Is keeping the exact same name, with a ‘2.0’, the best choice if they wish to make it clear they’re not related to the previous team/org?

I loved the idea of NaNoWriMo when it all started (yep, I’m getting old) but I also gave up bothering about it entirely when it became that almost business-like endeavor, way too serious. I liked my NaNo to be informal, and fun, and quirky too as I had more than enough serious writing activities, already.

So, reading the new introduction, I kinda love that (a lot):

At this point, it’s probably best to leave NaNoWriMo as an idea that no-one owns or administrates.

But, once again, I sincerely doubt keeping the exact same name was the best way to ‘leave’ any of that sad past behind them. Maybe they could have gone for that International the OP did not consider originally. Saying that as someone who did the NaNo a few time, not living in the USA and not writing in English.

Enough worrying, it’s great news to see people trying to revive this excellent idea (and an even better excuse) to encourage people to effing start writing instead of dreaming that one day they will do it.

Get a pen and some paper, or open a new document file if you prefer a computer, and start writing that stupid story you keep thinking about! I’m willing to bet it won’t be that stupid once you finish it. And if it is that stupid, well… that’s great news as you’ve just freed your mind for a brand new and much better story idea. And at most it will have taken you a month to do so—I don’t know about you but I have often wasted a lot more than a single month ruminating about some ‘cool idea’ I had that, once I stopped thinking how great it was to actually start writing it, ended up being not that great) :)