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Self-described as a narrative paramedic, Rhianna Pratchett is most known for her work on the Overlord series with additional credits in Mirror’s Edge, Heavenly Sword, and Viking: Battle for Asgard. I had the opportunity to interview Rhianna about her creative approach to writing, general thoughts on videogame development, and emotive storytelling.

Sol: Rhianna, first thank you for taking the time to answer some of our questions, most of our staff’s writing skills come from a few creative writing courses in high school and the ability to ignore all pleas to step away from the keyboard. It’s hardly our calling. However we, and many of our readers are really intrigued by the game writing process, especially of someone with such a prolific and glowing track record as yours. We hope you can shed some light into the magic behind the curtain.

Now, when you begin the process of writing for a new project, do you look at the target audience first then work backwards into a story or are you given a table napkin idea then attempt to flesh out a story that’s tailored to fit the overall theme of the game?

Rhianna Pratchett (RP): It very much depends on the project, when I’m brought on board and the narrative sensibilities of the team. Sometimes I come in when there’s part of a story on the table, and maybe a few character designs in the mix, and I have to fill in the rest. Other times there could be very little story, but all the levels have been designed. In the case of the latter it’s rather like writing a movie script for some sets that have already been built. It can be a little ass-backwards at times!

Sol: Would you say you have a consistent “style” of writing? Meaning, do you usually incorporate certain recurring elements into your worlds and characters? Do your own experiences influence the creation of characters and their backgrounds? Or do you fashion an entirely different experience for each franchise?

RP: I’m not sure I have a specific style, as such. I’ve been lucky to work on quite a diverse selection of games, which is one of the great things about my job. I like to add humorous touches wherever possible, but obviously that’s not always in keeping with the style of the game or the tastes of the developers. I don’t think writers in any field can help but add their own experiences and views of the world into their characters. We are human sponges, after all. The differing natures of the games I’ve worked on have allowed for a lot of diversity, but there’s still plenty to go around.

Sol: Are there “woulda, coulda, shoulda” moments where when designing a story, the final product, through budgetary or style decisions, becomes watered down by the time it reaches the consumer? How you do resolve those instances? Or do you just chalk it up to the cost of doing business?

RP: Every developer has a list of things that they’d do differently given more time and budget. There are also 101 different ways that narrative can be pulled about and poked during the development process, and you can end up losing a lot of battles. If the narrative creators aren’t properly integrated with the rest of the team then narrative in the end product often suffers. Not all my projects have turned out the way I would have liked, for a multitude of reasons, but it’s all part of the process. You learn from when things go wrong just as much as when things go right. Hard liquor also helps.

Sol: I remember my first computer game being Space Quest on the Amiga. Do you consider game storytelling from a writer’s perspective entirely different now than from original text based games or has the medium simply evolved?

RP: Tales are still tales; we’ve just expanded our teller toolset.

Sol: In Beyond Divinity you created the fantasy novella Child of the Chaos? Did you consider this to be a departure from game writing? Would you say writing for a game is more involved than a traditional novel?

RP: To be honest I wrote Child of the Chaos a long time ago. It was my first short story effort, I had no editor and it was pretty raw. I wrote a second short story a few years ago called The House which was released alongside an album of music (by Alex Otterlei) called Where Evil Lurks. Again it was without an editor, but I was a little happier with that one – In as much as any creative ever is! Aside from that, I’ve written six issues of a Mirror’s Edge mini-series with DC Comics.
Certainly with short story writing the author has complete and utter control. They are the solo architect of the narrative vision. With comics that is shared with the artists. Games are right down the other end of the spectrum – You’re working with, and supporting, many different elements, particularly gameplay and level design. It’s also the case that you’re trying to find room for your vision alongside everyone else’s. It can be a crowded playing field, but if you’re given enough space it can be very rewarding.

Sol: Do you see yourself ever authoring a novel or possibly a children’s book? If you were to write a cookbook, what would you title it?

RP:I like the short story format, but I think I’d steer clear of full novels (or write them under a pen name.) I fell in love with writing for comics whilst working for DC, so I really need to get my act together and pitch some more stuff. Aside from that, like most writers, I’d really love to work on a US TV show or animation series. As for that cook book, I guess it might be a game and game character themed recipe book called Gaming Grub – Luigi’s Linguini, Princess Peach Cobbler, that kind of thing.

Sol: You’ve said before developers are pushing to make people cry through storytelling; however you attribute the success of the Overlord series with the ability to make people smile. What must you balance to achieve both?

RP: Making people laugh or smile, in any entertainment medium, is a powerful thing. It can create great empathy for a character, which really helps players hook into them them. It’s only through that emotional engagement that we’re able to elicit reactions like crying. I think Psychonauts balances this really well, and is very touching as a result. Tying characters heavily into gameplay can also help generate strong reactions. I think players became much more invested in the relationship between Nariko and her adopted sister Kai (in Heavenly Sword) because they got to play as both characters.

Sol: As a writer you prefer to be brought in during the initial stages of development to assist in flushing out all the details/dialogue/character development in a game. In instances where you are hired to band-aid a game you call this a “Weekend at Bernie’s” approach to writing: dressing up a story that is already dead and lifeless. What would you say are the trademarks of this kind of storytelling in a game? Equally what do you consider to be the usual signs of good game storytelling?

RP: Any writer who has worked in games will tell you that it’s much better for the project (not to mention the sanity of everyone involved) if the writer is consulted as early as possible in the process. Game stories where the writer has been brought in late usually have gapping plot holes, poor dialogue and have an uneasy relationship with the gameplay. Well constructed stories are exactly that – They are imaginative, suit the gameplay, engage the players and keep them motivated. But it’s an extremely hard thing to pull off. There’s a lot of blood, sweat, tears and animal sacrifices that go into making it happen.

Sol: Outside of continuing being a game writer, what do you do to enhance/further develop your craft?

RP: Aside from the comics, which were a great learning experience, it’s basically been reading as much as possible and trying to brainstorm a few of my own ideas. I trained as a journalist, so I’m used to doing things on commission, therefore taking time out and working on my own stuff doesn’t come as naturally as I’d like. I’m also in the early stages of putting together my own book on games writing, along with another writer.

Sol: Any advice you have for the budding writer or personal experience that has most assisted your writing career?

RP: Read. And don’t just read the genre you’re interested in writing for, but read widely around it, particularly non-fiction. History, philosophy, sociology, architecture, politics etc. It’s all great fodder. Never stop consuming. To be honest, I find that advice easier to give than to follow, but I’m making a concerted effort to read more non-fiction, as I’ve definitely benefited from it.

Sol: On a personal note, in a previous interview you’ve said you enjoy reviewing horror films. Our readers know there is a special place in my heart for all things horror, especially horror centric games. Would the prospect of you writing a horror game be icing on the cake? Would you try to create the “chills” factor or should horror games focus more on visuals?

RP: Wow, you’ve really done your research! Yes, I’d love to work on a horror game. I had the opportunity to work on Cursed Mountain, but unfortunately the timing with my other projects didn’t pan out. I think that horror games need to be quite tight script wise, but also have to look at telling their story through visuals, level design, environments and sound. That should all be part and parcel of a games writer’s job (although often it isn’t.) Story shouldn’t just be in the words, it should be in the entire game.

Sol: Rhianna, thanks again for your time. I know our readers greatly appreciate your answers as do I. Any games you are especially looking forward to releasing you’d like to share with our readers?

RP: Brutal Legend (because I love Tim Schafer’s stuff) Diablo III (because I’ve lost so much time to the previous two games) and WoW: Cataclysm (because I’m a long-time WoW player.)

If you’re at the end you may be thinking, Wow, you just couldn’t stop asking questions. You’d be right. There was more to ask, but I was grateful just to have the chance to talk to her.

To the DDN community, make sure to thank her in the comments.

- Sol