I’ve had almost a dozen fans ask me how they can write and publish unofficial Minecraft fanfiction books like I do. I’ve responded to most of them with a few tips and suggestions, but because I keep getting this question, I thought I’d write a blog post as a response. If you are one of my fans or if you are someone who knows nothing about Minecraft but wants to be a writer, I hope these tips will help you.
Just to be clear, these tips are about writing books not about publishing and selling them on Amazon or any other outlet. That is an entirely different topic.
Tip number 1: Read a lot
If you want to be a writer, I assume you’ve read a lot of books that have made you happy and have motivated you to become a writer. But, once you decide to become a writer, you should continue to read books.
It is vitally important to read books in the same or related genres as the genre in which you wish to write. Why? Because you can learn how to write a good book, learn common tropes, and learn what makes a good story in that genre.
So, if you want to write mystery novels, for example, make sure you read a lot of mystery novels. How many? It’s hard to say. I’d recommend a minimum of a dozen because then you can see what is common among the stories by different authors. You will also begin to see what each author does well and what each author can improve upon.
Tip number 2: Do Any Necessary Research
I write fanfiction books about the videogame Minecraft. In order to write these books, I must know the basics of playing Minecraft and how the various videogame characters behave. I have learned this several ways: (1) asking my children about the game; (2) playing the game; (3) reading wikis about the game; and (4) watching Minecraft Youtubers. Because my books contain a strong element of fantasy, the events in the books don’t have to match exactly what is possible or impossible in the videogame, but if you can make too many blatant mistakes, your readers will stop reading your books.
What research do you need to do in order to write the story you wish to write?
Tip number 3: Learn How YOU Write
A lot of writers will outline their books before they write them. They will know every single scene in the book, how it starts and ends, what the conflicts are, and how many chapters the book will have. Other authors will outline the basic plot in a couple of pages and then start writing. Still others might know how they want to start and end the book, but nothing else.
You need to learn which type of writer you are and embrace it.
When I first started writing fiction, I tried to outline each book in a lot of detail. I quickly realized that I could never figure out a story beyond the second or third chapter. For some reason, my brain is most creative while I am in the act of writing.
The continuum of authors is sometimes known as plotters to pantsers. A plotter is someone who outlines the story in various degrees of detail. A pantser is someone who writes by the seat-of-the-pants. If you’ve never heard that idiom before, it basically means someone who just does things without preparing.
I am almost a 100% panster. I usually know how I want the book to start and end, and sometimes an important scene that I want to happen during the book. Other than that, I just start writing and fill in the missing parts. It works for me.
I suggest that if you’ve never written a book before you try whatever way you think is best for you. If it turns out you are wrong, then try a different method. Don’t judge yourself too harshly if you pick the wrong method at first.
Tip number 4: Write a Short Book or Story First
I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was 12 or 13 years old. My desire to be a writer arose from my reading of countless fantasy novels, most of which were 300 pages long or longer. The first time I sat down to write a fantasy novel I was about 14 years old. I got 50 pages in and didn’t know what was going to happen next. I gave up in frustration. I told myself, “I guess you aren’t any good.”
Please know that if you have never written a book before, it is highly likely — almost a certainty — that you will run into dead ends. Some people can come up with stories without much effort, but for most people it’s hard work. But, the more you work at it, the easier it gets.
Therefore, I suggest you try to write a short book or story (say 5,000 to 10,000 words) for your first project. Maybe your first book will never be published, but it will give you the satisfaction of finishing a project.
A typical novel for adults is 70,000 to 90,000 words while a typical novel for a middle grade audience is 20,000 to 55,000 words. One of my typical Minecraft fanfiction books during the past year is between 15,000 and 30,000 words (though a few have exceeded 40,000), right in the middle grade sweet spot, but way too short for an adult audience.
But, when I first started writing my fanfiction, I was lucky to get 5,000 words. In fact, the stories I wrote back in 2015, when I first started publishing, were about 5,000 words each. These now seem very short to me, but at the time required a lot of effort.
Almost no one becomes a best-selling author overnight. If you do, congratulations! What you should aim for at the beginning is simply to complete a project. Decide if you want to publish it once it’s done. If you want to publish it, that’s fine. Whether you publish it or not, you probably learned a lot in the process of writing the book and your next one will be even better.
Tip number 5: Edit
The real work of writing, in my opinion, comes during the editing process. Even if you can write a 30,000- or 40,000-word novel in a week or two, chances are it won’t be perfect.
There will be parts of it where you wrote too many words. Delete them.
There will be parts where your description of a scene isn’t very clear. Rewrite it.
There will be places where you used the wrong character name or made a character say something that he or she never would have said. Fix it.
It’s very important to take editing seriously, especially with the first few books you write. It’s hard to be self-critical sometimes. You want to believe that everything you wrote is amazing. And maybe the ideas are, but the words themselves need help. If you can afford to hire an editor, this is ideal. But, if you cannot, then you need to take the time to edit your book very carefully.
When should you edit?
A lot of people will write the entire first draft of a book and then begin editing afterwards. If that works for you, then do it. I sometimes do that, but usually what I do is, I will write several chapters until I kind of feel like I’ve hit a place where I’m not quite sure what happens next or I’m just tired of writing. Then, I go back and edit what I have.
My process helps me in several ways. First, it means that when I do finally finish writing the book, I have already taken care of the most egregious errors. Then I just have to look for grammar and spelling mistakes for the most part. Second, editing during the writing process helps remind me what I’ve written. Sometimes, when I’m writing a book over days or weeks, I kind of forget what I’ve written since I don’t outline my books in any detail. Third, when I reread these chapters and edit them, I often come up with new ideas for plot events to happen in the rest of the book or I insert new scenes that I realize would be helpful for events that occur later in the book.
Trust yourself.
No one editing process is best. You have to decide what’s best for you. For example, I’ve heard about a writer who is extremely successful (like a million-dollars-per-year successful) who writes for about three hours every morning and then edits for about three hours in the afternoon. Because she writes so many books, she edits a different book in the afternoon than the one she is writing in the morning. I don’t think I could ever make her system work for me. But, it works for her. I wonder what will work for you?
Tip number 6: Don’t Give Up
Let’s say you have written a book and you publish it, you will likely get some bad reviews; it is just the nature of the game. But, always remember that this doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a bad writer, it just means maybe you’ve written the wrong book for your style or maybe you just need to practice a little more. Or, maybe the reviewer is wrong.
I’m sure if I’d published the short fantasy story I wrote when I was 14, not many people would’ve liked it. But now, I’m publishing books that a lot of people like. But many, many years have passed between the time I was 14 and today. I’ve also done a lot of writing since then for school, college, and work. I’ve practiced a lot.
So, even if you write some books that aren’t very good at the start, if you truly want to be a writer (either for a living or just for self-satisfaction), do not give up. Find as much time as you can and practice writing.
Tip number 7: Read Books about Writing and Creativity
I will admit that I need to do this more. However, I do have a few books to recommend. Most of these books should be available at your local library if you do not want to spend money on them.
Stephen King, On Writing
Dorthea Brande, Becoming a Writer
William Zinsser, On Writing Well
Steven Pressfield, The War of Art
Austin Kleon, Steal Like an Artist
I hope you found this article useful. If you’d like to get in touch with me, please send me a message via my Instagram or Facebook or Tweet at me. All are @drblockbooks.