An Introduction to Game Writing: A Workbook for Interactive Stories Paperback – 14 Jun. 2021

Honestly, if you want a very clearly written book about how to create your own interactive fiction, this is without a doubt the best one I've read. The style is very upbeat and a joy to read, and most importantly the explanations about how to use Twine (the software that makes it very easy to put your own interactive stories together) are very easy to follow.My main purpose for buying the book is because I have plans to write a gamebook at some point soon, in the style of Fighting Fantasy, etc. This book isn't really intended for that purpose, but I still gained enough advice and suggestions from this that I feel will help. But also, I had been wondering about Twine as another option, and didn't fancy my chances of learning a new "programming language." As it turns out, although there is a definite advantage to having some programming skills, I honestly think that with the way this book explains things, you can grasp the necessary (and very few) commands needed to make it all work. Yes, it may take a few reads through the explanations, but it clicks pretty fast, and you can easily copy/paste the commands if necessary, and then edit the text to whatever variables you need.All in all, I feel a lot more confident about using Twine, should I go down that route in the future, and any budding creators of interactive fiction are sure to really enjoy this and gain some valuable skills!

This is a great book. The author, who is hugely experienced in the video game industry, takes us through the process of putting together first an outline, and then a working version of a narrative game using Twine. He shows us the underlying narrative structure of one of his games (Broken Sword) and how to replicate it, giving a strong basis for whichever direction you want to take with your own ideas in the future. Great stuff!

Purchased for my partner, who is a board game designer. He found it interesting.