The Three Things I’ve Learned Writing in an Established IP

If you are working at a studio, you likely be writing for someone else’s IP. Either it’s a new title thought up by the studio (Horizon Zero Dawn), it’s a sequel/spinoff to a hit game (Guild Wars 2/World of Warcraft), or it’s an adaptation of an existing IP outside of games (James Bond/Spider-Man/Star Wars). The fact is, you will be asked to plug your brain in and write inside of an established set of rules. Is it hard? Yes. Can it be done? You bet.

Here’s Three Things I’ve Learned Writing in an Established IP

1) The Story Bible is the Center of Everything

You might be the biggest fan of a franchise (let’s call it Bumble Star Kangaroo).  You’ve played the games, watched the Netflix spin-off, and own all the transmedia (even the rare Alan Moore comic from the BSK2 ultra-limited edition). You were hired in part because you nailed the game’s tone on the writing test. In short, you are the right ‘roo for the job.

But that doesn’t mean you are the authority on the franchise. No, instead you have been trusted to work inside of it. Even if you think you know everything about the franchise, you don’t. No one does. New stuff gets added all the time, likely before you were hired. Even the people who created the IP use its Story Bible to check themselves for timelines, proper nouns, characters, and key plot points. When you start working on a game, have the Story Bible open (in read-only mode) in another tab so you can made sure you aren’t misremembering something.

And please. Please please please. Do not start adding things to the Story Bible without confirming new entries with your lead first because…

2) It’s Not Yours

You didn’t invent Bumble Star Kangaroo. You don’t own the IP. You are part caretaker and part subject matter expert in training. You are under the direction of your lead, who should guide you in fine tuning voice and style from the start. The lead, unless overruled by someone higher up, is the final voice for all matters narrative. You are not.

This means your head canon stays in your head. That means you don’t take it upon yourself to start adding facts to the Story Bible. Any Story Bible alteration needs to be vetted through your lead (unless otherwise authorized). Sometimes it helps to create a separate document spelling out what you want to add to the Story Bible based on a meeting, a mission you worked on, or a brainwave you might have had (“Hey I think have a solution to explain Bumble’s disappearance from the Potato Minefield. How about…”). The point is, get sign off first... preferably in an email for your personal records.

This might sound like you are handcuffed into a role where you can’t think or create. This is far from the truth because…

3) You Can Still Bring Your Voice

Writing for an IP is like cooking or playing an instrument: you need to master the basics before you can put your spin on things. When you start working on an IP, you need to make sure you are hitting the tone and how the studio tackles narrative pacing. Once you get the ground beneath your feet, once you can show you work well with the team and with the iteration process, your maturity and skill will be rewarded with you being allowed more leeway to use more of your palette, to take more risks.

Your storytelling chops will always be needed. You’ll always use your tools to get at the heart of a character, to examine how this quest can reveal more about the world and the people in it, how to set up and pay off an emotional movement. Once you understand the space you are operating in, you’ll know when to push and when to pull back. As time goes on, you will pitch new quests and characters. You will add your contributions to the IP and respectfully build on what’s been made before. Done well, you will knit your stuff smoothly into the game’s tapestry.

Bonus)

From personal experience, if you get proficient enough with the IP, you might be asked to create and oversee transmedia created by others. This includes short stories, comic books, audio dramas, and even novels based on the franchise. Writing these will require a lot of other signoffs from partners or marketers with you as the IP champion at the table. You will need to be sure external partners don’t veer too far from the IP's narrative vision and rules. Here, you’ll be representing the story and the studio at the same time. You’ll have a lot of other skills you’ll need to level up to pull this off, from diplomacy to project management. Billion-dollar franchises are serious business, even if they star kangaroos.