The Work of Kyle Emmerson

Narrative Systems Designer · Writer · Photographer · Filmmaker

Kyle Emmerson

Ladysmith, BC

I’ve been building worlds since before I knew that was a job. Narrative design is where I live — the space where story architecture meets player agency, where lore becomes system, and where the question “what happens if…?” gets answered with intention.

Trained in Media Studies at Vancouver Island University, shaped by fifteen years of transmedia worldbuilding, and seasoned by the full stack of independent creative production — from directing short films to editing literary journals to building broadcast systems from scratch. I don’t just tell stories. I design the conditions in which stories become inevitable.

KYLE

Kyle Emmerson · Ladysmith, BC · 2026

"

I make things because stories are how we locate ourselves in the world — and someone has to build the maps. Every project I take on is an attempt to leave something behind that mattered: a character someone recognised themselves in, a world someone needed to exist, a system that made the impossible feel designed.

— Kyle Emmerson, on why he makes things

What I Do

Narrative Design as a Through-Line

Every discipline I work in is, at its core, a form of narrative design. When I build a UI system for a game, I’m asking: what story does this interface tell the player? When I shoot an editorial portrait, I’m asking what the image communicates before a single word is read. When I edit a short story, I’m tracing the architecture beneath the prose.

This is a methodology. Systems-level thinking about story is what separates a narrative designer from a writer who works in games. I understand dialogue trees, branching logic, environmental storytelling, and lore architecture not as isolated techniques, but as an interconnected craft that serves the player’s experience from first moment to final frame.

My independent project, Riftlight has been my proving ground for every one of these ideas. It’s where I’ve tested systems, broken them deliberately, and rebuilt them with better questions.

Narrative Design

Dialogue systems, lore architecture, world design, branching story logic

Primary

Creative Writing

Literary fiction, short story, novel development, screenwriting

core

UI / UX Design

Game UI systems, Figma prototyping, information hierarchy for players

core

Editorial

Story editing, literary journal production, script editing

core

Film & Media

Writing, direction, editing — short film and documentary

Supporting

Broadcast & Systems Design

Creative direction, overlay architecture, broadcast identity

Supporting

Photography

Editorial, fashion, book cover — RavensTale Creative

Supporting

Capabilities

Skills & Tools

Narrative Design
LVL 5
World & Lore Building
LVL 5
Dialogue Systems
LVL 4
Literary Fiction
LVL 4
Story / Script Editing
LVL 4
Screenwriting
LVL 4
XNode Dialogue Trees
LVL 3
UI / UX Design
LVL 4
Figma
LVL 4
Premiere Pro
LVL 4
Photoshop / Lightroom
LVL 4
Broadcast / OBS Design
LVL 4
After Effects
LVL 3
Unity (Game Engine)
LVL 3
WordPress / Elementor
LVL 5
HTML / CSS / JS
LVL 4
Obsidian (PKM)
LVL 4
Shopify
LVL 3
WebSocket Integration
LVL 3
Streamer.bot / C#
LVL 3
SEO & Content Strategy
LVL 3
Legendary (5/5)
Expert (4/5)
Skilled (3/5)
Trained (2/5)

Published & Produced Work

Credits

2026

Short Story · Featured Cover Work

"A Fine Mess" — Portal Magazine

Selected via blind judging for publication and featured cover placement in Portal Magazine’s 2026 issue. The story explores themes of personhood, consciousness, and the fine line between order and beautiful chaos — a seed that will grow into a larger novel.

Cover Feature

2026

Script Editor

"Plus One" — Portent Prize Winning Submission

Served as Script Editor for Brendan Wanderer’s Portent Prize-winning short story. Responsible for structural and narrative feedback across the editorial development process.

Prize Winner

2026

Interview & Review · Portal Magazine

Interview with tonia laird · Review of Seventhblade

Authored a feature interview with Canadian author tonia laird alongside a critical review of her novel Seventhblade, published in Portal Magazine 2026.

Editorial

2025

Short Documentary · Showcase Screening

"Scattered Syntax" — VIU Media Studies Showcase 2025

Writer, director, and editor. Screened at the Vancouver Island University Media Studies Showcase, 2025.

Documentary

2023

Short Film · Showcase Screening

"Wild Syndrome" — VIU Media Studies Showcase 2023

Writer, director, and editor. A science fiction short exploring emergent identity and biological otherness. Screened at the Vancouver Island University Media Studies Showcase, 2023.

Short Film

Curriculum Vitae

Experience & Education

Experience
2026 · Present Audio/Visual Editor & Script Editor Portal Magazine — Vancouver Island University

Responsible for audio/visual production and script editing for VIU's literary journal. Credits include a cover-featured short story selected by blind judging, editorial work on the Portent Prize-winning submission, and a feature interview with author tonia laird.

2023 · Present Founder & Creative Director RavensTale Creative — Ladysmith, BC

Independent photography and content studio specialising in editorial, fashion, and book cover photography. Experience directing models and dancers across a range of editorial and commercial contexts, including product photography.

Ongoing · Freelance Web Developer Independent — Shopify & WordPress

Freelance web development across Shopify and WordPress platforms, including storefront builds, Elementor Pro implementations, and custom CSS/JS work for independent clients.

Education

Bachelor of Arts — Media Studies

Vancouver Island University · Expected December 2026

Minor: Creative Writing. Focus areas include transmedia storytelling, digital media production, and narrative theory.

Digital Video Production [DIGI 280 (A+) & 281 (A)]

Social Media Marketing [MARK 360 (A+)]

Interactive Motion Media [DIGI 260 (A+)

Digital Photography [ARTS 244 (A-)]

Digital Audio [DIGI 270 (A+)]

Digital Media Senior Project [DIGI 496 (A+)]

UI/UX Design [ARTS 474 (Current Coursework)]

Genre Fiction [CREW 221 (A+)]

Screen & Stage Writing [CREW 140 (A+)]

Editing & Publishing [CREW 232 (A) & CREW 230 (A-)]

Game Studies [MEDI 265 (B+)]

Electives & Self-Taught Skills

WordPress Development (15 Years)

Unity Development (1 Year)

Interactive Fiction (5 Years)

Worldbuilding (20 Years)

Narrative Systems Design (5 Years)

3d Modeling [Blender] (2 Years)

Independent Work

Projects & IP