Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Amy-Leigh Shaw

@diveamydive.bsky.social

3.9K followers 4.2K following 1.5K posts

Loud Whisperer • Dragon Fanatic • 🍬Writer and Narrative Designer @ Sweet Baby Inc🍬 • Previously @ Rocksteady Games • ✨Limit Break Mentor✨ • She/Her 💖💛💙 🏳️‍🌈

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · Oct 18

Hey! 👋 I’m Amy-Leigh, and I’m a Writer & Narrative Designer at Sweet Baby Inc. 🍬 I like nature, bad jokes and weird stories, and I’ve heard I’m pretty friendly 👀 so if that sounds like your vibe, you came to the right place! 💛

160 31 170

Reposted by Amy-Leigh Shaw

Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 1d

That New York Times story lots of people are sharing today about Farage's ties to US anti-abortion groups was first reported by @mc00.bsky.social on Byline Times a year ago bylinetimes.com/2024/11/29/n...

110 770 1.5K

Reposted by Amy-Leigh Shaw

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 5d

“Wow, Amy-Leigh, you’re heading to the ✨Immersive Experience Network Summit✨ this month?”

“Why, yes! Yes I am!”

“Cool! Me too! Can we catch up while we’re there?”

“Hey, sure we can! You just let me know you’d like to chat, and we can grab a drink and talk all things Writing & Narrative Design!🥰”

A promotional image for the upcoming Immersive Experience Network Summit, 2025, taking place on the 21st and 22nd of October at Woolwich Works, London.

1 3 10

Reposted by Amy-Leigh Shaw

Boo-ly, Li'l Ghost Bull 👻🐮 @bullythelsb.bsky.social · Jun 28

you have a right to be angry

Drawing of Little My, a small girl in a red dress, sliding down a hill. She is drawn by Tove Jansson from the Moomin series. The text reads: "WHEN you're angry, then you're angry," thought Little My, peeling her potato with her teeth. "Sometimes you have to be angry. Every little creature has the right to get angry."

7 710 2.1K

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

I think I lean towards a document, especially for narrative design, because it allows you to provide running commentary on your decision making - after all, most lead writers aren’t looking at whether they like the writing on the page, they’re trying to see if the person behind them is a good fit!

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

No easy answer for finding them, unfortunately! Just to go on the hunt!

Portfolio building is very personal! I favour a multi page document that showcases a few different kinds of games writing: barks, branching dialogue, UI text, cinematics. But I know others who take the twine approach!

1 2

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

I would say that every studio has their own software that they prefer, so instead of learning programs, the best practice is to try and find as many scripts, sheets of barks and other in-game documents written by games writers and narrative designers as possible, and get comfortable with them!

1 3

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

I’m proud of everything I’ve worked on for different reasons, but if I had to pick one right now, I’d say Afterlove EP - it was so complicated, in so many ways, and we truly gave it everything we could 💛

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

I think the thing for me is thinking about the kind of escapism Life Sims are - they offer the player a position of control over a system. I think because of that, they tend to either shy away from systems that audiences might struggle against in reality… OR offer the player a chance to inflict them

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

I’m not saying recognition is equal to appreciation! But I do see a growing common knowledge understanding amongst non-narrative developers that professional narrative work does make a difference to the success of a project - and I don’t believe it’s the kind of knowledge that can be reversed.

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

Exactly! How do you make sure not to punish the sharpest players for putting the pieces together? How fo you keep them from feeling like they’re waiting for you to let them move forward?

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

Finances are massively over-restricted right now. New projects are not being funded and ongoing projects are having budgets cut, creating a situation where all industry work is on pause or in a holding pattern - and who do people think they can do without for a while? Narrative, of course 🥲

1 1

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

I think the reason it’s suffering so much from layoffs right now is not because of a fading recognition of the discipline - quite the opposite, the understanding of how important professional narrative is feels greater than ever - but because of current industry conditions.

1 1

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

Might be a little tough to find, but I really recommend anything by Dr Marilina Cesario, who used to be a Professor of mine - the way she explains things is so interesting, and her main area of study (weather and magic) is really fascinating.

1 1

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

🥰🥰🥰
I think the toughest thing for me is *when* things are conveyed. Narrative design is a private conversation you’re having with thousands of separate people, but you only get one set of responses! Hard to do that well when everybody takes different lengths of time to understand different things!

1 3

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

So a good 60-70% of my afternoon will be story meetings, working on structure & voice & worldbuilding with all the different lovely teams. We get our tasks out of these meetings to add to our workload. Between calls I’ll pick up any edits or quick tasks sent my way. And that’s a broadly average day!

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

Mornings are always nice and quiet for me because of timezones, so I tend to wake up and get a big chunk of my actual writing done then, alongside maybe an early check in with any European teams! Then I’ll eat and exercise and by the time I’m back, everybody’s awake! *Then* the meetings begin!!!

2 3

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

Some things about me: I started out in tv! I’m a big background detail person, NPCs, documentation, the whole immersive nine yards. I know a lot of stuff about Anglo-Saxon storytelling! I can speak (a VERY small) amount of Polish! I’ve read a lot of gothic horror literature! I used to work at Lush!

1 1 8

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

Have I used excel the most? Maybe 🥲
I’m weirdly attached to Articy though

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

(And I will answer them in this thread)

I’m a Writer & Narrative Designer working for a Narrative specialist studio in games ☺️

1 1 9

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 2d

✨📣 Ask me questions about my job! 📣✨

8 7 22

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 3d

I speak only as a messenger of truth 😇

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 3d

Tron Ares profers the ultimate fantasy: what if Gillian Anderson slapped you hard across the face?

2 1 33

Reposted by Amy-Leigh Shaw

Designer Hasan @designer4hasand.bsky.social · 3d

Please — don’t underestimate your act of kindness.😓❤️‍🩹
gofund.me/eb774b7d1

Designer Hasan @designer4hasand.bsky.social · 4d

Every father dreams of giving his children safety —
but for me, safety means a roof that won’t disappear tomorrow. 🏠💔

We’re short on this month’s rent — $500 needed before the 15th —and without it, my children will have nowhere to sleep in peace.

Your kindness can be our shelter this month. 🙏❤️

3 65 36

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 4d

If you can get a good smooth lemon filling, there’s nothing like it, I swear

Amy-Leigh Shaw @diveamydive.bsky.social · 4d

So that I can eventually live in that one apartment from Highlander