I'm considering taking my first run at NaNoWriMo. 50,000 connected words of beginning-to-end narrative is a little more than I'm used to, so I was considering writing a series of novella-length pieces and tying them together with a common theme (say oranges, or plate tectonics).
I know the NaNoWriMo "rules" are loose, but I would like to understand if my 30-day investment is going to pay off in something that will be seen as valid by anyone who's done this before.
For a NaNoWriMo person, what could a writer who creates an anthology-form novel do that would make the work more or less novel-y? Would 10 5000 word short stories be considered a valid result? 2.5 20,000 word novellas?
I am asking for anecdotes to help me answer a question: what is a valid "novel" form for NaNoWriMo?