Life as a WIP
By Nancie Abuhaidar
WIP: abbreviation for work in progress or process: a piece of work or a product that has been begun but is not finished or ready –Cambridge Dictionary
In the work in progress that is my life, it feels like I’m living the boggy middle of a first draft, a fact echoed literally in my current project. Since I self-published my debut, I’ve been working on the next steps, meaning new projects and a plan for the next release.
And guess what?
They are also floundering around that dreaded boggy middle.
But unlike a WIP, life proceeds beyond that middle lull, even past those magical words we all strive toward in our books: THE END.
In real life, I think we are all happy pushing those words off into the stratosphere.
Once upon a time, I was a plucky, very young writer, presenting my first “book” to my parents. The reviews were exemplary, yet the only copy of The Tale of Jeremy Mouse was relegated to a file folder, stored for the ages. Or until a move sent it to a long-forgotten dumpster.
It’s easy to say that writing has always been my passion, beginning with Jeremy Mouse. But no good story is without some challenge for the main character.
And real life gave me plenty of character and plot fodder.
I am a work in progress dressed in the fabric of a world unfolding – Ani DiFranco
As writers, sometimes the challenges fuel a creative spark, other times they take over, inhibiting the creative process or stalling it altogether.
The world turns around us. It’s unrelenting. And sometimes ugly. In fiction, with the author controlling the narrative, the curious reader turns pages to find some sort of resolution. If only life were that easy. Too often, there is no pat conclusion. And yet, we soldier on.
For me, my writing is frequently a play on the greatest hits of my personal challenges.
On the opening page of my debut, the main character, Del, finds herself stranded at Kilimanjaro Airport.
True story, the basics of the scene happened to my husband and me, though Del handled it differently. I also mined my past and blatantly commandeered something my mother did. You’ll have to read The Trouble with Possibilities to find it. (Hint: it involves an unsavory boss and a cake.)
Losing my mother and aunt to a drunk driver inspired the emotion behind a darker novel (Pieces of the Wreckage) currently in edits. For those characters I got the opportunity to write a better outcome.
Do you ever use personal experience in your WIPs? Or do you leave Easter eggs for the people who know you best?
The road to Hell is paved with works-in-progress –Philip Roth
The hardest thing about a WIP is moving it toward completion. Is a work ever really finished?
I know I have files and files of WIPs. Some might become something, but others will probably go the way of Jeremy Mouse and my teenage blathering.
Do you keep all of your WIP attempts?
I have plenty of half-started short stories and lists of ideas hanging around in a mess of a Word file.
In the meantime, real life meanders on.
Right to where I am now, somehow still stuck in a state of post-release floundering. In my writing life, I’m learning to market myself, which is my biggest challenge. I understand a writing career is a marathon, not a sprint. But boy am I barely managing a stumbly jog.
Add in a new grandson, a farm that always needs work, and being a woman of a certain age, and it’s the perfect storm for that disjointed and chaotic boggy middle. Can someone please tell me how to write my way out of it?
My life is just a never-ending work in progress – Richard Simmons
This too, will pass. Tomorrow is a new day. My WIPs wait patiently for me to give them the attention they deserve, and most of the pressure to finish them, polish them, and figure out how to get them to readers, comes from within.
I still chase the dream of traditional publishing. It’s a time-sucking roller-coaster of hope and dejection, but I can’t let it go.
While I feel mired lately, I also know that once I am past this, looking back will bring a sense of clarity. Maybe I’ll find the magic potion of vitamins or exercise that turns me into one of those writers who have set times for writing, actually sit down at said time, and write for hours. My best writing day ever, I spewed out almost 6K. Then there are the days when 200 words feel like an Olympic achievement.
What do you do to keep motivated when the world and your own body and mind seem to conspire against you? Do you have a tried-and-true strategy? Do you have a mantra to drown out the self-doubt?
We are all just a work in progress –Mary J. Blige
The best thing about a WIP is the possibility of potential. It could become a best seller or a literary masterpiece or even something that brings you joy. It’s the journey of writing it, developing characters, challenging them, and seeing where they lead. Sometimes, it’s expected, mapped out with a detailed outline, other times it’s like throwing spaghetti at a wall and watching how it falls.
The beauty of life is that it is a work in progress. While we can’t edit the past, we can make changes going forward. Every day is an unexpected plot twist, but also every day is a blank page to do with what we will.
What will you do?
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From a young age, Nancie had a mind full of stories and an obsession with horses. Her passion for literature and travel led her to a BA. in English from Mount Holyoke College and a Five College Certificate in International Relations.
She lives on a farm in the Hudson Valley, NY with one husband, and too many horses, barn cats, and a pack of naughty dogs.
When she’s not cleaning up after her menagerie, she can be found in her writing dungeon letting her imagination run free. Nancie writes Women’s Fiction, Twisty Upmarket Novels, and has an Upper YA Fantasy duology lurking in her drawer.
She is a member of both the SCBWI and the WFWA.
The trouble with possibilities
The trouble with possibilities is they are as unexpected as they are infinite.
Del thinks possibilities are the trouble.
When tragedy forces her (literally) to pull the plug on her unhappy marriage, her family is in shambles. Desperate to escape and regain control over her spiraling life, Del boards a flight to Africa.
New continent. New Del.
No more temper. No more impulsivity. Armed with spreadsheets and an impeccable plan, she steps into her future– straight into the world of Ben Mahoney. The celebrity orphanage founder makes her heart stutter. Sure, he’s handsome and charming, he’s a Hollywood heartthrob, after all. Easy for Del to resist.
Except, Ben shares Del’s passion for education and appreciates her bold ideas to improve the school. He also possesses an uncanny ability to catch her off guard.
He’s a living example of her mother’s mantra. What’s worse? In spite of her damage, he seems to like her.
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