NaNoWriMo Board of Directors step in after child grooming alligations against staff.

Beginning around November 15th, some allegations came to light for the NaNoWriMo community that the grooming of minors by a particular forum moderator, now dubbed Moderator X, had taken place within the Young Writers Program. While there are some time frame issues it seems the board of directors stepped in rather quickly once they were knowledgeable of the claims and temporarily shut down the forums before reopening them and moderating the forums themselves.

It appears that Moderator X had direct and unchecked access to the teens of this program as it was never regulated by any other adults. The teens themselves took to their own website to discuss the abuse and eventually eleven other NaNoWriMo users informed the staff at headquarters. This happened back in May 2023. Headquarters simply denied the allegations even though there was sufficient documentation and some members have reported that any discussion on the topic led to their being silenced, deleted, and essentially shadow banned for months.

When the board of directors stepped in on November 7th, they reviewed a four-page document noting that Moderator X had “already been identified as problematic” which also outlined earlier concerns about Moderator X. It is unknown how long the staff has known of Moderator X’s misconduct. Despite the staff being knowledgeable of this behavior, Moderator X was not removed, no safety measures were put in place, and their behavior on forums began to deteriorate during the following weeks. It wasn’t until six weeks later that the moderator was removed for unrelated violations. After this time, Moderator X used various alternates to continue to communicate with the teens of the Young Writers Program.

While there has been some language from the board of directors that give us pause, it should be understood that the board members are not paid for their work. They are regular Joes just like most of us who have our own hobbies, jobs, and families. And while a call for the dismissal of any staff involved has been voiced the board must adhere to US labor laws. I do hope that over the coming months we receive honesty, transparency, and action from the organization that many of us have held dear. Without this institution, many novels would have gone unwritten, and many friendships would never have been forged.

You can check out the statement issued by the board of the directors HERE.

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A.S. Hardin

Builder of worlds, creator of people, aspiring author or more realistically an avid reader and skilled procrastinator. From sci-fi to horror, I've explored it all. As of late, I find myself diving into the depths of rare and out-of-print sci-fi and fantasy. Join me on this literary journey!