Oh, and @various people:

NANO!  *waves pompoms*  Since I'm out of town for almost half the month, and have a bunch of dentist appointments for the rest...I probably am not playing.  It's very definitely "just get the ideas going and get used to writing", and what you turn out may not even be a proper rough draft.  But it's good practice, and it feels awesome to be able to look at those pages and go "I wrote that!  It sucks, but it's mine!"

...Not to mention I find the Wrimos a wonderful source of encouragement, inspiration, and even friends.  I have a circle of friends where I live that I met through NaNo, and they are the best.  <3

Gowi, I agree with rping being an excellent tool for honing your skills and keeping the momentum going.  You get rapid feedback as you go, and you have one or more other people to add ideas.  My personal preference is tiny group rp or collaborative writing.  Yeah, I can write alone.  I've even managed to win NaNo twice.  But I am as much a reader as a writer, and I love being surprised or having the story change in ways I didn't expect, and learning about characters and such that I don't know yet.  Not to mention it's a bit easier, in my opinion, when you have someone to work off of.