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GAME WRITING WORKSHOP
Branching Narrative & Video Game Writing Skills Development
The goal is this: produce and refine a text-based interactive fiction game over the span of 13 weeks. The class plays through each demo and makes choices in three live demonstrations each week, followed by MFA-style group discussion (class sizes 6-15 people, depending upon the cohort). I work with you directly in advance of the course and between sessions to help with one-to-one feedback and mentoring for your project and development.
By the end, you will have 30+ minutes of a game: a full project or a prototype, depending upon your aims and/or progress. You will present 8 minutes to a senior industry guest in our final showcase. You’ll be part of a supportive, committed community of fellow graduates and writers with a game to call your own.
Aspiring and professional writers accepted. This isn’t about careers: it’s about passion and developing your craft through the production of new material.
Taught by Dr. Greg R. Buchanan
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- Writer of the BAFTA-Winning Video Game NO MAN’S SKY - over 10 million copies sold, with a 30 hour long branching text story introduced post-launch.
- Worked on major franchises such as DARK SOULS, UNTIL DAWN, THE DARK PICTURES, METRO & more.
- Voice Director for DIVINITY: ORIGINAL SIN 2.
- Bestselling Author of SIXTEEN HORSES (TV adaptation announced from Gaumont, the studio behind HANNIBAL & NARCOS) & CONSUMED.
- PhD in identification and ethics across novels and video games, teaching classes in literary theory and lecturing at King’s College London.
- Taught almost 100 students over three years since the workshop’s inception.
- Started his career with an early version of the BAFTA-longlisted text game AMERICAN ELECTION — using the exact same tools as this very workshop.
"Greg moved heaven and earth for me to keep working when I could and to give me the space to do what I needed to do. I'm going to publish a game this year: that is down to this course and what it has taught me.”
- Alastair Stuart (The Magnus Archives VA; Doctor Who TTRPG; Game Developer)
“Greg’s guidance & the support of fellow students make this an invaluable experience for anyone interested in writing for interactive mediums.”
— Nathan Vokal (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Infinity Ward)
"I really think that without this course it wouldn't have turned out as good as it did. The group feedback and dialogue exercises helped me streamline my work and create a range of dialogue options that were fun and interesting for the player to explore."
- Jillian Nerat (Narrative Designer and Storyboard Artist, BFA Game Design)
Alumni have worked for:
Rockstar Games, Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty, Cloud Imperium’s Star Citizen, Raw Fury, The Lord of the Rings, PUBG Corporation & more, with writing across TTRPGs, TV, film & bestselling novels
"There's no substitute for other people reading & critiquing your work. Doing so in the safe & encouraging space that Greg provides has been genuinely career-changing.”
— Kate Gray (Moonstone Island, Winding Worlds)
"The one-on-one support from Greg was a really helpful and unique offering that I found even more personal and helpful than most of my college-level workshops. In the end, I created a prototype for a game that I was really happy with, and I loved getting feedback from industry professionals.”
- Luna Raydue (Gamedev, Voice Actor, Twitch Streamer, MFA Stony Brook)
“This is the sort of structure that interactive narrative is crying out for. Access to honest, gentle, professional feedback in a medium where it can be hard to find is a blessing.”
— Thomas Davies (Whispers in the West)