Great to see this from the perspective of a volunteer! I participated long ago, but until recent years, recommended NaNoWriMo to fledgling writers all of the time. On the heels of the new AI statement, I recently wrote about their ever-growing dumpster fire, too. Makes me sad, but I think they've really botched things over the past couple of years. I'm sorry you got screwed here😞, and thanks for sharing this piece!