Make it your goal to produce a near-publication quality manuscript in the November 2015 NaNoWriMo contest

If you're going into the 2015 NaNoWriMo contest with the notion that you will meet the contest’s worthy expectations of creating 50,000 words, that's a terrific objective in itself. But wouldn’t you rather shoot for mega-terrific? Wouldn't you like to aim higher? I suggest you set yourself the highest possible goal for a fiction writer — to get those words published as a novel once the contest ends November 30.

This is not to put the knock on NaNoWriMo. Far from it. NaNoWriMo is a nonprofit. It aims to inspire writers to become published authors. It gives writers the platform and the community to do so. Writing programs just don’t get much more praiseworthy than that.

So this is a no-knock article. This brainstorm is just me encouraging you to aim for the stars — in the next galaxy of fiction writing — a simple three-step strategic vision, full of practical learning possibilities that will help you focus and direct your NaNoWriMo contest entry into another world, that of the published novel.

The clock is ticking on two of my strategies. So let’s get started, shall we?

The Three Strategies

One, register for HWWF 2015, the best short writing course EVAH, the internationally acclaimed University of Iowa free online course, How Writers Write Fiction 2015. Did I mention it's free?

But that clock ticks—HWWF opens Sep. 24.

Two, kick off NaNoWriMo by churning words for your novel — meaningful, magical words by using the strategies in this and subsequent articles. Tick-tock goes the clock on that one, too, deadline Nov. 1.

Three, submit to Kindle Scout for a chance to get your NaNoWriMo tour de force published.

Let's look at each of these three strategies in detail. For starters, I quote Stephen Covey’s first of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: “Begin with the end in mind.” So . . . "

Strategy — Check out the Kindle Scout program first

1. Visit the Kindle Scout link: How it Works for Authors.

2. See whether your novel fits the genres Amazon seeks to publish. At this writing they are: Romance, Mystery & Thriller, Science Fiction & fantasy, Teen & Young Adult, and Literature & Fiction.

If your proposed NaNoWriMo project falls within those genres, great. Even if your intended novel doesn't fall into those genres . . .

3. Consider whether you can tweak your proposed NaNoWriMo entry to make it eligible for Scout. Why?

Simple. Amazon, runs the most sophisticated database in the world for identifying reader tastes and trends. If they want more romances, readers are driving the demand. Take that to the bank.

Bonus strategy. The minimum word count for the Kindle Scout submission is 50,000 words’s, same as the NaNoWriMo goal. Lovely coincidence, eh?

Strategy — Sign up for How Writers Write Fiction 2015

At least take a look at the course description at this HWWF 2015 link. You’ll find it invaluable.

I participated in the 2014 course, and I found it remarkably helpful, even as an experienced writer, editor, and published author in both fiction and nonfiction.

I went in thinking I needed to have the course moderators read my work and put it up for public discussion to learn the most. I was wrong.

Some of the best examples of criticism came from the writing community members who evaluated my work. These are writers and editors from all over the world. If they look at your writing assignments and make specific comments, imagine how valuable that can be to you. But there's more.

Assignments from the last course included writing first lines, integrating character and setting, revision and editing, and a lot more.

Think about this as a NaNoWriMo preparation tactic. You’d create and submit trial segments of your National Novel Writing Month contest entry. Almost immediately you would get community commentary and critique. Those comments could help you shape the direction you take toward the eventual Kindle Scout program.

I used that strategy with my completed, unpublished novel, Prison of the Soul. I knew the manuscript was flawed, but couldn’t figure out how to fix it. Until I began to submit revised samples of the manuscript as HWWF 2014 assignments.

The writing community told me the many ways I could improve Prison. I took their advice, the kind and the harsh. The book now lives on Amazon.com, a far better product than it was before I took it to the Iowa course.

Strategy — Register for National Novel Writing Month 2015

The word I have from the site staff that registration opens in October. You can visit the NaNoWriMo site early to learn from many of the helpful articles there as you get ready to enter NaNoWriMo once the clock trips over midnight Halloween. (What a bewitching time to open a contest, huh?)

Full Disclosure

If you explore the websites I’ve given you, you’ll discover some huge advantages to adopting my strategies for NaNoWriMo. But you will also find several disadvantages to taking my advice. To list just a couple . . .

Yes, the HWWF 2015, begins long before the NaNoWriMo, on Sep. 24, but it also runs to Nov. 24, overlapping your need to churn contest output by 24 days.

And, yes, Kindle doesn’t pay you a boatload of money if readers nominate it for publication, only $1,500. And Amazon will cling to your rights if you’re successful.

You may find other disadvantages, and I’d be pleased to hear about them and address them in the next few articles in this series, thank you.

Stay tuned. My next piece expands on that Kindle Scout Strategy, because I have three or four bits of genius that will light a fire in your imagination.

For now, think about the three strategies and what they can do for you. Instead of just sitting at the keyboard churning text, you’ll be able to write with a greater focus, and with some free advance criticism from a terrific writing community in the Iowa course and the goal of producing a novel that Amazon wants.