A little about me;

Christopher "Dra8er" Hardy


I have been an avid gamer since I was very young. A child born in the 70's, I began gaming with my Atari 2600, I have 0wned every major console since. My addiction to PC gaming began in the early 80's and has become an obsession. I also love board and RPG games and always go out of my way to play them. I am a big Dungeons & Dragons RPG gamer to this day & have been published several times. I play every PC & Console game I can get my hands on.

My Story

I've been writing my whole life -- ever since I was old enough to dictate stories to my mom so she could write them down.

When I was in sixth grade, my uncle Mark introduced me to the then-current Dungeons & Dragons game. I never looked back.

I continued writing throughout elementary school, High School, and college. Even in my later years I would always be doodling something about my campaign world. I ran campaigns for group of friends off and on over the next decade.

In the spring of 1999, I submitted a Dungeons & Dragons adventure I had written for my own group, "of Skulls & Scrapefoot Green?," to Dungeon magazine. They accepted it. They also paid me generously for the article. Afterward, I thought, "Hey, that was cool. I wonder who else will pay me for writing game stuff?"

I then submitted a cover letter, resume, and writing samples to every role-playing game company I could find on the Internet. This was at the beginning of the d20 boom -- when Wizards of the Coast released the core Dungeons & Dragons rules mechanics for other companies to use for free -- so plenty of companies were out there.

My strategy worked. My first project was for Necromancer Games; my second was for Privateer Press. After that, things just went up. Now I'm a part/full-time freelance writer, editor, game designer, and game developer. I write freelance for various companies both large and small. Since then I have taken my love affair hobby with video games and branched out into the realm of video games, they need good story development as well. I have become involved in all aspects of product development, write timely reviews and articles for a couple of newspapers, magazines, and online media sources. As well as dabble in PC hardware and software.

Design Philosophy

I took game design at a college called Full Sail in for a year and a half. (I quit to be a full time writer and game developer.)

My Philosophy: All games (with the exception of solitary games) are excuses for people to get together and engage in a common activity.

Advice

Nascent writers and/or game designers often ask me for advice. To those who are interested in becoming professional writers and/or game designers, I say: Great! Good luck. The world needs more talented people in those areas, and if you have some talent, you should be able to break in.


If you are looking to break into the multi billion dollar video game industry my advice to you is get some education, be very active in the game communities and all circles related. Do small projects for free (at first), you want to get your name associated with products to get some credit

Interests

When I'm not working, I like to game competitively online. I belong to a Semi-Pro gaming clan. I spend hours every week practicing with my clan and competing in tournaments. I surf the web, watch movies and spend quality time with my family.

Favorite Games: Currently OVERLORD -XB360, Battlefield 2, Battlefield 2142, CS:S, Magic the Gathering, Oblivion, Gears of War, ALL NINJA BEE GAMES!!!

Favorite Books: The Death Gate Cycle - by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

Musical Influences: The older heavy stuff, Iron Maiden

Favorite TV: New Battlestar Galactica Series, Blade: The Series. Loved the A-Team & Buck Rogers, Robotech Series, G-Force Battle of the Planets!!!

Favorite Movies: Highlander, Blade Trilogy, Ninja Scroll, Vampire Hunter D

Favorite Food: Country Fried Steak & Sausage Gravy