Turning Fanfiction to a Book

After I signed up for NaNoWriMo, I ruminated over what kind of novel should I write. One option I considered was turning a fanfic into an original story. That got me thinking: what if I turned a fanfic to an original story and published it?

It’s been done before. Fifty Shades of Grey is probably the most well-known example. I know of two other fanfic writers who rewrote their fanfic and self-published them as original novels. They’re not as well known as the story I’ve mentioned, but both authors have solid reputations as good writers. I’ve purchased You Buy Bones, a Canon!Sherlock Holmes fanfic turned published book, because I loved the fanfic so much. A brief Internet search produced more examples:

Seeing as it’s been done before, I asked myself the question: What would the effort of turning a fanfiction to a book entail? (more…)