Nanowrimo should not be judged by the loud douchebags. I've done it a few times and will be participating somewhat this year, and I can tell you it's an excellent way for people on a local level to get together and work on their writing and support each other and actually do productive things. The face of Nanowrimo is all the socially broken people who think it's a cute, edgy, LOL RANDOM lifestyle choice thing and end up writing Heroes fanfiction or some shit, and that's unfortunate, but they comprise a small percentage of the people who actually get involved.

I think that the concept is fine, and the charity work they do for kids is nice, but their forums are a cesspit; 13 year-olds making Chuck Norris jokes while 50 year-old wiccans write gay romance all while people unironically talk about shipping and slash.

Yeah, now that I think about it, the terrible people and the forums are really the only contact I've had with NaNoWriMo, until recently.

However, several members of my writing groups are participating this year, and they're talented individuals, dedicated to their craft.

Hell, I'll probably unofficially participate and lie about the month I started writing whatever it is that I produce, to avoid questions about NaNoWriMo.

It actually is pretty neat, but most people who participate do so as a creative exercise and just roll their eyes at the people who want to make it into its own insipid little fandom.

I can't wait to read this guy's novel and find out if Wario finally admits his hidden feelings to Chewbacca.

Unfortunately it does attract dilettantes who think writing is a fun lark yet also want the sort of recognition and perks they actually believe the average pro-author gets but without all the effort and work and people who write what is essentially either fanfiction with the names and numbers filed off or just straight up fanfiction.
Basically, the sort of sad losers and wannabes who lurk around the fringes of writing communities and the publishing industry, whose major accomplishments usually amount to putting some more money into the pockets of scumbag vanity press operators.

Hey, those so-called "scumbags" are doing a valuable service for people like me who appreciate really godawful crap art of any variety.

Also, a friend of my parents unironically emailed this to my father last week while I was up for a visit. His respect for her plummeted.

I guess because you can plug whatever sad obsession or horrifying fetish you have in there in place of "modern major general" and go to town.

I AM THE VERY MODEL OF A GUY WHO FAPS TO SPIDER-MAN SPECIFICALLY THE EPISODE IN WHICH HE RIDES AN ELEPHANT YES SPIDEY ON AN ELEPHANT CAN ALWAYS MAKE ME BLOW MY WAD
I DON'T KNOW WHY MY GIRLFRIEND LEFT ME AND MOVED BACK HOME TO CAPE COD

Nerds are nothing if not derivative. Once a couple nerds latch onto something, the others will follow en masse.

I AM THE VERY MODEL OF A SPERGLORD UNIMAINGATIVE