Shar Simpson

Shar Simpson (they/she) is a narrative designer, author, and educator. They specialize in the crafting and mapping of compelling immersive stories and interactive experiences for all ages. Their work has presented at festivals internationally, including Tribeca, CPH:DOX, Slamdance, Mozilla Fest, SITGES, Cannes XR, and others.

Shar is also the founder of Thing Lab, a strategic creative studio that fuses scholarly depth with experimental play, grounded in rigor of research, speed of rapid prototyping, and the craft of Human–AI Collaboration. Shar currently teaches Digital Storytelling and World Building at Columbia University and the School of Visual Arts. Their classes focus on creative process, generative storytelling, and hands-on labs to jump-start collaboration and spark new ideas. Shar has taught intensive World Building workshops for Meow Wolf’s Experience Design team, Yale University, and others.

Their interactive novel “Eighth Grade Witch” was the first Choose Your Own Adventure book to be adapted into a graphic novel. Shar has a dual MFA in Creative Writing and Interactive Media from CalArts. Shar is a Sundance Storytelling Lab fellow, a resident of the POV Spark Lab, and a member of the Columbia University Digital Storytelling Lab.