Comments on: Combatting Writer’s Block http://www.edery.org/2008/09/combatting-writers-block/ For those interested in the business of making great video games. Entrepreneurial spirit a must. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:07:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Kim Pallister http://www.edery.org/2008/09/combatting-writers-block/comment-page-1/#comment-211375 Kim Pallister Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:19:48 +0000 http://www.edery.org/2008/09/combatting-writers-block/#comment-211375 Other tactics: - deconstruct the topic. Sometimes the block comes from 'where to begin'. Break the topic down to subtopics, then break those down. then find a random little piece of the list that you think is easy to knock off. Then proceed. - Change venues. sometimes related to the break thing. I'll pack up at the office and drive to the Starbucks. or vice versa. - Talk to someone about the topic. Get ideas. Go have coffee with a friend. - And oh yeah. Caffeinate. Heavily! :-) Other tactics:

- deconstruct the topic. Sometimes the block comes from ‘where to begin’. Break the topic down to subtopics, then break those down. then find a random little piece of the list that you think is easy to knock off. Then proceed.

- Change venues. sometimes related to the break thing. I’ll pack up at the office and drive to the Starbucks. or vice versa.

- Talk to someone about the topic. Get ideas. Go have coffee with a friend.

- And oh yeah. Caffeinate. Heavily! :-)

]]> By: Angus McQuarrie http://www.edery.org/2008/09/combatting-writers-block/comment-page-1/#comment-210535 Angus McQuarrie Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:12:41 +0000 http://www.edery.org/2008/09/combatting-writers-block/#comment-210535 "(Sadly, most people in our industry still seem to believe that if you’re not a lifetime gamer with years of game production experience, you have no business getting anywhere near a game development project. And then we all gripe about lack of innovation…)" That needs to change, like, right now. The reason it's like that is because game-making is a high risk, high reward scenario, and the people funding it are trying to mitigate the risk as much as possible. Unfortunately, this has resulted in the above situation. What has emerged along side it is the lack of a clear path to get from not there to there, or any framework for helping junior game designers grow. Currently the path is basically, make a game on your own, funded by you, get it published, and then we'll think about hiring you for a quarter of what you would make doing the former if you were successful. We're losing a lot of good people this way. “(Sadly, most people in our industry still seem to believe that if you’re not a lifetime gamer with years of game production experience, you have no business getting anywhere near a game development project. And then we all gripe about lack of innovation…)”

That needs to change, like, right now. The reason it’s like that is because game-making is a high risk, high reward scenario, and the people funding it are trying to mitigate the risk as much as possible. Unfortunately, this has resulted in the above situation. What has emerged along side it is the lack of a clear path to get from not there to there, or any framework for helping junior game designers grow.

Currently the path is basically, make a game on your own, funded by you, get it published, and then we’ll think about hiring you for a quarter of what you would make doing the former if you were successful. We’re losing a lot of good people this way.

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