What do you do after leading one of the oldest guilds in World of Warcraft since... well, since World of Warcraft was young? You write a book detailing the proper way to run a guild. A dead-tree book. An honest to goodness physical thing. Called The Guild Leader's Handbook: Strategies and Guidance from a Battle-Scarred MMO Veteran, the book is an impressive collection of advice, strategy, and details about what it's like to lead a guild and what you have to know to be successful in the game.

What's even harder to believe is that the book is a compelling read, even if you're not interested in World of Warcraft. I have yet to install the game, but reading about how to organize a group of personalities, dole out loot in different circumstances, and deal with groups that are into heavy role-playing gives you insight into not only in guild management, but how to handle other relationships in the digital world. People take World of Warcraft seriously, and leading a successful guild is neither easy nor simple.

My initial reaction was to make light of a work of this complexity about an online game. Then I remembered that every month I get together with a group of guys and throw dice while pretending to be Dwarves and Elves. Once that's a regular part of your life, you lose the ability to look down your nose at just about anything. Besides, WoW carries a $15 per month charge; those who play with a guild and organize their play are certainly getting their money's worth.

From giving your guild an identity to determining what kind of guild you want and how you'd like to play, as well as detailed guides on how to organize and deal with the personalities and situations you may encounter, you can tell author Scott F. Andrews has been through some good (and bad) times in his history with the game. After writing the advice column "Officer's Quarters" for WoW.com, the Guild Leader's Handbook is the next logical step, and Andrews speaks with authority.

If you take online gaming seriously—almost too seriously—this is a great read. There is even a section dealing with addiction, substance abuse, and how to separate your real life and your virtual life. Even if you don't want to lead a guild, you'll learn something here.