How to Break into Narrative Design for Games? I have some thoughts...
Out and about at Cons and Meetups, I been getting asked "What tips do you have for someone who wants to get into narrative design?" We each find our own unique way into the game. So here are my thoughts based on six years in games. Are there other narrative designers out there with more suggestions? Send them to me and I'll add them to the list. cindi@cindiknapton.com
Network -- Attend conferences, introduce yourself, have your "elevator pitch" ready to sell yourself in 30 seconds. and every game job that I have had has been based on personal connections.
Make friends with other Narrative Designers -- Support each other. You never know who is going to need help, be in charge of hiring, will be leaving their position, or who have a lead for you. Most importantly, it's great to have friends that appreciate narrative and understand the struggle of showing our worth to a game development team.
Participate in Game Jams -- practice makes perfect, show the team what narrative can do. The experience builds your skill set, and you'll make friends outside of narrative. You'll at least get some screenshots of the process. Who knows? You might even get a playable to post on your itch.io page.
Volunteer to help -- Limit yourself to just a few hours of pro bono time so you don't give too much away. Offer to:
Give constructive supportive feedback or their work, let them know what works. Give them some ideas on opportunities for improvement.
Brainstorm character and location names.
Do some historical research
Brainstorm some quest ideas
Swap Feedback with other narratives, and with those outside of narrative.
Playtest -- See what's out there, offer constructive feedback, and... see opportunities of how you might help others.
Take Classes Outside Your Discipline -- Take classes that include other disciplines -- programming, art, lighting, sound, producing, I studied UE4 and UE5 in online self-paced classes. When I took a team-project class in Unity, I had a lot more fun. This will expand your appreciation for what your team members do. Make mini-games with programmers, artists, composers and producers, Again this can expand your itch.io page.
Shameless Self-Promotion -- Talk about what you do. If you participate in a game jam -- even if the game doesn't get finished, grab some screenshots -- promote it on your social channels. Start writing blogs about what you do and how you as a narrative designer helped the process.
Advocate for Narrative -- A lot of game studios still have no idea of what a narrative designer can bring to the development process. Blog about what you're doing. Blog about games that you love -- highlight how the narrative works. In many ways you are selling the role of needing a narrative designer on the team as much as you are of selling yourself. Sometimes you have to create the role rather than wait for a role to come to you.
Show all that Narrative Can Be My List of How Narratives Participate in Games When you do get on a team, show them all of your skills. Review marketing materials, funding packages, take meeting minutes, make yourself indispensable to the team. I'm biased, but I think that Narrative Designers are the glue that holds the team together. We hold the project vision and make it clear to others. Get your mitts in there and show them what else your super smart-super creative-super helpful brain can do!
Update your Resumé -- Refresh it after every single class or game jam.
Refresh your website -- Make sure that it reflects the moment in games -- I'm in the process of doing this now. It's amazing how the market changes and how your skill set and vision of what you can offer also changes.
Cover letters -- There are other people who are better at giving cover letter advice, but I will say three things
Keep it short
Show interest in the specific company and the specific job and why you're the best fit for the position
Show your personality -- you're a writer after all, so show a little of your magic.
Find an In -- When applying for jobs use every contact, every alumni connection that you have in order to see if someone knows someone at the company where you are applying. There are a thousand very capable applicants for every job. Find a connection to make your application stand out in the pile. If someone will vouch for you, that makes it just that much easier to assume that you will be great to work with.
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