Making own DnD Book?

[MatrixStone93]

Hi, what should I do if I want to make my own DnD Book? Not a sourcebook, with races and characters and settings, but a guide for something like "Spectacular campaigns without having to be Epic" or "Many plot ideas" or "How to screw over a bad DM/That Guy" or something.

I've already chosen the online digital-download book site, and I've began writing the book. It's now about 20% finished. What do I need to do? Are there any copyright things I need to be wary of?

[KillianHawkeye]

Legal advice is not something we're allowed to give on this forum. If you need information about copyright law, consult a lawyer.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Leaving aside the copyright questions (which, at the very least, you should do your own research on; it's not a bad idea to start by researching "intellectual property" and the OGL), it's a good idea to look at the plethora of material out there. Engine Publishing (http://www.enginepublishing.com/) does a lot of these books--they focus heavily on general Game-mastering, not necessarily D&D. There's a few things to keep in mind.

Who is your audience? Is it players or GMs? People experienced with particular game systems or D&D veterans? Rookies or experienced players? Once you nail that down, you'll better understand how to arrange the book and what sorts of things need to go in it.

How do you cover your material? Part of writing a non-fiction book well is figuring out how to present your information: which parts do you group together into chapters, which bits do you separate? What order do you introduce your concepts in?

How accessible is your book? It's worth researching how people write instructional manuals, because having good advice and being able to teach people that advice are two different things. Plus, you also need to be entertaining, even in non-fiction.

It's also probably worth a stop by our Arts and Crafts (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?27-Arts-and-Crafts) board; there's a bunch of budding creative writers there who have experience giving feedback on writing. And make no mistake: this is definitely a creative writing project! :smallsmile:

Good luck in your writing!