespot picked it in their best steam games of the week -video), it might give at least some sort of a stepping stone. Maybe.

Any suggestions?
Definitely apply at game dev companies whose work you like. Whether or not they are advertizing for a writer. Companies do contract work, too, and they may contact you for a job here or there even if they aren't hiring new employees.

I would take as a model Neil Gaiman, and read everything by him about the marketing of writitng. He has written for comics, games, novels, short stories, TV, colaborations with other writers... He is on to something about how to get your stuff out there and make a living doing it.

Best of luck!
Posted June 14, 2018
avatar
KneeTheCap: I've been looking at the Careers -tab of many video game company websites and basically none are looking for a writer. I suppose that's because it's a position that doesn't need much expanding and are usually one of the first to be filled. I get that. But it's still a bit disheartening :D
Knee, I found an article by David Gaider. You know, the lead writer/designer for Bioware (when he was still active). He wrote about exactly what you wanted. Getting a job as a writer for video game companies. The tone is a touch comically cynical, but perhaps you might find something to help you out.

https://medium.com/@davidgaider/i-want-to-write-video-games-d83da40fdf8e

Also, I have something that could help you make money off video-game writing right away, yes, RIGHT NOW. And that is if you are willing to write CYOA gamebooks. Here, check it out.

https://www.choiceofgames.com/

They have a ready-made customer base that checks and buys regularly. If your writing is good, it will sell. While I can't promise that you will be any kind of millionaire, you will get something back for your efforts.

P.S: You ask me a bit about it, if you want to more about how things work there.
Post edited June 14, 2018 by Nicole28
Posted June 14, 2018
Thank you all for your responses, they're greatly appreciated!

I'm under no illusions, I know no-one is coming to my house and offering me a job :D It's going to be tough, I know, but I'm willing to take the shot. I just don't know how.

As for Traum, I didn't just write the story. I also designed most of the game and how it works. I had to take into account the very serious limitations of the engine and the fact that we had only one coder and no animator. It was a bit challenging. But writing is, however, the part I'm quite proud of and what the game got praised for (alongside of the sound design).

I can't just send open job application emails to companies, right? Isn't that considered a tad rude?
Posted June 14, 2018
low rated
Becoming a writer in the American gaming industry is a fairly simple task

Just be a left wing SJW feminist who likes to put his political and ideological agenda in every single game.


That's what majority of E3, 2018 games were about.
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionWriter positions in game companies(33 posts)(33 posts)
(33 posts)