Originally posted by nuclear1
Simple enough idea? Yes. The undertaking? Not so easy.
You got that part right. NHOL was both and worse than that. And it was a lot of fun.
Some tips: If you want some overall event, make sure you spell it out for everyone participating, in detail if possible. The more they know, the better the pieces fit together.
Be ready for people to simply drop out at random times. Even the most dedicated may bolt for any number of reasons. Figure this way: If the person has a long, involved plot that's well intergrated and vitally important to the story, they'll leave half way through.
Talk to all the authors, a lot, repeatedly. Make sure you all know what you're writing and where you are going with it.
Finally, the best way to keep people's interest is to keep posting. Once a day, every day. Otherwise it sort of scrolls off the page and disappears. Of course, this assumes you post it directly into the forums, otherwise it doesn't matter much. The other tips apply though.
Good luck, you're gonna need it.