Opening up slots for portfolio review and writing tutoring
So as you may know, right now I have a lot of 'idle capacity.' Consequently, I'm trying something new that was suggested to me as something there may be demand for: I'm going to start offering portfolio review and tutoring services.
If you're unfamiliar: I'm a writer and narrative designer with nearly a decade of experience in the video games industry, in addition to past formal training as a screenwriter. My most recent full-time role in the industry was as Fallen London's Lead Designer, in which I was involved in the full range of supporting other writers:
- Writing documentation and giving direction;
- Onboarding new writers into the project;
- Taking pitches and running story breaking sessions;
- Writing prose myself;
- Editing and giving feedback on in-progress pieces;
- Helping level up other writers.
I believe that writing craft develops through a mix of solitary practice, peer exchange, and feedback from more experienced writers. I'm offering this as a semi-formal educational service aimed at providing the third.
What this service is:
- I'll provide craft feedback on your writing and/or narrative design, whether it's portfolio pieces, something you're looking to publish, or an asset for something you're working.
- I'll sit down with you for specific conversations about what you're trying to improve, how to go about it, and giving you a realistic assessment of where you're at as a writer. This will typically happen across two one-hour sessions.
What this service is not:
- 'Mentoring'; mentoring is an ongoing, long-term relationship usually in the context of shared work. I don't really think people who sell 'mentoring services' are being fully honest about what they're doing; it's not really something you can pay for. What I'm offering here is specific and one-off.
- 'Networking' or direct help with 'breaking into the games industry': if you don't know, the jobs market for games is incredibly dire right now. Even in 'normal' times, anyone trying to guarantee you a shot at being hired or suggesting that is lying to you. I can help you improve your craft and even give you a better understanding of what you need to improve; I do believe that having a good portfolio is necessary to getting hired or getting work in the industry; but it's not sufficient, and you need to understand that you're not buying access.
- Narrative design or writing consulting services in which I write for you or do more extensive narrative work. I do offer these services and I'm happy to consult! But the price structure would be different.
To reiterate: the goal here is to improve your craft by giving you access to an experience and impartial pair of eyes who can examine your work, give you an honest assessment of what you need to improve on, and work with you on how to pursue that.
The target audience for this is anyone who is trying to improve at the craft of writing for video games. Specifically, you might be...
- A student or recent graduate looking for better feedback on your writing and trying to improve
- A junior- or associate-level narrative worker looking for a portfolio review
- An experienced writer from another medium trying to learn the nuances and specifics of writing for an interactive medium
- A solo developer or small team member who 'does your own writing' without formal training, and who'd like guidance on how to be better at it
How much does this cost: I'm offering this as two distinctly-sized package deals.
Two-session feedback
This is about quickly looking at a provided sample and giving direction on how to improve and answering questions.
The cost: $200 (USD), which is about half of what I'd charge a well-funded studio for a similar amount of work as a consultant.
What you get for your money:
- One face-to-face 'kickoff' session to talk about your specific needs, what you're looking to improve, and where you're at.
- One detailed feedback document in which I go over your portfolio piece, sample, or asset.
- One face-to-face 'edit pass' session to talk about your sample, what can improve, what to work on, and possible avenues for improvement.
A big part of the outcome here is just giving you a clear-eyed assessment of where you're at. Is this portfolio good enough to get hired at a given level? Does this asset meet a reasonable quality bar?
Beyond that, the goal is to give you realistic avenues for improvement, things to focus on, and point you towards further resources.
Extended tutoring
The goal here is to walk you through successive passes on an asset or sample, talking through specific changes and giving you more directed feedback.
The cost: $150 initially + $100 for each subsequent feedback round/discussion session, with the expectation of doing at most four sessions spaced out over the course of about a month.
How to sign up
If this sounds interesting to me, drop me an email on hello [at] brunodias.dev, with a brief introduction and a description of what you're trying to get better at; optionally, include a relevant sample of your writing.
A page with this information is found permanently on my portfolio website.