Your Opinion, Just for Fun

So, some of you may be aware of NaNoWriMo, and some of you may not be. I'll explain quickly and then tell you where I'm going with this, since I'm sure you're dying to know.
NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, and it's in November. The basic idea is that a bunch of nutters (yes, including me) that love to write spend the entire month of November writing novels- and trying to reach the word goal of 50,000 words. This is unedited (you just write and write and write) and self-inflicted and, actually, quite fun. I'm in my fourth year and, sadly, I have yet to finish- November's a crazy month for me!
So, I'm currently at Panera Bread, attending a write-in. As if we're not a nerdy enough bunch, there are write-ins where you motivate yourself by meeting other NaNoers, (or are we WriMos?) writing a bunch, and trying to bring up your word count. This always fails spectacularly for me- I usually end up with my close friend and best NaNo bud Tammy, talking about what genres we think other people are writing, and making fun of our own stories. It's dismal, actually.I have a wonderful time but, for the sake of word production, I should just write at work during naptime.
So here's where you come in! I'm curious- have YOU ever thought of writing a novel? If so, what would it be about? What do you think makes a good book? What makes you WANT to read something?
Now, I'm not asking so I can steal your ideas- I just want to hear what other people have to say!
Thanks everyone- Happy Reading!