by Lori Gaudet
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and should not be assumed to be those of the Guild.
Despite the problems that plagued the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) non-profit organization, resulting their demise earlier this year, many authors still find value in the concept behind it. This article is intended for those folks in order to provide some helpful information for writers looking for a replacement.
For those who don’t know the history of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), it started in July 1999, created by freelance writer Chris Baty, with 21 participants in the San Francisco Bay area. In 2000 the official website was launched and the event moved to November due to the more miserable weather that month. The Young Writers Program was added in 2005. The organization became a non-profit in 2006, and from there participants ballooned globally over the years. By 2020 they were carrying a six-figure debt. NaNoWriMo had grown to over 400,000 participants worldwide in 2022. They faced a significant drop in revenue in 2023, coinciding with the first of two serious controversies that plagued them in their final few years, contributing to their downfall. This controversy, centered on safety issues within their forums, forcing them to shut down their forums for a time. The second major controversy, on the question of AI use in writing, came the following year. After these unfortunate controversies and their ongoing financial difficulties, they announced their closing in March 2025, officially shutting down with a public notification April 2, 2025.
National Novel Writing Month was about more than the writing, it was about the community and a shared, daunting but potentially attainable, goal.
Embracing the Concept
The challenge – A self-owned and regulated challenge – to put your editing urges and self-doubts together in a dark corner, invigorate your muse, and unabashedly write 50,000 words in 30 days during the bleak month of November when the weather is (or in some cases already has) turning cold, days are growing shorter for those of us in this hemisphere, and we are on the cusp of the longer stretch of winter months, again in this hemisphere (perfect for editing!). P.s. while it’s winter here in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s summer in the Southern Hemisphere, i.e. Australia and New Zealand.
The community – What better for a bunch of introverts used to self-reflection and trying to convince ourselves we really can do it than a big beautiful community supporting us in such an awe-inspiring challenge? Despite the problems endemic to any large online community, there was also a great sense of belonging for many. For many that was the lifeblood of the 30-day writing challenge and is something that is sorely missed.
Do you still embrace the concept, even if you revile the organization that NaNo became? As a solitary effort or do you seek that lost sense of community and a shared experience?
The good news is that too many in the writing community embraced the power of a national novel writing month to liberate our muses and bring us together in a shared commitment and sense of community for it to just go away.
There are some organizations, community groups, and companies who sought to put out their own versions, no doubt in hopes of selling their programs or products. This is not an endorsement of any of these programs, but just a list of some options available for those who still want a novel writing month challenge. Use them at your own discretion and always do your research – especially when it comes to giving anyone money or your manuscripts.
I have not done thorough research or vetting of any of the below. Additionally, there are resources out there to help track your word counts. Some on the list below are more similar to NaNo’s feel, while others are not. (Sources: https://blog.reedsy.com/guide/nanowrimo/, https://vanillapapers.net/2025/04/01/nanowrimo-alternatives/)
4thewords has a defeat the monsters with words videogame feel and describes itself as a “vibrant game world for writers.” It features writing battles, sprints, and “multiplayer battles”.
AutoCrit’s Novel 90 Writing Challenge is one of them. The goal is to write a novel in 90 days. I see nothing about a minimum word goal. You can maybe get in late on their fall challenge for longer works (October 1 to December 31). This challenge repeats for February 1 to April 30 and June 1 to August 31. They have a variety of writing challenges. January 7 to 28, 2025 is their Start Strong Writing Challenge.
myWRiteClub is a new website for tracking your own writing goals and inviting friends to track each others’ goals together.
NoQuWRiMo dubs itself a “Novel Quest Writing Community” with a NaNo styled November writing challenge. They offer some resources and tools, as well as a year-round community.
Order of The Written Word November Challenge allows participants to choose their format, i.e. novel, short stories, poems, etc. This is an AI-free challenge being run on their Discord channel. Using AI-assisted program features will not be welcomed here.
Pathfinders Writing Collective is an open community with four customizable challenges through the year including March Madness (March), Scribble Swap (April-May), PaWriCo’s Bookish Bootcamp (June-July), and The PaWriCo Challenge (Nov-Jan).
ProWritingAid Novel November is one I list in spite of the backlash their sponsorship caused to NaNoWriMo. They mimic NaNo’s timeline and target of 50,000 words in 30 days and offer an online tracker like NaNo to help keep you on target. They do not appear to require you to buy or use their program for this challenge.
Reedsy Novel Sprint copies the NaNo timeline and target of 50,000 words, but unlike NaNo this one has cash prizes for those who win the judging contest and offers a potential introduction to a literary agent.
Shut Up & Write! doesn’t seem to have a specific competition goal, but it is a large online community with community-led events and challenges.
StoryADay is a month-long challenge geared towards shorter writing and provides daily writing prompts. The goal is to write a short story each day “or whatever “daily” means to you.” The next challenge starts November 1, 2025.
Word Anvil NovelEmber mimics NaNo’s timeline and target, but also allows you to set your own goal, and similarly offers a digital badge and printable certificate for those who are successful. They offer a few suggestions for those alternative goals.
Keep writing, my friends.
For a more detailed background on the fall of NaNoWriMo, see here.
I would love to hear about your experiences and feedback – good and bad – on any writing challenges you participated in this year.
