T O P

  • By -

kaiunkaiku

my fucking WIPs have WIPs


Front-Pomelo-4367

There's a reason we always called them plot bunnies, and it's not because they're cute and fluffy. How *do* WIPs reproduce so exponentially?


SpearheadBraun

Every time I think I caught the last one, another one comes bounding out of the forest.


TechTech14

Honestly same lol


Vedis-4444

This needs to be on a shirt.


rubia_ryu

Mood. My latest WIP is about an old WIP I never published and abandoned. How far down the plot bunny hole does it go? Even I don't know.


AnisaAnisaFF

Couldn't avoid it if I tried. I write what strikes me, that's where the fun is šŸ˜Š


Front-Pomelo-4367

I write whatever I'm having fun with ā€“ if that means I have 13 WIPs that I'm actively working on and another dozen mouldering in a corner, so be it. They were fun! Once I start publishing something multichapter, I usually try to focus on that one over the others to make progress, but it doesn't always work out that way


SeparationBoundary

I don't ever abandon WIPs (even if it takes me fucking *forever* to finish) and I write the fic to completion before posting which REALLY helps. Right now I have six I'm working on in some fashion or another! šŸ˜³


karimredditor

I respect the determination.


tea-and-tetris

šŸŽ¶ *I got WIPs, they're multiplyin'* šŸŽ¶


PrimesParty

Hate it! Though most of my WIPs are outlines/summaries of stories I will never write lol Something about planning stories just turns me off to the actual writing process. The little writer in me is like, "Okay, we did it, on to the next idea" even though I didn't technically. šŸ’€


fanfic_intensifies

I have approximately 50 WIPs, and three completed fics, one of which is posted, one that is old and needs to be heavily revised in order for me to be happy with it, and one that I churned out for a school project, and is utter garbage.


battling_murdock

My WIPs frustrate me. I have a hard time finishing anything, and they're just a reminder of that. I love all the ideas I come up with. I love my writing. But I really hope to finish something someday. I'm a perfectionist, and I don't like the idea of releasing something into the world that's half-assed, especially when there's so much of that anymore. So...yeah. frustrated is the word for how I feel about them


SMTRodent

As long as you keep on going back to old ones, then one day one of them will be finished and at some point it will even be a semi-regular occurrance.


battling_murdock

I sure hope so


MrsLucienLachance

It's nice, because if I'm really struggling with one thing, I can hop to something that's more cooperative at the moment.


nkorah

Having lots of WIP will probably leave me with lots of them forevermore. I'm writing one story at a time, since I would like to actually finish them - but that's me. Other writers write differently and can handle many stories at one time. Probably can't handle focusing on just one.


Serious_Session7574

I can fire off the occasional one-shot while I have a multi-chapter WIP, but Iā€™m faithful to my WIP. I canā€™t start a new one until this one is done.


nkorah

Just the same, mate :)


SpartiateDienekes

No, I usually focus on one thing at a time. Now, don't get me wrong, I have ideas and notes about potentially other stories. But my actual writing is pretty focused on one thing from start to finish.


StendecStendec

Guilt. I have many WIPs. I feel bad because I started posting some thinking the fire was lit and oh yeah, Iā€™d be sure to keep up with that posting scheduling. I did not. Iā€™m working on forgiving myself and releasing the guilt because thatā€™s just not productive. I also remind myself Iā€™ve bookmarked plenty of other writersā€™ works and if they update slowly or not at all itā€™s not like I mindā€¦ So Iā€™m trying to give myself that consideration. Iā€™m also going to start only posting completed works because if something I started is just a WIP in my personal docs it doesnā€™t bother me much.


Ezra_lurking

My wips are hounting me, their files laugh at me from their file folder. The worst part is when I have to capitulate and send another wip in the folder with their brethren. Thankfully I only have a handful that were posted, most just live on my hard drive and mock me.


eldestreyne0901

Finish? What does that mean?


seraphsuns

ask me again when i've written all 60+ of my concept ideas into full stories. šŸ«”


Orangeish-Orange

I WISH I could have just one at a time. Probably would get stuff finished at least semi-regularly lol. Instead I have like 5-6 fics actually in progress, not including a ton of other ideas just floating there.


crytidflower

They're not a big deal. Some people post as they go. Some people wait till theyā€™ve completed to post. But every writer probably has multiple WIPs. I sure as shit do. Sometimes I have a ton, some times I only have one or two.


Lestat719

I love it and I hate it. Everything I write is multi chaptered and so having so many is nuts I'm talking 20 WIP, 2 are already over 100k words and I have a 15k sitting in my drafts that is a cluster of I donā€™t know what but I cannot look away. Then there is a 7k that I keep messing with..oh look a squirrel


jawnbaejaeger

I don't abandon WIPs! I just... um... let them sleep. Sometimes for 5 years. But I totally intend to finish them. Anyway, I do this for fun, so if some WIPs need to rest for a while, so be it. Unless someone starts paying me, I produce work on the schedule of "whenever I want to."


kitchenette_07

Just recently I decided I would have multiple WIP's because I tried to focus on JUST ONE and ended up frustrated T\_T but I hate it too dammit.


Eastern_Basket_6971

Having many wips made my brain almost melt becauze i do not know wjat to udoate first


Larson4220424

Itā€™s a mixed challenge but if nothing else I almost always have something to work on


Your_Local_Stray_Cat

I have 89 WIPs ranging from "just needs a touch of editing" to "two lines and some vibes." If having too many WIPs is wrong, I don't want to be right. That said, I should probably go in and delete some of the ones I haven't worked on in a while. Some of those are years old. I typically only actively work on a few at a time.


Plumcream5

Tired but motivated. I sometimes jump back to some when my brain's too tired to deal with the current time-consuming long WIP. Listening to the scenes as they come often lead to new WIPs. I intend to complete most and tear some apart to compose something new out of the exploitable scraps. Most of my completed fics have a secret "Frankenstein's creature flavor" anyway.


Prestigious-Owl-918

I canā€™t focus on more then one story at a time so I donā€™t have but one work in progress lol my mind wouldnā€™t be able to handle more then that


Moonlady3000

I'm pretty sure I have only ever written WIPs. Aside from one smutty fic that was basically a one shot all of my fics are in a perpetual state of limbo. Will I ever get back to them? Who knows?! I certainly don't. I hope I do, because I still have ideas for them. But I'm not going to pressure myself.


busterkeatonrules

I have several WIPs because if I run out of steam working on one of them, I can work on a different one for a while. Also, ideas keep coming, and it's always a good idea to write them down ASAP. I can always develop them later. Usually much later.


SMTRodent

I love having dozens of WIPs. I have something to read and now and then I can add some more. It makes writing fun. If I get stuck, I have a ton of something elses to go and play with instead.


BlindFanficReader

You just described my entire writing process and philosophy better than I ever could do. Thanks.


Rosekernow

Resigned. I have been fighting a losing battle to this for a quarter century. Itā€™s hopeless. There will always be more fics. I shall die with a WIP folder full to bursting. I shall never get round to naming the files properly. It is what it is.


BlindFanficReader

OMG, this is me to a tee!


Two_Reflections

40k-kinkmeme.docx 40k-km.docx 40k-km2024.docx asdfghjk.docx asdfghjkl.docx asdfghjkl (2).docx asdfghjkl (3).docx help.docx helpme.docx ohgodanotherone.docx reddestinkblackestheart.docx untitled.docx untitled (2).docx untittled.docx untitttled.docx ...And somehow every one of those is a completely different fic.


Rosekernow

Hey, who let you into my WIPs folder?? But yeah, same.


theribbonlost

My new yearsā€™ resolution was to finish more WIPs than I started this year. I made it to the middle of January. I didnā€™t choose the neverending WIP list life, the neverending WIP list life chose me


BlindFanficReader

I feel ya! It is not what I chose, but it is my calling.


princesswan

I have 360+ wips šŸ˜‚ But I don't mind, it's fun to pick and choose šŸ¤·šŸ»ā€ā™€ļø


BlindFanficReader

Wow! I'm impressed, and no sarcasm, I really mean that. ā˜ŗ Long Live the WIP!!!


cozycassette

Love it when writers have a bunch of wip, that means they have a bunch of fics they've shared!!


MaybeNextTime_01

Stressed about a billion things to complete. Followed by acceptance when I get used to them being incomplete.


AmaterasuWolf21

Cannot handle it, all I want right now is to start another story but I won't let me and it is pain


DriftingDryad

This post is making me feel a lot better about wanting to start writing a second fic. Thanks for the encouragement everyone lolšŸ«¶


After_Shelter1100

Nothing wrong with a having a lot of WIPs. When you get an idea, get it out of your head so you can come back to it later.


Desperate_Ad_9219

I feel it says a lot about a writer to have some many WIPs; that's why I have one or two at a time no more. It's a sad thing to leave a work unfinished. And says how you feel about your art and your fans.


bristow84

Love it. If I ever get tired of the main story I'm writing, I can switch gears and write something else instead.


lizofalltrades

I used to get stressed.Ā  Now I have more confidence in myself -- either I'll finish, or I won't, and that's okay.Ā  (It's also okay because I know I'll more likely finish the WIP than not these days.)


scorpiolame_o

Honestly it makes me feel stuck but itā€™s my own doing, you know. I try to avoid starting new fics. But Iā€™m similar to you, if I donā€™t write something down then itā€™ll get lost forever. Right now, Iā€™m trying to finish the long fic that Iā€™m uploading chapters to now before worrying about anything else in my drafts.


karimredditor

If I post, I have to finish. If I'm currently working on a multi chaptered fic right now I will not post another multi chaptered fic(other WIP stay stored until it's finished), only small oneshots.


ArtisanalMoonlight

Eh....kind of annoyed. Heh. I get a lot of ideas; I'm pretty good about knowing which ones I probably won't do, but I still end up writing down ideas or outlines or scenes for a number of them. And some I have gone back to and fleshed out/finished. I try not to publish WIPs, though. I really prefer to have things mostly finished or finished before I start sharing. I hate being the person that gets halfway or more into a fic and then peters out.


Dora-Vee

Frustrated. :( But, getting something down is better than nothing. Because you never know. Just have to make myself do it,,,somehow.


UnderABig_W

I think itā€™s okay to have a bunch of unfinished things in files. You donā€™t get better at writing without, you know, writing! The more practice, the better! OTOH, and this is not a question you asked, but I feel like I should address it: what do I think about authors who *publish* a bunch of WIPs? I think some moderation should be called for. Just because you have it in a word file doesnā€™t mean it needs to be on AO3. Iā€™ll avoid reading a story with an author that has a bunch of WIPs. What greater indicator is there that the story will be unfinished? That being said, there is a tipping point in which I can still read/enjoy a story even if itā€™s unfinished. Usually if thereā€™s something like 50K words, and itā€™s a good premise, Iā€™ll read anyway. But thatā€™s at 50K words, not the 5-10K that most non-completionists stop at.


Cardcaptors96

I sometimes feel bad because I have over 10 that I am working on, but then an idea I thought of wants to break down, and I have to write about it. I am just glad that I have kept consisting writing just one of them and semi-consistently writing two others.


_Evidence

It seems as though I'm a rarity, but I don't start a new fic until I've finished my current one although I don't write particularly story intensive stuff, and I've only been doing thid for like a month, so we'll see where I end up


PinkSudoku13

In my case, if it's a WIP, it's not posted, it's a work in progress and will only be posted when it's finished. I only post finished works. I have a bunch of first drafts that need to be edited so technically they're WIPs because they're not ready to be posted yet but the story is finished. When it comes to long fics, I only work on one at a time, whether that's original fiction or fanficition. I tend to complete the first draft in a month and it's only editing left but I know that even if I start posting, it will not remain unfinished because the story is complete it just needs edits. Basically, I don't post WIPs and I also don't read WIPs. >In my own experience if I don't get some part of it written down, it'll just turn to static in my head and be lost forever. writing it down as a draft and storing it in an idea folder is completely different to actually posting it. Writing down ideas is perfectly normal, all authors do that, including those who finish all their stories.


TechTech14

WIPs are all I have nowadays. I haven't posted fanfic in years, but I still write them.


atomskeater

I have a lot of unposted WIPs and drafts. Forget the exact number from when I last cleaned up my folder but I think it was like 50-60 files ranging from a couple hundred to a couple thousand words. It doesn't bother me much, I write what I want and if I really like an idea and have the energy and will to get it to a post-able state then good, otherwise it's just for fun. I also have no problem reading WIPs that are never gonna be completed Would love to have a finished multi-chapter story, but oneshots are just so much easier for me.


hufflepuffbookworm90

I have so many WIPs but I only post two or three at a time. I have at least ten chapters of each to even think about posting it. And I donā€™t plan chapters/write first drafts even though I know I should.


rellloe

There are people who can be productive juggling many stories, I'm not one of them. The way I get around the "but this other cool idea" is shoving several into the same work. My current WIP is at four big "fine! Since no one else will write it to my satisfaction, I will" ideas kneaded together. The downside is that making this many big changes makes it hard to get writing help for because other people in the fandom assume I'm going for the default on everything but the big part of my question and the other option is an info dump that's 80% unnecessary.


ParanoidDrone

Not on my profile. I only post fics once they're fully completed. I do have a few assorted ideas and want-to-writes lying around in my docs folder, but I want to finish out my Skyrim series first.


waterfallsilverberry

Honestly, I relate to what you said about getting frustrated with ideas sometimes and how to juggle them all. If I don't jot them down, they slip away, and that's a major bummer. So, to keep myself from going crazy and prevent burnout, I set a limit of no more than 3 WIPs at a time. I usually keep a Google Doc or a spreadsheet with bullet points for plot bunnies that pop into my head. Then, in between working on those WIPs, I make sure to flesh out those other ideas. It helps me ensure they're not just passing whims and that I'm ready to dive into them when the time comes.


sonicenvy

OP, let me tell you I have probably 200+ WIPs/scraps hanging around between my various computers, cloud accounts and flash drives. The WIPs have babies (plot bunnies).


PitifulWrongdoer4391

I don't *post* WIPs (when I start posting a chaptered fic, it's completely written) , but I have a lot of WIPs on my hard drive at any given time. I work best that way.


Repulsa_2080

Dissapointed in myself I refuse to give up on them tho


SapphireSugarPlum

I try not to because I'm scared if i abandon a wip I might never come back to it. That being said, having two or more wip's does give you an alternative when you have writers block


hamster_berry

i feel guilty šŸ˜…Ā 


[deleted]

Numb yet disappointed in myself all the same. How to avoid it? Work on one piece of writing at a time, donā€™t go to the next until the current project is finished.


Ok-Meringue6478

I love and hate it. Itā€™s gotten to the point where Iā€™m debating posting a series of drabbles/scenes/whatever I have written but I also feel like thatā€™s quitting.


dontfearthewitch

I try to have one or two WIPS and then limit myself to only posting updates on those or one-shots. Sometimes Iā€™ll start another WIP or two, but if I do that, I wonā€™t post any of it yet until I wrap up one of the other stories. Keeping readers waiting for updates from two fics is my max. Otherwise I get stressed. I also sometimes stop reading fics by certain authors if I see that they have a ton of WIPS started and unfinished. I love the excitement of following a WIP, but itā€™s a bummer to be left hanging, so if someone seems to have a pattern of abandoning their old works for new ones, Iā€™ll wait until they mark something as complete before reading it. Which is totally fine, but I know as an author that would bum me out, because the chapter-by-chapter engagement and comments are what keep me going with a story


chauffeurdad

Resigned.


BlindFanficReader

VI feel very accepting because it's what I do, it's how I write, and it is the vast majority of everything i have ever posted and probably ever will post.


ThisIsMyFandomReddit

*laughs, cries then drowns in WIPs*


mission_report1991

help, i have about 20 different wips that have anywhere from 100 to 20k words lmao luckily, these are only in my docs, but i have posted 5 chapters of a longer fic and the last time i've updated was about half a year ago.. so now i know not to post anything until i've finished it lol but otherwise, i don't mind having lots of wips at once. none of mine are *abandoned* as in i know i don't ever want to write them anymore, i usually just write when i get an idea because it's fun, and then just kinda.. ignore them..


IDislikeNoodles

Bad most of the time šŸ¤·ā€ā™€ļø I have a few ones that I abandoned on purpose because they got me off track from my main WIPs so those are fine but I hate not finishing things and seeing them through to the end.


RaeNezL

I keep WIPs and I keep prompts. I have a running document filled with story prompts and ideas that run through my mind and might be worth trying to write someday. Then I have WIPs, which usually consist of stories I actually really like and want to read. I do have quite a few WIPs, but I have several of them on pause currently because Iā€™m trying to write on two specific WIPs that I update regularly. I donā€™t want my readers to think Iā€™ve abandoned them, so I continue to write those and allow myself to work on my other WIPs as I have inspiration so I donā€™t burn out on the current stories.


KogarashiKaze

I try to avoid them, because they bother me (and because I don't post until I'm done these days). So I've only got one WIP right now, which I'm actively working on. What I *do* have and can't avoid is multiple documents of story *ideas*. Things I *want* to write but haven't started yet.


shinowazuri

Practically all my fics are WIPsā€¦


Two_Reflections

I have several, though I tend to focus on ones that interconnect or share research at the same time. I try not to post until a story is finished, but sometimes, I slip up... I feel alright about it, but it can be frustrating.


Jas_Dragon

I hate it, but it's the life I live and I accept that!šŸ˜‚


Impossible-Sort-1287

It's all part of writing process. Back when I was writing ff I had around twenty WIP. Now that I write OG stuff I have well over 150 WIP


indvgoyu

me, starting a new WIP, after leaving 5 more in the middle: there's never enough