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NaNoWriMo Alternatives
Wanting to do a November challenge without NaNoWriMo? You have plenty of options!
November 1 is next Friday. Normally that means that many writers and creatives are preparing for an annual challenge: write 50,000 words in one month. That’s because November is National Novel Writing Month, a challenge supported by the organization of the same name. People come to write-ins, throw kickoff parties, and more.
Just one thing: NaNoWrimo’s official website and organization is not ready for NaNoWriMo. They have talked about Preptober, when people (in October) plan to enter the fray and do outlining for novels or schedule in time to write 2,000 words a day, but there isn’t anything of the sort this year. All of the posts from NaNoWrimo are either posts from sponsors, reduxes from authors past, or FAQ that shuts down any signs of disagreement. Asking questions on the NaNoWriMo Facebook page will likely get you banned and the questions deleted.
I’ve gone into the reasons why NaNoWriMo’s previous board of directors and most of their staff have left, and how the volunteers were cut and the remaining director Kilby Blades has drawn ire by supporting generative AI and doubling down despite sponsors and authors leaving. The truth has disillusioned many writers, volunteers, and participants. And Kilby keeps digging…
