TNT 2025: More Info!

We come to you today with two big things — a revision to the schedule for the kickoff event and the full details of this year’s MonsterQuest challenge.

Kickoff Celebration

First, the kickoff party, originally planned for October 25, has to be moved to Saturday, October 11. Our venue — the Allendale Township Library — had a soft hold on the 25th for a different event, which allowed us to book it only for it to be manually declined later. We had preferred to avoid the 11th, given that it’s the GRRWG conference, but we had no other alternative in the month of October.

So, mark your calendars: Kickoff for TNT 2025 is Saturday, October 11, from 2p to 3:30p at Allendale Township Library. As we get closer to TNT, we’ll release a full schedule with RSVP links.

MonsterQuest Challenge

Our MonsterQuest program this year brings a new spin on a familiar theme. In the past, we operated on a pole-position framework: He or she with the most points, wins. That approach was great for the highly competitive, but not so great for folks who wanted to challenge themselves in more modest fashion. So the program is changing!

For 2025, we’re operating on a gold/silver/bronze approach. Many people can occupy a metal level; there’s no reason we can’t have 25 gold winners, for example.

Here’s how it works:

  • There are a maximum of 120 points available across six categories.
  • To earn Gold, achieve at last 90 points. To earn Silver, achieve at least 70 points. To earn Bronze, achieve at least 50 points.
  • All winners will be listed on a plaque, which will be permanently mounted at Jason’s Books & Coffee. Plus, you’ll receive a certificate, which we will deliver at a post-TNT celebration in the new year, and a button announcing your success!

How do you earn points?

The point system is intended to offer many different ways to achieve different winning levels, like a choose-your-own-adventure story. We want it to be easy to obtain bronze but hard to obtain gold, so you can set your “game difficulty” to the level you want. We’re also introducing a finance cluster, but you can achieve any metal level without contributing, and as always, all of our programs operate on a donation-only basis with no mandatory fees or hidden costs.

Writing Cluster (50 points total):

  • Consistency: 1 point every day you are at or above par, as recorded in TrackBear. 30 points max.
  • Overachieving: 1 extra point (max 5 points) for every 5,000 words above 50,000 you write.
  • Winning: 10 points for hitting 50,000 words.
  • Losing with Grace: 5 points for not winning, but posting a brief reflection on your experience on the Discord server.
  • Building a Cushion: 5 points for recording a cushion of at least 5,000 words above par, in TrackBear.

Social Cluster (25 points total):

  • Attend kickoff — 5 points.
  • Attend DoKN — 5 points.
  • Attend at least one in-person write-in during November: 5 points.
  • Visit an author at an event (e.g., Comic Con) and provide proof: 1 point each, max 5 points. If you are the author and someone offers proof they met with you, you (the author, and presumably your chickens) get 5 points automagically.
  • Post an intro on Discord in the period 10/15 to 11/1 — 2 points.
  • Post on Discord that you used the prompt of the day — 2 points, obtainable once.
  • Participate in a virtual sprint on Discord — 1 point, obtainable once.

Service Cluster (20 points total):

  • Host an in-person write-in or approved event: 10 points, provided you attend all of the write-ins you host. Note that in-person hosts must be background-checked and approved, as per the policies of the Lakeshore Literary Foundation.
  • Host a virtual write-in: 5 points, provided you attend all of the write-ins you host.
  • Post the TNT flyer at libraries or cafes: 1 point each, max 5 points, provided proof of posting is shared.

Creative Dreaming Cluster (10 points total):

  • Post a character sketch of one of your POV characters, of at least 500 words, on Discord — 3 points, obtainable once.
  • Post a marketing pitch about your novel on Discord — 3 points, obtainable once.
  • Post your novel’s cover on Discord — 2 points, obtainable once.
  • Post a playlist about your novel or a character — 2 points, obtainable once.

Financial Stewardship Cluster (10 points total):

  • Donate during the period 10/1 to 11/30 — 1 point for every $10 donated, maximum 6 points. Donations include registrations to events. Donations received for events like the Fall Writers’ Conference are counted if they were received before October.
  • Contribute an item to the silent auction — 1 to 4 points (4 points max) depending on the relative value of the item as calculated by the Weasel Wranglers.
  • Win a bid at the silent auction — 2 points, obtainable once.

Wrangler Bonus (5 points total):

  • The Weasel Wranglers can award up to 5 points total per participant for going above-and-beyond in some special way. These are honorary points and are hard to get.

This means there are various ways to victory. For example, if you write every day so that you meet or exceed daily par values, and you come to DoKN and achieve a 5k cushion, you automatically get bronze. Just by writing!

We hope this approach empowers more people to use this program to stay on track with their TNT goals. And monitoring progress will be even easier than ever; we’ve set up a special email address (points at wmauthors.net) that go to Jason and Emma. Emma (chrys_anthem_um on Discord) will be the official recording secretary this year, so you aren’t left to flap in the breeze of Jason’s out-of-control task list.

We’re excited for TNT this year. Stay tuned for more information in September!