Welcome to Brunette Games on Substack!
I write the words that make the whole world game.
I’m Lisa Brunette, owner of the casual game industry’s premiere storytelling studio, Brunette Games. I’m an OG veteran—you might even call me an influencer—who’s designed and written narratives for some of the best-performing puzzle games on the app stores today.
The game stories talked about here reflect my own creative work as well as the output of the legendary indie team I built from scratch and spearheaded for many years.
Now operating as a solo consultant, I continue to design and write stories for top game studios, helping them develop hit games for players all over the world.
Work I’m known for
Narrative design and scriptwriting for some of the best-known brands in the entertainment world, such as M&M’S, Disney Frozen, and Family Guy
Collaborations with the top studios in casual-app gaming, including Metacore, Magic Tavern, Jam City, Tilting Point, Tactile, and many others
Hundreds of game stories, including Merge Mansion, Matchington Mansion, Lily’s Garden, Fiona’s Farm, and more
Subscribers
Current Brunette Games clients get a paid subscription automatically, with full benefits. If you’re not a client, you can subscribe for the publicly available content for free, or purchase a monthly or yearly subscription to receive everything clients get.
In the future, I may also offer one-off materials for purchase, such as guides on game-writing in general and specifically for interactive novels, or one-on-one career advice sessions.
Background in games
I’ve spent nearly twenty years in game development, half as an enterprising indie and the other half in narrative design roles at Big Fish, Nintendo, and Cat Daddy Games. I have designed and written multiple chart-topping game titles played by worldwide audiences, including Choices: Veil of Secrets, Fiona’s Farm, and Merge Mansion. My games have been featured in the App Store and on Google Play and consistently rank in the top 100 in multiple categories.
Brunette Games has provided narrative content for 50 app games over ten successful, profitable years and counting. Prior to that, I earned credits on hundreds of games published for PC/Mac and mobile by Big Fish and for Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft consoles and handheld devices. I speak on game design via podcasts and at industry conferences and have served as a visiting professor in the game-design program at Webster University.
Other work
Before I got into games, I was a journalist with bylines in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle Woman, Poets & Writers, and many other publications. I earned a tenured position at Pierce College, where I taught Shakespeare, creative writing, and a composition class themed on pop culture and games. I also taught at St. Louis Community College and University of Miami, where I earned an MFA in creative writing.
A mystery novelist, all three books in my Dreamslippers Series earned indieBRAG medallions, and the second book was a finalist for the Nancy Pearl Book Award and nominated for a RONE Award.
My personal philosophy
Games are for everyone, and we all have a fantasy world that deserves space. I’ve never needed to curb male fantasy in my quest to make games for women.
Writers should always design and write in service to the game, fully integrating the story and world with the puzzle and play.
Story has the power to delight and change the world, and it can make or break a game.
What clients say
Brunette Games came highly recommended for their skills as casual games writers. We worked closely with the team to shape the story for Matchington Mansion. They were excellent to work with, very professional and knowledgeable. We highly recommend Brunette Games for narrative design and game writing. Lisa Brunette is clearly one of the best in her field!
Mike Chera, Producer at Firecraft Studios
Reviewing scripts delivered by Brunette Games is one of my favorite tasks at work!
Filip Kulaszynski, Content Team Manager, Game Factory
We are very happy that we got a lot of fresh ideas from Brunette Games, and the collaboration has been quite fun.
William Hsu, Cofounder, Storm8
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Why this newsletter
After nearly two decades in the game industry, I have some things to say.
I’m sure you do, too. Think of this newsletter—this Brunette Games newsletter on Substack—as a place for us to connect and share our wisdom—with each other, yes, but also with young people just starting out in the industry.
That’s what I miss most now that I’m a solo act, my interactions with the newbie game folk I’ve met through Brunette Games, when I built Big Fish’s narrative team, and all the way back to my first five years at Cat Daddy and Nintendo. I bet you know what I mean, as so many of us get into games because we’re drawn to the unique interaction of playing games with others.
The industry has seen tumultuous times over the past few years, and the fate of creatives now hangs in an eerie balance against the future of AI. Let’s meet here at Brunette Games and talk the talk as we walk the difficult walk out in the real world.
Looking to hire me for your next project?
I’d love to chat. Please reach out:
brunettegamesofficial[at]gmail[dot]com
Good to see a familiar face from high school.