Well… I’ve been writing on Episode for over a year now, and whether you speed up or not depends on how you write.
To be honest, when I saw starting out, I was really fast at writing because I spend about two to four months extensively planning and researching my story (I’d read through all the guides, read Episode stories to get used to the layout, look at background and art catalogues). I was also really inspired, had plenty of time, and felt happy and all, so I wrote really fast (I managed to write an episode in around 8 hours!).
But, as I’ve grown as an author, I’ve slowed down a bit. Because I already knew my whole story plot, and because I’m a narrative/descriptive author outside of Episode, the advanced spot directing and things like that would irritate me, and I’d procrastinate and take ages to write. I also had a lot less time, and was trying to improve my branching and directing.
Right now though, I’m faster than I was a few months ago. Not as fast as I first was, but I’ve learnt to accept that, and the quality of my episodes is significantly better, so I can deal with that. Overall, I’d say it depends on the person, but usually, once you get into it, and you’re feeling motivated, I can confidently say that you should expect to write faster than when you’re initially doubting yourself and going very slowly (we’ve all been there).
My best advice, if you want to speed up, is plan things out as much as you can. Dream about your characters, your story, and be inspired. But also don’t be afraid to change things. One of the reasons I slowed down writing is because I already knew exactly what was going to happen, I just had to write it. So, keep changing things, don’t be afraid to come up with new ideas and plot twists. My second tip would be, make sure you know the Advanced Directing Guides really well. Lastly, stay inspired in terms of directing. Directing will only take ages if you want it to. Try and read Episode stories with great directing to give you ideas, and if you need to, limit yourself - only have, say, a maximum of three advanced spot directing scenes per episode. Don’t be afraid to start a new project too, or to step away from the portal and take a break for a few weeks, Don’t push things, just go with it, and do your best. Just imagine the satisfaction and pride at publishing an amazing story! It’s all worth it in the end, when you get cute fanmails and sweet DMs and you meet fantastic people, so don’t give up! xx