Any Second Life aficionados out there who can help out a n00b?

I read that there’s a post-apocalyptic-themed community in Second Life called The Wastelands, and I’ve heard about authors doing in-game appearances to promote books, etc., so I thought I should look into setting up something like that for Wastelands. Problem is, I’ve never played Second Life, and I don’t really have time to figure it all out from scratch.

A little help?