STEVEN P. OLSON
Hi-Tech Writer for Hire

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Last Update:
11/02/07 [log]


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 Writing for Games 


Believe it or not, the world of games is a worthy training ground for writers.

Game developers are asking for a very precious commodity: a customer's leisure time. For all the fun they inspire, interactive entertainment products face a very competitive field; between movies, the Internet, books, music, and sports, a person's free time can be sliced into very fine pieces. Unfortunately, playing games is time-consuming, which means that only the very best ones can grab and hold an audience's attention.

That, then, is the charge placed at the keyboard of a writer for games: to grab and hold an audience. This particular audience has come to expect a great deal. A fine story must be seamlessly integrated into challenging missions, which are negotatied through compelling gameplay. And there needs to be some new technology somewhere in the mix. The net product is an elusive commodity called, "fun."

In order to build fun from the ground up, a games writer must deliver precise language at every step of the process. From blue-sky concepting to design development to marketing collateral to user documentation, a writer must meet the expectations of a disciminating audience, whether that's a seasoned Director of Development, exacting engineers, cynical buyers, or fourteen year-old boys with only a few bucks to spend.

To surmount those challenges, a writer must be armed with a passion for technology, a natural flexibility, a willingness to rewrite, and the will to make a great game. Or he'll soon be finding shorter hills to climb.





 
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(c) 2007 Steven P. Olson. All rights reserved. Samples are for demonstration purposes only.