A crafter of stories
Teen author Sean Fay Wolfe turns video game Minecraft into a book series.
THE main appeal of the video game Minecraft is that it gives you unbridled access to the power of creation. By breaking and placing blocks, you can make entire worlds; players have built wonders ranging from models of the Taj Mahal and the world of Westeros from Game OfThrones, to an actual working 16- bit computer.
American teenager Sean Fay Wolfe also has created something in the world of Minecraft, though not in the form you’d expect. Several years ago, he wrote an adventure story set in the game world, self- publishing it on Amazon in 2014.
In most cases, that would be the end of the story. However, Wolfe’s work, Quest For Justice, garnered good reviews, and proved popular – so much so that it caught the attention of publisher HarperCollins, which offered to buy and republish it in print.
“I honestly still think I might be dreaming,” said Wolfe, 18, when contacted via e- mail. “I was utterly amazed when HarperCollins offered me a deal, and I still don’t think it’s totally hit me yet. Nonetheless, I’m amazed and grateful, and I’m going to do my best to parlay thisseries into a full- time writing career.”
Now who says playing video games isa waste of time?
Minecraft, for those unfamiliar, is a popular independent video game created by Swedish programmer Markus “Notch” Persson, and developed and published by Swedish company Mojang in 2011. It allows you to build constructions out of textured cubes in a 3D- generated world. Think of it as something like playing with LEGO blocks in an online fantasy adventure.
The game haswon numerous awards, and isthe best- selling PC game to date, aswell asthe third best- selling video game of all time.
Wolfe’sThe Elementia Chronicles # 1: Quest For Justice – An Unofficial Minecraft Fan Adventure was released by HarperCollinsin July. It isthe first book in a trilogy, and will be followed by The New Order ( out next month) and Herobrine’s Message ( scheduled for February).
Quest For Justice tellsthe tale of three new players, Stan, Kat and Charlie, who arrive on Minecraft’s Elementia server in a time of peril. The server’styrannical ruler, King Kev, haspassed a new rule that all new playerswill be banished by the next Proclamation Day.
Stan and hisfriendsmust therefore band together and oppose the natural forcesof Minecraft, while leading a revolution against King Kev. Along the way, they encounter many allies, aswell asenemiessuch asthe mysteriousMr A.
Many game elementsappear in the book, from Armor Crafting to confrontationswith an Ender Dragon, in a thrilling adventure that will especially delight young readersand fansof the game.
According to Wolfe, he wasintroduced to the game towardsthe end of 2011 by a friend. The young author soon became hooked, and realised itsvirtual world wasa great place to set a story.
“Minecraft isone of my favourite video games, because of itsamazing replay value and the sheer amount of thingsyou can do. It’sa game that combinesaction- adventure with creative expression, and I love both of those things,” Wolfe said.
His greatest challenge in creating the world of The Elementia Chronicles, however, wasstaying true to the gameplay while keeping a sense of realism and excitement for his readers.
“Take the fighting, for example. In regular Minecraft, there is no technique for fighting – you just hit your opponent with your weapon as quickly as you can. You can also block, but that’s only for swords,” Wolfe said.
“However, in The Elementia Chronicles, I made it so that sword- fighting is as complex and intricate as it is in real life, where you can cut, block, jab, parry, and all sorts of other things. It’s a difficult balance.”
While Quest For Justice contains many fascinating characters, Wolfe said some of the secondary characters were his favourite ones to write about. One in particular was DZ, a nomad the main characters meet in the desert.
“He’s a champion of the Minecraft fan- made mini- game Spleef, who left the server’s capital, Element City, when he lost faith in the goodness of the players in Elementia. He’s an offbeat and quirky character, who often blurs the line between genius and insanity. This iswhy DZ was an absolute joy to write,” Wolfe said.
“A close second isOob, an NPC ( non- player- character) Villager. He’s innocent, loyal, kind and brave, but also incredibly stupid just like the NPC Villagers in the real game.”
For those thinking Wolfe is a stereotypical geek who only plays computer games all day, nothing could be further from the truth. The young man is an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America, a fivetime all- state musician, has a black belt in Shidokan karate, and has created many popular online games in the Scratch programme environment.
All this, and he just graduated from high school in June! According to Wolfe, he would be attending the University of Northumberland this month.
“My major is currently undeclared, but I’m interested in several fields, including computer programming and elementary education. However, my ultimate goal is to be able to write full- time,” Wolfe said.
“I’ve always enjoyed writing, for as long as I can remember. Back in Elementary School, I would write short stories in the back of my notebooks just for fun.”
Asked about his plans for the future, Wolfe said he had many ideas for more books in The Elementia Chronicles, which he would write if enough people want him to.
“Beyond the Minecraft books, I’ve already started work on a new children’sseries, as well as a standalone young adult novel. I have countless other ideas acrossmany genres and many different age groups. I’m eager to write them all!”