Bringing Mae Flowers

I’ve been participating in NaNoWriMo for nearly a decade. 

Over the years, I wrote about NaNoWriMo on this blog. I first heard about this annual event in my creative writing class in high school. While the thought of writing an entire novel in a month felt daunting, the community aspect excited me. Writers from all around the world coming together to inspire and support each other- how could I resist that? Though I never managed to “win” at NaNoWriMo, I found a way to reestablish my love of writing. Now, I feel that I have to find a new way to do that. 

The Official NaNoWriMo Organization. 

It wasn’t until about 2 years ago that I learned that NaNoWriMo was an official organization with a website. At first, I was excited to hear about this, as their website had set up regions to help writers find each other in their local communities. For many, writing is a solitary activity. While many writers like the fact that writing is a deeply personal experience, it can also feel isolating. The ability to connect with like-minded people can help make you feel less alone. The website was offering a way to build the community, but the lack of oversight also left room for exploitation. 

Writing is an exercise in vulnerability. 

When we write, we mark our innermost thoughts and feelings on a page. Whether we are writing fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or plays- we cannot help but to leave traces of ourselves in each word. As a result, we cannot help but to become vulnerable about our writing. This is true as adults, but it is even more true when it comes it comes to children. 

I started writing as a child. 

I wrote my first poem when I was 12 and used writing as a form of therapy ever since. Many children and teens today still find solace in writing, and turn to the writing community for comfort and support they may not be able to find anywhere else. I won’t go into details on the grooming allegations connected to the teen division of the NaNoWriMo organization, but I will say this; to take advantage of the naivety of adolescents is disgusting, and to do so in a place where they are emotionally vulnerable is even worse. The fact that NaNo failed to take action against the abuser, and even tried to hush it up, was a huge breach of trust. 

Writers need our community more than ever. 

The future of writers and writing is growing murkier every year. Once a lucrative, or at least a sustainable career, writing has become little more than a hobby. Even the most talented and dedicated among us cannot pay the bills with a pen. Publishing opportunities are becoming more competitive, and the pay is getting worse. This pattern was already well established before AI took the world by storm a few years ago. The problem has only become worse with the fear of theft and replacement by bots.  How are we to survive with landscape alone?

No More NaNo?

One of the biggest, and best-known writing platforms destroyed itself in a year. From the grooming scandal in November of 2023, to their controversial stance on AI in September of 2024, NaNoWriMo has eroded all trust it had built over its decades-long history. As many of us had been participating in the event without ever knowing about the organization, this loss may not be felt. But for some, its end represents something bigger; the loss of a community.

The Future of the Writing is Uncertain.

Writing will always exist in some form or another, but what form it will take will shift with the times. Stories are an integral part of humanity and have always found a way to prevail through the millennia. Just as storytelling did not begin with the written word, neither will it disappear with changes in technology. As long as humans retain our humanity, wordcraft will survive with us. It’s up to writers to decide how our stories will be told.