Buddha And The Slut

I've been a game writer and interactive narrative guy, in some capacity or another, since 1997.  23 YEARS. Let that sink in for a minute. And even with all of that storytelling experience, heaps of professional accolades, high-level game writer recommendations, and some acclaimed self-created indie projects? I still get asked, more often than not these days, to do a test story or provide an exclusive 'sample' for game writer gigs. Seriously.  In this age of Covid-19 and the (re)rise of remote work? I've been batting .500 on these 'auditions', which ain't bad. Especially when said gig ends up being fun, creatively challenging, and networking boon, and wallet steroids. But that still means that there were a handful of game writer jobs I applied for and didn't hit the bullseye. Ones where — after the headhunter or studio HR got my CV and reviewed my past work samples and learned of my (modest but fair?) salary expectations — I was asked to spend 1-2 weeks on a game writer 'assessment'. A test that would most cer