Hallo meine Leiben!
We have some really exciting things coming up in the next week, but before all of that goes down, we want to take brief moment to let you get to know us a little better. For Part 1, we're doing a one-on-one with Katie. Next time we do this, we'll do a one-on-one with Juliana.
First off, who are you?
I’m Katie Beiter. By day I work an office job. By night, I am the co-creator of Guhuhu Games. I wear a lot of hats for Guhuhu–from writing, to programming, marketing, and project management. It's a lot to juggle, but I enjoy the challenge.
What do you like about visual novels?
Like a lot of people, I like anime and the aesthetic of Japanese pop art. I also like romantic stories, so naturally I was intrigued by otome games. I started playing them during the pandemic, and soon discovered that my friend Juliana also liked otome games. We bonded over that. There is something really appealing about experiencing a story where you as the reader have some control and input. Seeing all the different ways a story can go is so satisfying! And I love the way flirty dialogue can get your heart racing.
Why do you want to tell Lillian’s story?
Making Love & Country was really about creating the game that I wanted to play. I love historical drama and romance, and I wanted to see emotional conflicts that I could sink my teeth into. I searched for something to scratch that itch, but didn't quite find what I was looking for. When Juliana suggested we make our own visual novel, it felt like this tremendous opportunity. It was really important to me that Lillian have agency. I also wanted to tell a sex-positive story. It was fun thinking about what social conventions Lillian would follow and which ones she might break. World War 1 was also a fascinating period in history: so much was changing. The idea of governments leveraging espionage to fight wars was relatively new. People were still in the process of defining what spies did.
What is your writing process like?
Writing Love & Country has been a team effort. Usually it starts off with a discussion of where we want the story to go, then I try to figure out how to get from point A to point B. Juliana will follow behind me adding description and imagery and spicing up the dialogue. Sometimes if I get stuck, I’ll tag in Juliana, and she’ll do the same with me. The collaboration usually happens in real-time. We’ll work in the same document simultaneously, watching each other make edits and changes as we discuss them. Most people don’t think of writing as a group activity, but for us, it is.
How do you stay motivated?
Having a partner is a big help! There are many times where I’ve hit an obstacle that might have derailed the project or at least made me lose momentum had I been working alone. Having someone relying on you can force you to find solutions when you might otherwise get frustrated or stuck.
What has been the greatest challenge in creating 'Love and Country'?
Limiting the scope! When we came up with the idea for Love and Country, we had elaborate plans to have the player start by selecting a country and having multiple stories intertwined with each other. We quickly realized that was WAY too big, deciding to focus on a single character’s narrative. We also outlined multiple missions for Lillian, but again refined the story to focus on her first mission. Even with all of the revisions we made along the way, it still took us almost two years to put out the demo. I was spending a lot of time early on trying out things that didn’t work and teaching myself new skills. I had limited coding experience, so I was learning as I went. Now I have a slightly better idea of what I’m doing, so things move a little faster. We still want to tell the stories of the other missions and the other spies we dreamed up. Hopefully that’s something we get to do down the road.
Which love interest would you choose?
I do love them both! But if I had to choose…I think I’d pick Anton. He has lived a few lives and comes with a lot of baggage–who doesn’t by the time they hit 30? But he’s very devoted and loyal. I’m excited for people to see his different sides as the story continues.