Meet Cote Smith — novelist, game writer, and graduate of The Narrative Department. 👋🏻
Cote has published two novels with major presses: Hurt People and Limetown: The Prequel to the #1 Podcast. He knows what it takes to finish a long creative project. He spent years writing those novels! But in the back of his mind, always lurking: VIDEO GAMES.
"I was writing these books that took years and years and years, and the entire time I was writing books, I was also obsessed with video games. I've been obsessed with them since I was a kid."
And then one day, the penny dropped.
Cote joined us for our Masterclass. I love when writers from different disciplines take our courses, because so often, it's about unlearning as much as learning. Interactive storytelling is its own thing. It's not screenwriting, it's not poetry, and it's not novel-writing! Some writers - like Cote - love the challenge. For all the things you can't do in this medium, there are a hundred new storytelling things you can ONLY do in games.
But novelists and game writers have at least one thing in common: they both work on their projects for a loooong time. And thanks to his novel-writing background, Cote knew something important about what it takes to stick with it.
As he puts it: "Just making time for this thing that you really care about, and then hoping that someday it might see the light of day — but also trying to find the enjoyment in the process as you're going. That's what sustains you."
YES KING
So in at least one way, writing novels is a lot like writing games. But how are they different? And how do we change as writers when we work on games? (Here comes some inside baseball...)
Learning to think like a game writer isn't just a technical shift. It's a personal one. And for someone who spent years as the sole author of their own creative vision — that's a big ask.
Cote is such an inspiration - he does the work because he loves the work. 💖 💖 💖
Build your writing chops, your game-writing expertise, and your creative community -- all at once
Join the waitlist for The Narrative Department's Game Writing Masterclass and get early access when enrollment opens in 2027. Built for working and aspiring game writers alike, our course will speedrun you through 20+ years of experience shipping best-selling, award-winning games.