Apprenticeships offered to write for Zombies, Run! game

Novelist and games designer Naomi Alderman is offering early-career writers traineeships to write for Zombies, Run!, a smartphone fitness game that boasts over 3m downloads and has attracted guest writers including Elizabeth Bear, Margaret Atwood and Joanne Harris. 

Alderman, who co-created the game with developer Six to Start and is its lead author, is looking to give two or three writers 25 days of training and mentoring over a six month period, from around February to August 2017. Training will include practising and receiving feedback on writing episode and radio scripts, storylining episodes, brainstorming story arcs, rewriting after constructive critical feedback and giving critique on other people's scripts. 

Successful applicants will receive £2,000, with "reasonable" travel and accommodation expenses covered, if needed, and be credited in the game as a "writing trainee". 

Quality writing should lead to continuing paid work on Zombies, Run!, according to the company.

The traineeship will give the writers the opportunity to be mentored by Alderman, whose latest novel, The Power, published in autumn with Viking. TV rights to the novel were snapped up following an 11-way auction and her debut, Disobedience (Penguin), is meanwhile being adapted for the silver screen, as produced by and starring Rachel Weisz.

Writers aged 18 and over from all over the world are encouraged to apply - particularly writers of colour and writers with disabilities, as "we're always looking to increase diversity in representation and in our staffing," said Alderman. Trainees, who will be able to work in either the London office or via Skype, will need to be available to teleconference during UK working hours, and travel to Israel may also be required.

Applications should be made to zombiesruntrainees@gmail.com including: a CV, a link to "any sort of" game they have created (even a board game) and one page of dialogue for the Zombies, Run! characters Phil and Zoe.

The deadline to apply is midnight on 31st January 2017.