About Cara Ellison
Cara Ellison is a recognized writer and designer specializing in video games. Her life goal is to create interactive and memorable experiences through her stories. Over the years, Cara has been an award-winning itinerant journalist, author, and TV-show designer.
With over a decade of experience in writing, Cara Ellison has worked hard to get to where she is today. She has worked with studios to help develop Dishonored 2, Where the Water Tastes Like Wine, Void Bastards, Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines 2, and many other projects. Currently, Cara is actively involved in two different video game projects. The first is as Narrative Director for Nightscape, a Mezan Studios & Astrolabe production. The second is The Fermi Paradox by Anomaly Games. Here she is working as both a writer and editor.
Cara’s Story
Someday Cara Ellison hopes to change the world’s perception of video games. She believes that people tend to see video games more as technology or children’s toys when they have the potential to be so much more. Cara says that if one were to take a closer look at many games within the industry, one would find nuanced stories portraying the complexity of human nature – among other themes. For this reason, Cara believes that video games can be favorably compared to books and other forms of fine art. Cara Ellison’s deepest hope is that someday we will see video game writing viewed through the same lens as writing for HBO dramas. In other words, the world will see video game writing as intricate, exquisite, and willing to portray characters as humans – flawed traits and all.
Given Cara Ellison’s extensive involvement in the video game industry, it should be no surprise that she has formed strong opinions about specific games. Two of her favorites include Kentucky Route Zero and Thirty Flights of Loving. These two rank highly in her mind due to their portrayal of rich storytelling and experiences, which Cara is particularly fond of.
Cara Ellison’s writing experience doesn’t end with video game writing. She has been involved in nearly every medium possible, including novels and comic books. Her comic writing experience includes The Final Girls, a Comixology Original. Meanwhile, Cara personally wrote a novel about video games titled Embed With Games. The novel contains a forward written by Kieron Gillen, a well-known figure within the comic book industry.
One project that Cara Ellison is exceptionally proud to be part of is Charlie Brooker’s How Videogames Change the World. She was co-author alongside the famous writer Charlie Brooker. Since Charlie Brooker is a personal hero for Cara, one can imagine how important this moment was for her.
Cara Ellison’s first professional writing position was for Birlinn in Edinburgh. She was a submissions editor and in charge of the fiction section. Following that, she worked for Rockstar North, acting as QA and writing reports on video game builds for a game called Grand Theft Auto IV.
To learn more about Cara Ellison, visit her website on arts & culture, CaraEllison.net.