Talking to Artists / Talking to Programmers ─ How to Get Programmers and Artists Communicating

To make videogames, artists and programmers must work together in pressure cooker environments. The problem is that they use the same words to mean completely different things, leading to rampant miscommunication. This book in written in both programmer-ese and artist-ese in order to present strategies for better communication. To make sure her suggestions hit the mark, the author teams with an artist and a programmer and avoids underlying tones hinting that one style of communication is better than the other.

Wendy Despain is a video game writer and narrative designer with more than a decade of experience spearheading digital media projects. She has worked with teams around the world as a team leader, designer and consultant on console and PC games, mobile apps, online experiences, alternate reality games (ARG) and augmented reality. Some of her credits include an ARG for Gene Roddenberry’s Andromeda, Jetset Secrets on Facebook, and Fusion Fall from Cartoon Network. She’s currently teaching teambuilding and production strategies at SMU Guildhall in Plano, TX. Her other books include:

• Professional Techniques for Videogame Writing
• Writing For Videogame Genres: From FPS to RPG
• 100 Principles of Game Design