How to pick the right person for your project?

[southridge]

The most obvious reason is to ask for a sample but it doesn't seem to be enough.

I have met writers who have put out some decent work but once they start on your project... Well, they kinda suck.
It's not just them. In my experience, I have met artists who have mediocre art but with some "direction" they can really surprise you with some good quality stuff.
That is why I find that a sample is not always an accurate representation of a person's skill.

I thought that it might be my lack of guidance so I tried to be a better lead. I spent a lot of time making a summary that is as detailed as I can.
I even wrote a character page with descriptions and some sample dialogue on how each character speaks but for some reason it all went unheeded.
I've had people who try to change the story's endings to satisfy their own emotional needs and those who added characters that didn't even exist in the summary that I wrote.
Bottom line: They butchered the story despite the resources available to them.

Yes, I hired the wrong person(s) here in lemma soft and it is time to get rid of them but It would be nice to avoid the situation in the first place so I don't waste my time.
In the future I might decide to hire a writer again but this time how can I tell which person is right for me?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[firecat]

You need someone who agrees with your project not just editing but overall story and gameplay. I have meet with many artist and coders who did not read my summary or general ideas for my game. This is one sign that tells you that they do not care about the project but rather the money. Another example of how to find them is the amount of time they put effort on their reply post, too much info might have been copy & paste, minimum information is just right, and one liners or links are signs of a bad person to hire. Other than that, do your research on them. If anything looks funny reserch them or ask questions.

Remember you're the boss, anyone who owns the money is the boss.

[fleet]

Ask for references (persons that have worked with the potential partner), then contact those references.

[Ran08]

Hmm. For me, I think it all boils down to trial and error. Seriously.

Before I explain further, haha, let's first give your writer/s the benefit of a doubt. As a writer myself who occasionally does commissioned works, I understand perfectly well just how important it is for the client and the writer to match, so I always do my best to match my client's likes (and I'm pretty sure all writers do this, too!) But I also know that it doesn't always work out, nope.

Honestly, I've always looked at partnerships or groups like real-life relationships. Sure, maybe you weren't satisfied with your writer's work. But you know, perhaps he had already tried his best? Perhaps he had already done everything he could in order to you? If after all that, and you still don't like their work... well.

To put it simply, maybe your writer/s didn't suck. Maybe you guys just didn't match. After all, everyone has different styles, preferences, etc.

And same as with real-life relationships, you guys also have to meet halfway, sometimes. Of course, if you're hiring them, they should expect a lot smaller degree of freedom as compared to collaborations, though. If you're strict, the best way would be to ask for a custom sample beforehand.

Unfortunately, there really is no way of knowing if you match other than to test it out... just like in real-life relationships. Right? Sometimes it works out... sometimes it doesn't, but you'll never really know if you don't try.

Wish you the best of luck and I hope you find your match soon!

[YossarianIII]

Eh, I write my own stuff and sometimes I still look back on it and go "Dude, what was this writer even thinking?"

Building a relationship with a writer who shares similar goals and is receptive to criticism is probably the best way to go. Like Ran08 said, it's less about finding a writer who is "objectively" good, and more about finding someone who meshes with your own personal vision. And if you know you have a good writer, part of it will be giving them the leeway to make their own decisions and adapting your own vision to mesh with theirs, when appropriate.

[SexBomb]

Pick somebody who is passionate about your project; and with whom you can open a real dialogue. Nobody is going to be as passionate as you of course, but if a writer/editor/artist does not feel some kind of emotional connection to the material they will have a difficult time producing quality work regardless of how good they are.

I suggest holding a basic conversation with any potential persons before making a hiring selection. Ask them for feedback on your project; see if they are already brewing ideas, if they are engaged in speaking about the material, and subtly-but-kindly, test whether they've actually looked at your proposal (i.e. "did you get a chance to look at Isaac's backstory? What do you think?"). If they can't seem to come up with any good answers/ideas, or simply don't know the material, it is probably better to move on.

Some other people bring up other awesome points here: definitely ask for references, or at least take a look at some of the other projects they've worked on. Hiring a newbie is fine, but they should have the portfolio to back it up. Also, make sure you as a developer have made your material interesting to read for any and all potential hires. You WANT to attract them, not frighten them off with walls of text and page after page of unimportant info.

I have never actually hired someone for a project, but as a commissionable artist, I do my best to make sure developers and I are on good terms, and that I am engaged by their project. Sometimes I am simply not a good fit, either because I do not have much experience in the genre or because I am not interested in the material; and know I won't perform at my best. I know many people here are hard-pressed for work, but a good partner is someone that knows their limits and won't accept work they know they can't do/are not interested in. Just giving my two cents from the other side. Best of luck!

[Mammon]

Let me give the view from the other side of the fence: The writer who'll be trying to write that story. Although I haven't really written out any solid scenes yet except for a sample of what I could do with the characters, I have been in preproduction for adding a section of a tale to a larger story with a pretty well-defined lore and character cast. Because the sprites and BG's are already made I cannot just add whomever and whatever I want and the manager has strong ideas for her story as well. Personally I enjoy the debates that will result in a better story over the producer saying 'Hey, here's the story I want. Make it.' and me saying 'Kay. I'll probably misunderstand you on several details though'. However, I can also understand this not working at all for other people, even if it's just because of deadlines, time restraints and waiting for replies.

BTW not going to mention names or the project just to be on the safe side.

Things that make me feel like I can deliver upon her wishes and expectations are the following things:
-While having strong convictions of what she wants, she doesn't stonewall my ideas or give me one possible story without being able to add anything of my own. Rather, she gave me the basic tools for a story and a few ideas that I could expand upon. If you were to choke your writer with a very linear range of what they're allowed to do without impeding on your vision, you may expect their story to become bland and unimaginative.
-She encourages some ideas I have, rather than just veto'ing everything and condoning the few things that are fine.
-There is a mutual mood of respect. (It's in third place but it's the most important point)
-Quick response time and actual dialogue rather than either of us just saying yes/no.
-A clear and organised idea of what I have to deliver, how many words, how many chapters/scenes, etc.

One of the biggest hurdles we had however, was that there were some misunderstandings that neither of us really knew the other didn't understand. This was resolved once she send me a different story that was already written out, and I saw that I completely misjudged the episode system and the amount of interactivity in it. It's something neither of us thought of as the source of some discussion because we both thought we were clear on this.
Moral of the story: Being clear on what you want, that's very important. And I don't mean descriptive and restrictive, I mean make sure that they know what you mean and what you want. A writer isn't psychic and won't know something you never told them. And there will always be some things you haven't told them or explained them in an insufficient way, it's inevitable. But you can try to minimise this by putting yourself in their shoes and saying: Do I understand what this guy/gall wants? Or even better, showing it to a friend and seeing if they get what you want.

[guzy]

90% of the writers are meh
90% of what a good writer writes is meh

so statistically what you really need is luck