I’m reposting this from the Woolaston Writing Workshop Blog.

Yep, we should probably talk about this one…

Two days ago I received an email from a fellow writer who frequently visits this blog concerning NaNoWriMo. They didn’t know NaNo had shut down until they read a post on this blog, which prompted me to wonder: who else is unaware of this? So, let’s get into it.

What Was NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month, which takes place every November. It helps writers set a goal of reaching a certain amount of words, and focuses on quantity, not quality. The official NaNoWriMo website was run by a nonprofit, and it offered writers a community with resources, goal-setting tools, and ways to overcome writer’s block. NaNo itself has been around since 1999.

Why Did The Website Shut Down?

The nonprofit organization had a few issues. First of all, they’re a NONPROFIT organization, which means the sources of their funding came from donations and sponsorships, and sales of merchandise. Apparently they have had financial problems for years, and could no longer afford to operate.

Second, is the issue of child grooming. This is an allegation that was made against its Young Writers Program forums. Community members also reported issues concerning some of the volunteer moderators.

Third is the AI situation. There has been a sharp divide among writers when it comes to the use of AI in writing and publishing. Personally, I think if you use AI to write your entire book and then you name yourself as the author, you’re a bit of a fraud. However, many writers use AI tools to write some, and in some cases ALL, of their manuscripts. NaNoWriMo defended AI-assisted writing, and some members in the community didn’t agree with this.

If you Google why NaNoWriMo shut down, you’ll be hit with several articles on the reasons why. To me, this is very unfortunate, because the writing community always needs a safe space to communicate and share ideas, as well as have access to resources. The idea that volunteers in the Young Writers Program used the platform in an attempt to harm children and teens, is very offensive and disgusting. While it is a shame this organization is no longer available, there are a few alternatives.

Pacemaker

This is a popular tool for tracking your progress and setting goals.

MyWriteClub

This is a free platform that allows writers to track their progress and its similar to the old NaNoWriMo website.

Novlr

This is a writing tool with a word count and goal tracking, and it has a strong Discord community.

Discord

There are many Discord servers for writers, most of which offer support and community events.

Reddit

Didn’t see that coming, did ya? There are Subreddits for writers such as r/KeepWriting and r/writing, and they are great places for writers to connect.

At the end of the day, November is still November, and you can still work on your book and track your progress, with or without NaNo. Let’s all just hold each others hands and finish our books. It’s going to be okay. Keep writing, everyone.