Hi - I'm Xander

Writer - Narrative Designer - Dungeon Master

As a creator of worlds fantastical, horrific and hopeful, I do not let a single genre or medium define me, but will frequently douse my works with elements of horror and sci-fi, and a preference towards traditional prose and narrative videogames.

My most in-depth project is that of Greenlight County, a self-made tabletop role-playing game in which you play as a group of concerned citizens fighting against monsters within their rural American town.

If there is one element of my work that I enjoy the most, it is that of creating and developing characters, as I will almost always be drawn to ensemble pieces where there is a focus on the interactions between character.

At the core of it all, I am a story-teller. I want to create worlds and characters that make people feel - whether it be inspiration, terror, or a quiet mourning for a past experience - I want to make others be transported to a different world, as I have been many times before.

CONKED OUT!

Wander a wand-less world full of wacky and whimsical wizards.

Travel the fantastically fictitious world of Celentria, in which, following the Oaken Purge, spell casters must plant their conkers so that it may one day grow into a wand-bearing tree.

See the Itch.io page here

GREENLIGHT COUNTY

Face your fears and combat otherworldly horrors within a rural US town.

An original horror TTRPG in which players control a group of concerned citizens during their fight against horrific entities within the fictional town of Berkwood, Wyoming.

DUST DEVILS

Solve a political conflict within a post-apocalyptic wasteland, on a world that was once called Earth.

A CRPG project in which you play as a 'negotiator' within a sci-fi world, encountering a range of characters, combat and storylines for you to explore at the end of the world.

WEBSTORIES

A collection of stories from across multiple medias and multiple worlds.

Fan-stories of mine set within other pre-existing worlds, but with characters that haven't been seen before. Follow stories ranging from a sci-fi captain travelling a grimdark universe, to a group of Swedish teenagers investigating a 'machine cancer' within their small town.

OTHER PROJECTS

Smaller bits of work ranging from maps to prose fiction.

A collection of smaller creative works, usually disconnected from my larger projects.

INSPIRATIONS

With my writing, I've been influenced by various works, all of them leaving an impression on me.

(This may be updated depending on whatever media I am currently obsessed with).

ZA/UM

DISCO ELYSIUM

Disco Elysium was the game that affirmed me in my direction to pursue writing with the field of game design. Its artistic direction, its characters and its handling of varying ideologies have all inspired pieces and worlds of my own.

Obsidian Entertainment

FALLOUT: NEW VEGAS

My favourite of the Fallout franchise, alongside praising the writing, the desert-wasteland combined with sci-fi is one of my favourite visual aesthetics and was a large inspirations for Dust Devils, both visually and tonally.

Campo Santo

FIREWATCH

An earlier influence, but one that convinced the teenage me that people do actually want to play games that are focused on narrative. The mundane and 'normal' characters within the peaceful setting of US nature also became a large inspiration for projects such as Greenlight County.

Simon Stålenhag

THINGS FROM THE FLOOD

While also providing stunning visuals, Stålenhag's work also includes a certain longing for the past, the idea of being kids and teenagers with mysteries to explore, though this book provokes a slightly more sombre tone, which is the balance I strive for in my own stories.

Supermassive Games

UNTIL DAWN

Another early influence, one that focused on a much larger cast, which is something that I found to prefer. It was one of the earlier inspirations for horror, both in creature design, setting and the blending of moments of tension and comedy with a much larger focus on dialogue between characters.

Redhook Studios

DARKEST DUNGEON

The genre of fantasy has a wide lens and I think that the Darkest Dungeon franchise holds my favourite version of it. Eldritch horrors, little hope, knights fighting alongside musketeers, it's an incredibly unique world - one that inspired me to vary my own fantasy works in terms of tone and setting.

Fortiche Production + Riot Games

ARCANE

While not big on League of Legends, this show is visually stunning and one which I can appreciate for the look of its world, its characters and also for the little details that scatter the episodes of each season.

The Duffer Brothers

STRANGER THINGS

While I wasn't around for the 80s, I am still entranced by the 'small-town, big-problem' storyline that this media has, and am also a fan of similar works of this, such as Super 8 or the IT movies.

Skills

Prose Fiction

I am an avid writer of what is not real, opting for fictional worlds varying in genre, but having a soft spot for horror, sci-fi and fantasy.

I prefer stories with a larger focus on character over anything else, and also enjoy watching/reading media revolving around a larger cast of characters with a focus on how they interact with one another.

I excel in dialogue-focused pieces, but am also proficient in pieces that involve action or fighting and am able to flexibly shift tone and balance several characters, including their narrative arcs.

Screenwriting

Outside of prose, I have also written scripts for videogames, screenplays and stage plays.

I understand how to format scripts, including a proficiency in programs such as Google Docs, encompassing a variety of tools to use for these

purposes.

Unity

During my time in University and College, I have also honed my skills within the Unity Engine, not only knowing how to effectively navigate the app, but also having skills in certain plugins such as Fungus, Ink and Twine.

I am also an effective problem solver and am not one to shy away from the occasional programming-based issue, solving what I can with what I already know of the engine.

Tabletop Organisation + Creation

Throughout the years, I have run many Tabletop Role-Playing Games, managing narrative arcs, world creation and player arcs at once, at regular intervals, with positive player feedback every time.

I also have an interest in the creation of TTRPG rule systems, thinking and concepting the creation of different systems that all involve

their own worlds, classes and

mysteries that players must uncover.

Acting and Theatre

Having acted on stage, and been awarded a Grade 8 LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art) qualification in acting, I have a natural love for the theatrical, both on the stage and within film. I have taken on a variety of roles, from a scrappy Northern Irish teen to a mentally disturbed psychiatric patient, and am very adaptable. Though I have yet to have the opportunity to do motion capture for videogames or films, it is something that I would love to do someday!

Illustration

I am invested in learning and practising illustration, having a love for character art and animation.

I usually draw digitally, but can also illustrate by more traditional means.

This is a skill that is in development, but one that I am highly passionate about and ready to improve upon.

Music Composition

I have composed multiple tracks for games, trailers and short films, primarily using Garageband in my process.

Throughout my journey, I have also been influenced by a large number of soundtracks, incorporating them into my works where possible.

Video Editing

I have taught myself several forms of editing software, with my main proficiency being in Hitfilm Express.

I have created several trailers for videogame projects, as well as putting together images, voiceovers and gameplay footage for video essays.

I want to further hone my skills with editing and work on larger projects