Anyone seriously wanting to pursue games journalism should read this and take it to heart.
Simply put, this is how I got hired.
Simply put, this is how I got hired.
How Not to Get a Job as a Game Journalist
- Thread starter Susan Arendt
- Start date
Thank you! Well, if anyone at The Escapist speaks Hungarian, I can supply a truckload of reviews, previews, guides and blog entries all the way back to ten years ago. I even wrote some game guides and walkthroughs in English for gamefaqs and other sites years ago, when my English was still horrible, but most of them are long gone though. I guess I'll write some reviews in English, see how that turns out. Maybe I'm the next big thing, maybe notSusan Arendt said:
Care to explain hmm?
If I want to be a gaming journalist, buy a media print and sell yourself out to the fan crowd.
Of course the explanations that Miss Arendt pointed out are true. I would try out for gaming journalism but it would require a journalism major out of it. Plus, I suck at grammar.
Ok, a few things. No, you don't need a journalism major to do this job. I don't have one. (My degree is in English, with a minor in Education. I went to school to be an English teacher.)
Secondly, RTFS isn't profanity, I'm not soliciting any of you for a job, and this is my column, so I get to say whatever I like. Which includes the "goddamn" in the first paragraph. When you get your own column, you can swear, too. Until then, it's wise to stay on your best behavior.
As for the America's Next Top Model story...as I mentioned, I used to keep a blog on 1Up, and it attracted the attention of several members of the staff there, including Carrie Shepherd. She liked my writing and read my blog, but didn't get in touch with me personally until she discovered that I, like she, was a fan of ANTM. We chatted from time to time and kept in touch. (Still do, in fact.) She left Ziff and went to Next-Gen, where one year she was put in charge of the Show Daily, the publication that's handed out each day at E3. One of the writers who'd been commissioned to produce some content for the magazine bailed at the last minute, and she thought of me. That was my very first paid gig for writing about games.
Which actually leads to one of my all-time favorite stories about being a game journalist, but perhaps I should save that for another post.
Secondly, RTFS isn't profanity, I'm not soliciting any of you for a job, and this is my column, so I get to say whatever I like. Which includes the "goddamn" in the first paragraph. When you get your own column, you can swear, too. Until then, it's wise to stay on your best behavior.
As for the America's Next Top Model story...as I mentioned, I used to keep a blog on 1Up, and it attracted the attention of several members of the staff there, including Carrie Shepherd. She liked my writing and read my blog, but didn't get in touch with me personally until she discovered that I, like she, was a fan of ANTM. We chatted from time to time and kept in touch. (Still do, in fact.) She left Ziff and went to Next-Gen, where one year she was put in charge of the Show Daily, the publication that's handed out each day at E3. One of the writers who'd been commissioned to produce some content for the magazine bailed at the last minute, and she thought of me. That was my very first paid gig for writing about games.
Which actually leads to one of my all-time favorite stories about being a game journalist, but perhaps I should save that for another post.
At the risk of getting myself fired, I don't have a degree at all, so don't let feelings of being under-educated hold you back.Tharticus said:
Oh, and you can learn good grammar if you really want to.
It's nice the Susan can give me hope where the CEO of the company just brings me down with his "We don't need you, stfu" article.
I'll take those messages to heart Miss Arendt, particularly the "sample of your work" part.. the rest was sort of "no duh", but I'm sure this article was required, as I'm sure your inbox probably makes you think you're in Resident Evil and every zombie has an "AWERSOME IDEA FOR SUMFINK THE SITE RELLY NEEDS LIEK SRSLY".
I'd probably turn a gun on myself if I were in your situation.
edit: interesting side note, you (susan) Joined the escapist on my birthday in 07... lemme think what I was doing that day... hrmm... I think that was the year my family didn't say nearly two words to me and unceremoniously handed me a copy of Lost Magazine and said "happy birthday" without turning off the TV.
that makes me a little sad actually, but 2008 and 2009 were much better.
I'll take those messages to heart Miss Arendt, particularly the "sample of your work" part.. the rest was sort of "no duh", but I'm sure this article was required, as I'm sure your inbox probably makes you think you're in Resident Evil and every zombie has an "AWERSOME IDEA FOR SUMFINK THE SITE RELLY NEEDS LIEK SRSLY".
I'd probably turn a gun on myself if I were in your situation.
edit: interesting side note, you (susan) Joined the escapist on my birthday in 07... lemme think what I was doing that day... hrmm... I think that was the year my family didn't say nearly two words to me and unceremoniously handed me a copy of Lost Magazine and said "happy birthday" without turning off the TV.
that makes me a little sad actually, but 2008 and 2009 were much better.
Please, please, PLEASE tell me that the little "illustration" on the second page wasn't an actual submission. Please. The miniscule amount of faith in humanity I have left depends on it.
Also, though the thought of writing in this sort of venue strikes me from time to time, I usually remember that I have far too many projects I'm not working on already.
Also, though the thought of writing in this sort of venue strikes me from time to time, I usually remember that I have far too many projects I'm not working on already.
Oh my gosh! This is actually very useful. I want to have a job in this field, but I know that my grammar skills aren't as great as everyone else's. I also know that I can improve my grammar/writing skills by taking courses, which is something I'm doing.
Thank you very much for the article. It was informative and also answered my previous question on Twitter where I asked how I could get an awesome job like yours. Now I know... and knowing is half the battle. GI JOE!
Thank you very much for the article. It was informative and also answered my previous question on Twitter where I asked how I could get an awesome job like yours. Now I know... and knowing is half the battle. GI JOE!
You mean all this time I could have been pitching my comic that I've felt would go nowhere to have a home here? Well hot damn, I may have to work on some concepts now.Susan Arendt said:
On the whole, this was a good article. I've been looking to communities like the Videogame Journos group on Ning and Gameleon for advice on how to break in, and sometimes I feel more and more discouraged since I'm up against so many others and I don't know if I have the chops yet. I still read bloggings by Shamus Young (who, as a regular reader of his Twenty-Sided blog I'm glad you have added to the team) and Tycho Brahe of Penny-Arcade and think "damn, I wish I could write like them". A truly good author needs to possess their own voice, and unfortunately I don't think I have one of my own yet. Not a good one, at least.
Still, while the article is a good read, I may still have issues self-confidence in pitching an idea. Get me in face to face and there's no problem, but via e-mail and over phone I always just...I can't stand that sort of interaction unless I already know the person. It looks like other people share my sense of fright, though, so at least I'm not alone.
In terms of additional advice, I think an important one you left out is the ability to go out and talk to people and make contacts. This is important in just about any industry, but particularly with any that has a lot of people trying to break in and few getting the opportunity. TV, film, video games and games journalism. It's not all about sitting at a computer desk going back and forth between your games console and MS Word, but actually being able to go outside and do something else with your life and being able to speak with people.
If I'm lucky I'll be able to speak with some of you guys one-on-one at GameX in a couple of weeks and see how I measure up in person. Of course, you'll probably be swamped with people anyway. Or Croshaw will be, at least.
There are vast amounts of information that I didn't include -- this certainly wasn't meant to be all-encompassing. This article addresses one tiny aspect of getting hired, namely the introductory email.ccesarano said:
Nice article, but a lot of this stuff is just general interview advise. Act professional, know something about the company and Have samples/resume/portfolio ready(if applicable).
I still hate you for taking my totally guaranteed spot at Wired Game|Life.Earnest Cavalli said:
Well, OK, maybe it's not hate. Alright, it wasn't totally guaranteed. Or even partially. But you did take it.
I knew I should have vamped my first name basis with Martin Sheen on that cover letter...
This raises an intruiging thought with me. We have had Escapist pieces about homosexual gamers, female gamers, male gamers, ethnic gamers... has the concept of gamers whose english is a second language or who don't speak english ever been addressed?Susan Arendt said:
Okay, maybe it's not an INTRUIGING thought, but at times it feels like the Videogame world only includes English speaking countries or Japan... I'm curious what the market is in South America now or the island nations. I know, for example, certain Anime that just never caught on in America are HUGELY popular in spanish speaking countries (ex. Saint Seiya), I wonder if the same applies to games.
Anyway, thats totally off topic. Great read. Any suggestions what a beginner with NO experiance COULD write, for practice or their portfolio? Are freelance 'reviews' passee and overdone? Are opinion pieces the way to go?