As I stated earlier, I will once again be teaching Writing & Editing for Gaming for the Professional Writing department at Taylor University during the Spring 2019 Semester. To that end, I have begun to acquire additional books on the topic of gaming, writing, and narrative to expand my understanding of the topics. Before I teach a course, even a repeat, I like to research anew the topic to see how I can revise and improve the course. This new list of books was highly recommend by Eddy Webb of The Onyx Path as we had a discussion on Twitter about recommended reading for game studies. Many of these books I wish I had read before I taught this course the first time. Thus, this is the start of my reading for this Fall to prepare for the Spring course.
Books in order if you cannot read the picture:
- Hamlet’s Hit Points by Robin D. Laws
- The Creation of Narrative In Tabletop Role-Playing Games by Jennifer Grouling Cover
- Twisty Little Passages: An Approach in Interactive Fiction by Nick Montfort
- A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Ralph Koster
- The Game Narrative Toolbox by Tobias Heussner and more
- Second Person: Role-Playing and Story in Games and Playable Media by Pat Harrigan and Noah Wardip-Fruin
Previously, I have read these books in preparation for the course and recommend them to my students as well.
- Board Games That Tell Stories by Ignacy Trzewiczek
- The Civilized Guide to Tabletop Gaming by Terry Litorco
- Dangerous Games: What the Moral Panic over Role-Playing Games Says about Play, Religion, and Imagined Worlds by Joseph Laycock
- Designers & Dragons: A History of the Roleplaying Game Industry by Shannon Appelcline
- The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology by Katie Salen Tekinbas and Eric Zimmermann
- Girls on Games: A Look at the Fairer Side of the Industry by Elisa Teague
- The King’s English – A Guide to Modern Usage by Kingsley Amis
- Kobold Guide to Board Game Design by Mike Selinker
- Kobold Guide to Combat by Wolfgang Baur, Ed Greenwood, Chris Pramas, et al.
- Kobold Guide to Game Design by Wolfgang Baur, Ed Greenwood, Monte Cook, et al.
- Kobold Guide to Plots & Campaigns by Margaret Weis, Wolfgang Baur, Jeff Grubb, et al.
- Kobold Guide to Magic by Wolfgang Baur, Tim Pratt, Kenneth Hite, et al.
- Kobold Guide to Worldbuilding by Wolfgang Baur
- Playing at the World by Jon Peterson
- Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals by Katie Salen Tekinbas and Eric Zimmerman
- Word by Word: An Editor Guides Writers in the Self-Editing Process by Linda K. Taylor
Are there other books you would recommend on the topic of writing and editing for gaming?
If this little stack of books is listed by the author of Pugmire as recommended reads for this topic, one MUST take note!