A Summary of the allegations against Nanowrimo
A group of Rogue Writers have managed to assemble a list of the allegations that have come out against Nanowrimo in the last year, below.
PROTECT KIDS FROM NANOWRIMO
NaNoWriMo and its staff have recently come under fire for their numerous unethical and predatory practices. These include, though are not limited to:
Hostility and inaction after numerous members raised child grooming allegations against a volunteer moderator who was in charge of teens within the NaNoWriMo forums.
Headquarters took nearly 2 months to quietly remove the accused moderator's leadership powers, and over 5 months to remove their account… which they only did after this former moderator threatened to damage NaNoWriMo's contract with an affiliate.
Refusal to protect kids in the Young Writer’s Program from predators. Kids were instead bullied and silenced by the staff.
Ivan the Icy, a scavenger hunt game that featured a terrorist-styled “supervillain” (which they admitted was a mistake).
Local organizers (called MLs) not being background checked, yet required to host in-person events with kids present.
Harboring volunteer MLs who were reported as racist, homophobic, transphobic, and/or abusive.
Ignoring and silencing MLs who begged for help regarding serious issues within the volunteer program. This resulted in at least one participant suffering an event-related assault.
Inaction when MLs abused fellow MLs with bullying and ableist discrimination.
Promoting multiple Vanity Presses (predatory, scam-like publishers), including Inkitt, even after outside sources confirmed and announced they were predatory.
Solicitation via email for donations from kids in the Young Writer's Program.
Do you know of a school or classroom participating in NaNoWriMo through the Young Writers Program website? Please bring these issues to their attention.
If you donate to the NaNoWriMo organization, stop. There are plenty of other charitable organizations far more worthy of your monetary support.
Continue enjoying the November writing challenge WITHOUT the NaNoWriMo organization. Many authors and writing groups have written 50k words in 30 days without even being aware that the organization exists.
germansingergirl
blakekathryn
pixelskylines
prguitarman
titsay
