Any Game Journalists here? [Archive] - Retrogaming Roundtable

Lady Jaye

08-11-2004, 06:03 PM

Well, even though I'm not trained as a journalist (almost did study journalism in university, though!), I used to have a videogame column for a few months in a print magazine called Adam (in early 2002). I got this gig through someone I knew, who works in the publishing business, so contacts is essential.

Even though an excellent knowledge of games is a must, it's also important to read and write a lot, as much as you can, and not just about videogames. Not only will it help you develop your critical sense, it will also allow you to get a broad, general culture. Make sure you master all the little annoying grammar rules that may trip you on an everyday basis: making grammatical errors is no big deal on a board like this, but it is when it comes to professional writing.

You can start on your videogame writing by submitting articles of your own to some websites: you can contribute to the Digital Press zine, or to any website accepting submissions. You can even start your own website... even if it doesn't get you a foot in the door in the journalistic business, at least you will have had the chance to try it a bit for fun.

Oh, and one last thing: know your videogame history! I don't know how familiar you are right now with older consoles and the history of companies like Nintendo, Atari and Sega, but it's good to know what games were made before your "time" and where all these great companies did in the past. For this, I recommend you start with the book "The Ultimate History of Video Games", by Steven Kent. It's a great read (trust me, you won't get bored!) and it covers a lot of ground (even though it still isn't as "ultimate" as its title claims). You can find the book in libraries and bookstores.

Mayhem

08-11-2004, 06:19 PM

Ah yes spelling and grammar, the two aspects people seem to be ever more lacking as we get older. All I can say having done freelance on and off for more than 10 years now, is that editors really do appreciate having to perform as little work on your prose as needed. So if you can master grammatical sense, tenses, constructions, avoid split infinitives and double negatives AND use Word's spell checker for example, THEN you may well get a pick over someone else.

Of course talent, ambition, enthusiasm and willingness to start at the bottom of the food chain help too ;)

gamergary

08-11-2004, 06:23 PM

There is zmweasel aka Zach Meston. One of the best (if not the best) video game freelancers around. Talk to him about the business and you might want to change your mind.

Tank

08-11-2004, 06:25 PM

Yeah, well I didn�t really know that correct grammar was that important on message boards. Sorry? :o

Sniderman

08-11-2004, 06:47 PM

Yeah, well I didn’t really know that correct grammar was that important on message boards. Sorry? :o Dudez, I wuld lik 2 B a jurnalizt!!one!!! WTF OMG?!?!

:D

C'mon Tank. Lighten up. You want to be a writer, so the first thing we're going to notice is the way you write, capishe?

Anyway, there are a bunch of game writers that patrol DP. Hell, Joe (DP) himself has a regular column in Tips and Tricks - not to mention the Digital Press newsletter, still going strong.

Zach was already mentioned, so I'll give a shoutout to Chris Cavanaugh - founder of Classic Gamer Magazine (http://www.classicgamer.com), and now staff dudemeister of All Game Guide (http://www.allgame.com/).

The lovely Leonard Herman is author of Pheonix: The Rise and Fall of Videogames (http://www.videotopia.com/phoenrev.htm) : THE ultimate history of all games electronic. He's a reg'lur 'round these parts.

Hell, I could go on and on: Bill Kunkle, Mark Androvich (though haven't seen him much recently), and a ton of other industry insiders and professionals are here.

Phosphor Dot Fossils

08-11-2004, 06:47 PM

I also know there are a couple of people on the forums who have written for All Game Guide, if that counts.

Now, if we widen the net to include people who have been interviewed by game journalists, we'll have quite a cattle call. :)

Tank

08-11-2004, 06:58 PM

Sorry I snaped on you about that guys, im having a bad day. LOL

Thanks for all the help! :)

rolenta

08-11-2004, 11:43 PM

And we also have Tim Snider who also edits a magazine, although you'll have to ask him directly what kind of magazine it is.

Lovely?

MegaDrive20XX

08-11-2004, 11:50 PM

Well im a jr in highschool this year and its about time for me to pick something im intrested in. Im really intrested in journalism, especially game journalism. Anyone here a game journalist? How did you get to where you are? Is it worth it? Give me some details! :D

I was an english major, I wanted to be a journalist myself, but my professor never took my work seriously.

He would consider my work "weak" and never to the point...god I hate teachers...I tried so hard to re-write this damn paper and it never pleased him!

Hell you try writing a 17 page essay over Charles Dickens...

I always wanted to write reviews for games or even make an article...I continue writing short stories and poems since then...

My advice to you, continue your dream if you feel this is what you want.

Yet never get discouraged over criticism! Because, what you think is good journalism is probably worth more towards the public, then what one opinion of your teacher or professor thinks.

Quickclaw

08-11-2004, 11:58 PM

If my site ever comes out of its five-month-long hibernation, perhaps I'll add some game reviews.

TheRedEye

08-12-2004, 12:06 AM

I wrote a piece on insertcredit.com that was more about beer and dinosaurs than videogames, and the next day Nintendo Official Magazine hired me. So my advice to you is to drink a lot.

Flack

08-12-2004, 12:34 AM

My associate's degree is in Journalism. Unfortunately I ended up liking money more than I liked writing so I went into the computer field instead.

I have written for several websites and print magazines and have even run a few of each. I'm no big fish like some of the guys around here, but I'd be glad to answer any questions for you that I could.

Daria

08-12-2004, 12:50 AM

Yeah, well I didn�t really know that correct grammar was that important on message boards. Sorry? :o

I would say correct grammer's always important. When you're online it's like a first impression to some people, and you'll find people are more likely to take you seriously if your posts are easy to read. Not to mention if you always strive for correct grammer you'll find it comes easier to you when writing an article.

TheRedEye

08-12-2004, 01:24 AM

I'll elaborate a bit.

I'm not exactly a "success story," as I have one little freelance gig, but here's how I got where I am.

First, I participated in online gaming communities for a few years, as you're doing now. I launched a shitty website that had a scary cult following. My favorite was the guy who insisted that I saved his life, and he would have killed himself if I hadn't updated and brightened his day.

Then I launched Lost Levels, which was my first "serious" attempt at "games journalism." It got the attention of a lot of important folks, among them Brandon Sheffield of Insert Credit. We start talking a bit, he asks if I can do a piece for him. I do. Magazine hires me.

So, in short, the best way to become a "games journalist" is to shut up and fucking do it already. If you have the talent and the drive, the money comes much much later.

o2william

08-12-2004, 03:01 AM

I used to direct ClassicGaming.com, which was akin to an editorial position, as I had to greenlight feature articles and web site content. I'll repeat what many others have said: good grammar, sentence structure, and correct punctuation is crucial. I really stress that last one, since so many people can't do it -- I still get a warm feeling whenever I see someone use a semicolon properly. :)

Many times I had to reject an otherwise interesting piece in favor of more stale content, simply because the bad mechanics rendered the first article unsalvageable. Good ideas can be gold, but they're not worth much if you can't express them. As a journalist, you'll have to live with editors, who are trained to scrutinize your copy for any mistake they can find. If you can make their job easier, they'll be more willing to throw work at you.

Also, (good) journalists spend about as much time researching as they do writing, so learning how to do effective research is vital. If you study journalism in college, try taking a couple of history courses as well -- research is pretty much all you do in that field.

Good luck!

Sniderman

08-12-2004, 06:06 AM

My associate's degree is in Journalism. Unfortunately I ended up liking money more than I liked writing so I went into the computer field instead. LOL
Coincidentally, I did just the opposite! I was majoring in computer analysis when I began writing for the university paper. Liked it so much, I switched majors, much to my folk's chagrin. I said - and I quote - "Satisfaction with what I do is more important than a paycheck."

Today, whenever I bitch about not making enough, my dad will turn and say, "Well, at least you have 'job satisfaction'. Right?" x_x

digitalpress

08-12-2004, 07:39 AM

I'm pretty sure our member "BenT" is one of the GameSpy core game reviewers. Also, "kobunheatforum" has written a number of freelance pieces for a number of different magazines (Wired and Anime Nation spring to mind).

vision89

08-12-2004, 07:42 AM

I took some journalism in college, though it was aimed at newswriting and not magazine articles. Strong grammar is a must, and you're at a good age to start learning. Journalists are told to write at a jr. high level so that everyone can understand them! A good book to get is the associated press stylebook, again this is geared towards newswriting but it still contains a great deal of useful information. Hell, I've got an untouched newswriting textbook if you're interested, I believe it has a section for writing magazine articles. Journalism can be a tough field to make a career out of and it's important that you start planning a strategy. The hardest part is getting your' first article printed. It is essential that you start writing NOW, if your' school has a paper then start writing for it, keep your eyes open for any paper you can write for. You probably won't get paid for any writing for a LONG time, but that's okay, you need to start writing now in order to gain experience, contacts and portfolio pieces, any publisher who is thinking about hiring you will want to see articles you've written that have been published. GOOD LUCK!!

Flack

08-12-2004, 10:02 AM

So, in short, the best way to become a "games journalist" is to shut up and fucking do it already.

I agree 100%.

After stringing for a couple of local newspapers, I started my own print music magazine (InTune Magazine) in 1996. In retrospect it seemed really easy, but it was an awful lot of hard work at the time. Being a two man operation (and I'm sure my wife doesn't appreciate being called a man) meant the two of us did everything, from billing to selling ads to layout and of course writing. 1,500 copies cost me ~$400 a month to print and through selling ads I almost broke even each month.

In the mid-to-late 90's I began submitting articles to different magazines and websites. I had several reviews posted on IGN.com which I was paid for. I also had an article about Playstation mod chips published in the "2600: The Hacker's Quarterly" magazine.

Back in the day, getting published either meant writing for someone else's publication, or starting your own. These days, I have two words for you: "The Web". As TheRedEye said, starting your own web site costs $0. My ISP gives me 10 meg of space per e-mail account (of which I can have up to seven). 10 meg is approximately the equivalent of 2,500 pages of writing. That's a lot of magazine space!

But why put up your own website when there are so many already established ones? Digital Press is always accepting video game reviews! Check out the review section, take a look at the format, and give it a shot. I'll bet you have at least one game in your collection that hasn't been reviewed here yet.

Tritoch

08-12-2004, 10:07 AM

I've been writing for VGF.com/videogameheaven.com since mid-1997, and serving as the EIC/PR guy for the last several years. Since the Great Internet Advertising Crash the owner's heart has never been in it enough to turn it into a major player in the industry, but for some reason I love it too much to leave.

My Rotten Tomatoes Page (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/gauthor-7322/)

Captain Wrong

08-12-2004, 10:34 AM

Game, no. Music, yes.

Not what you're looking for, but if you want to talk to about freelance music writing, holla!

rscaramelo

08-12-2004, 10:44 AM

I have a degree in Mass Comm. from a well known Boston school. I graduated in 94. Let me be blunt with you....get used to eating PB&J and bad pasta. Media outlets will offer you internships that pay nada starting out. Tough to pay the rent when your income is $0. You'll need to move to towns like East Bumf*ck to hone your craft.

Here's a couple of stories for you... I was offered a job producing Pawtucket Red Sox games on the local radio station. I though my dreams came true! I was finally going to be able to afford to move out of my parents house and buy my girlfriend a ring! I had been interviewing all over New England for almost 1 year after graduating from college. My dreams were shattered when I was told the pay was $3.50 an hour. Needless to say I turned down the "job". I took another "job" with a talk radio station as a production assistant for $18K per year. On the day that I started, me and 2 other new production assistant hires were handed the yellow pages and an advertisement pricing sheet. We were told to start selling ad time! WTF! I went home after a couple of hours. I had never been so depressed. 14 months, some 50 interviews and 2 bullshit job offers. I gave up and went into working for a financial services company where I was a letter writer.

Do some real some real research and maybe try to get an internship while you're still in high school with a local media outlet. I'm sorry if I came off as Mr. Doom and Gloom but schools don't prepare you for the crap you have to deal with right after graduation. Make sure you know what you're getting into. I really thought I'd be doing ESPN radio by now!

Roger C.

Mr. Smashy

08-12-2004, 11:29 AM

You want to be a writer, so the first thing we're going to notice is the way you write, capishe?

I notice that your English is better than your Italian (just a heads-up ;) ).

I would say correct grammer's always important.

Oh, the irony...

All that I can say is that you should do what you want and strive to be the best at what you do. If your writing has substance and offers something new and interesting, you might even get some fans here and there. I'm pretty impressed with the quality of the articles here on DP and it's often a pleasure to sit back and read one from time to time.

Dangerboy

08-12-2004, 11:55 AM

I agree with the do-it-yourself aspect. When I was running Game Rave, I sent it out to publications who at the time were still reviewing them. I also sent one to a GameShark fan site to use their codes...turns out that person went to really work for Gameshark, told them about me, and then wham! I'm in the industry doing reviews, guides, faqs, magazine content creation and more.

I'd love to get back into it, but the paper side of journalism seems to be falling to the wayside.

That and I'm about to go back to school full time, so that kills that idea. :)

Good luck!
Jason

rbudrick

08-12-2004, 12:30 PM

I used to write for a couple years at themushroom.com, but now it is dead. Having a good sense of style is the most important...actually it is probably a tie with grammar, spelling and general coherency. If you can do those, you will be a great writer in whatever you do. You definitely don't want your editor fixing your mistakes all the time. They will grow to hate you if they do. Get good at grammar and style...get very good. But basically, without a good sense of style, no one will want to read past paragraph two of your writing.

Now, I never majored in English, but I took enogh writing classes that I was good enough at English to help my college English professor correct students' papers (Never mind many of my forum typos, folks, cuz I don't care). So, a focus on English and journalism in college goes a very long ways in getting any journalism job.

Of course, if you apply for a technology magazine, it's also best to have a background in technology. Likewise for a science, videogames or mouse breeding magazines. Few writers can make it writing in a niche they aren't into....many do manage to do so tho....either they are very talented bullshit artists or hate themselves.

-Rob

Tritoch

08-12-2004, 01:19 PM

Ack, just realized this topic is about helping the guy out. LOL

It helps a lot if you can get in on the ground floor of a new publication. I applied as a writer to videogameheaven.com when the owner popped into an AOL chat room to gauge interest way back in the summer of 1997, before it even officially opened. The owner ran the site until he left to start VGF.com, at which time I took over running it. When VGH was finally absorbed into VGF, I just moved into running the various subsites.

Tank

08-12-2004, 01:53 PM

Thanks for all the help everybody :D

Sniderman

08-12-2004, 02:04 PM

Few writers can make it writing in a niche they aren't into....many do manage to do so tho...
I have no medical degree or medical background. Yet, I am managing editor for:
http://ut.adv100.com/urologytimes/data/issue/urologytimes//061504_ut_cv_3857.jpg
But I was also "Health issues reporter" for the local paper for many years and had built up a lot of "on-the-job" knowledge in my field. My extensive portfolio of medical writings helped land my current job, even without a formal science/medical background. So, to apply it to you, write about games as much and as often as you can. Know the ins and outs of the field - the players, the issues, the makers, etc. That way, when you DO go for that job, you have more than just "I'd sure like to write for you" to offer. You have knowledge and experience that you've been cultivating for a long time.

....either they are very talented bullshit artists or hate themselves. A little from column "A" and a little from column "B"." LOL

slownerveaction

08-12-2004, 02:17 PM

I've written for Video Game Collector magazine, Manci Games magazine, Classic Gamer magazine, Deeko.com, and my own site, Famiconsumer.com. I'm not as experienced as some of the guys here like Zach Meston, Bill Kunkel, or Chris Cavanugh, but I'll give you some advice:

1. Proper grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. should be AUTOMATIC. Yeah, we all need to occasionally fall back on spellcheck or double-check to make sure we haven't made any little grammatical snafus. But if you can't master things like "it's/its," "your/you're," "affect/effect," and proper semi-colon and colon usage, PLEASE stay out of trying to write professionally.

2. Develop your own style. Education is important, to a certain extent, but most good writers get good by... writing a lot. Don't be afraid to experiment. Play around with words, perspective, structures. Eventually you'll come across a style (or, even better, a range of styles) that you like and are comfortable with.

3. Be knowledgeable. Be aware of the entire history of gaming, not just the latest news (both are important). Know your publishers and developers; know all the big industry figures and trends.

4. As far as trying to get published, just keep trying. Don't get discouraged if you don't get responses right away. There are a lot of people out there trying to break into the industry and trying to get noticed. If you're good and you keep at it, you'll get noticed eventually. As others have noted, having your own personal site is good, as is getting some experience at a smaller fan site (you could even start one with a group of friends). There's plenty of places to host a site for free, but it's pretty cheap to buy a domain and get it hosted these days. A top-level domain name for your site holds WAY much more clout than some Geocities URL.

Good luck. It ain't easy.

Sniderman

08-12-2004, 02:29 PM

rbudrick

08-12-2004, 02:43 PM

Hell, you want to write right now? Classic Gamer Magazine is always looking for copy. I'm sure DP could use a review or two. Video Game Collector just launched. Etc. You won't make a dime, but it'll give you a chance to hone your skills while garnering expereince and clippings for your portfolio. Do some digging and send out some queries. Assignments won't fall into your lap. Go get 'em!

That's an excellent idea! They'd make great references (most especially for someone new to the field), and it's something you can bring to an interview or put on a starting resume....and you get some practice and hopefully some constructive criticism from the editors.

-Rob

kevincure

08-12-2004, 06:39 PM

I'm glad Mr. Smashy pointed out the irony - I was going to be nice to the poor guy :-).

As for getting into game writing, start by writing for the smaller "major" sites. I wrote some features for Gaming Age four or five years ago. As long as you show some knowledge about the industry and some talent writing, you can begin to build up a resume pretty easily.

As for a career in game journalism, though, you'd better like eating potatoes and drinking PBR. Journalism is among the worst paying careers you can possibly go into. One of my good friends is almost done her journalism degree from the best journalism school in the country (Northwestern Medill), with good grades, and she *still* has a tough time finding a good job.

Mayhem

08-12-2004, 07:05 PM

At 16 and at school, I hated English classes, my spelling and grammar were pretty bad and well... I was generally into computers and science. Yeah typical 80s geek here :P

Something then happened. Getting a freelance reviewing job! Even better, I got to keep the games I reviewed! So basically I made myself better... and I think it's helped immemsely in the long run. I've done freelance for a number of well known UK magazines past and present, even though I have a full time job paying better than any writing gig could ever earn. I do it for the love of the games :)

fennec fox

08-13-2004, 04:13 AM

I think everything important's been just about said already, but:

- Be enthusiastic
- Be informative
- Be interesting

I think these are the three traits any successful magazine article must have, regardless of whatever subject you're actually writing about. If you're missing enthusiasm you end up like the later years of NextGen; if you're missing really useful information you end up like the later years of Game Fan; if you're missing the ability to write interesting text, you end up like the reviews on ebgames.com.