Challenge WIPuary! (Finish WIPs, get colors!)—IT’S A WRAP! Thanks to all who took part!

Hey there, dear writers!​

Want to make a dent in those piles of unfinished WIPs on your hard drive, Google Docs, Evernote, paper notebooks, or any combination of the above? Or need some motivation to bring those fabulous plot bunnies of yours into concrete story form? Or both?

Then this most definitely is the challenge you're looking for! The mods have given the gracious go-ahead for…

WIPuary!


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So, what is it?
A challenge for finishing (or at least making progress on) WIPs, of course! The concept is adapted from the WIPtober challenge hosted each October by http://wipweek.tumblr.com. Participants commit to either completing a certain number of WIPs or writing a certain number of words toward WIPs over the course of the month and give regular reports throughout their progress. Then, at the end of the month, they share their completed work so we all can enjoy it.

There’s one slight difference from the original WIPtober: the WIPuary challenge will include a review component, too. In addition to committing to writing on your own WIPs (or instead of that), you may show your support for others’ WIPs by committing to reviewing a certain number of them.

What's more, both writers and reviewers can receive colors for their participation! (More on that below—and many thanks to our fab mod team for their generous permission! )

Cool! How do I take part as a writer?
Easy peasy! First, post in this thread before January 31 specifying whether you choose the Finishing Option, the Word Count Option, or both:

• Finishing Option: specify how many and which WIPs you commit to finishing in Feburary (with titles or descriptions, and links for those that you have begun posting).
• Word Count Option: specify how many words you commit to writing on WIPs in February (in multiples of 1000, please), and which WIPs (again, with titles or descriptions, and links for those that you have begun posting).

Then I'll add that information to the writers' portion of the challenge index below. After that, it's kind of like a word race: you can report on your progress throughout the month, and I'll update the challenge index with that information accordingly.

On March 1, share a link or links to your finished work. (And hey, leap year means we have an extra day to work, everyone! )

How do I take part as a reviewer?
That's easy-peasy, too. Simply post in this thread before January 31 specifying how many WIP stories you commit to reviewing during the month of February. (You don't need to specify which WIPs, just a number.) I'll add you to the reviewers’ portion of the challenge index. Then, when you post one of your reviews, share the link in this thread, and I’ll record it in the list.

(Please note: your review has to be on one of the stories from the writers’ challenge index for it to count. Also, you’re committing to reviewing a certain number of individual stories, not to writing a certain number of reviews. Reviewing different chapters of the same story doesn’t count.)

You said something about colors...?
Yes, sure did! All participants who make their goal or any part thereof stand to win colors. Here's how it works.

For writers:
1. If you choose the Finishing Option: If you commit to finishing finished X WIPs, you can earn at most X * 24 hours of colors (max. one week).
Examples:

• WriterOne commits to finishing 3 WIPs and finishes all of them—3 days (72 hours) of colors.
• WriterTwo commits to finishing 3 WIPs and finishes just 2 of them—2 days (48 hours) of colors.
• WriterThree commits to finishing 3 WIPs and finishes not only all three of them but one more as well that isn’t in the challenge index—3 days (72 hours) of colors. (Only the ones that they originally committed to count. This is to keep us from getting distracted, and all that. )

2. If you choose the Word Count Option: how long your colors last is based on how many thousand words you ended up writing on the WIPs you specified. Thus, if you committed to writing X-thousand words, you can earn at most X * 24 hours (max. one week).
Examples:

• WriterFour commits to writing 5000 words on WIPs and achieves a final count of 5243—5 days of colors.
• WriterFive commits to writing 5000 words and achieves a final count of 4802—4 days of colors.
• WriterSix commits to writing 5000 words and achieves a final count of 6097—5 days of colors.

(Please note that these word counts are to include only words written on the WIPs you signed up for, not all words written in February. So yes, honor system, and all.)

For reviewers:
In contrast to the writing rewards, rewards for reviewing will go by every two reviews (which we hope will encourage people to commit to multiple reviews!). Thus for every two reviews you commit to writing, you can earn at most X * 24 hours of colors (max. one week).
Examples:

• ReaderOne signs up to review 2 WIPs and reviews both of them—24 hours of colors.
• ReaderTwo signs up to review 2 WIPs and reviews only one of them—no colors (sorry, Charlie!)
• ReaderThree signs up to review 4 WIPs and reviews all of them—48 hours of colors.
• ReaderFour signs up to review 4 WIPs and reviews 3 of them—24 hours of colors (rounding down to the nearest even number).
• ReaderFive signs up to review 4 WIPs and ends up reviewing 6—still 48 hours of colors.

(Again, please note that this only applies to reviews of stories from the challenge index—hence my asking for links.)

Please Note:
1. The deadline for signing up, for both writers and reviewers, is January 31. (So you have two weeks from the posting of this OP.)
2. Any member of JCF may sign up, but please don’t sign up both yourself and a sock. Honor system, and all that.
3. You can sign up as a writer, a reviewer, or both.
4. Those signing up as writers may sign up for both the Finishing and Word Count Options if desired. (E.g., “I commit to both finishing ‘The Wreck of the Rusty Hinge’ and writing 2000 words on ‘Padawan McGilicuddy’s Bad Day.’”)
5. And yes, if you’re really super ambitious, you can sign up as a writer in both options and as a reviewer.
6. This challenge only counts work done on WIPs during the month of February. Again, honor system.
7. MOOIE, MOOIE IMPORTANT: If you are participating as a writer, with either option, you may NOT add WIPs to the challenge index after January 31. (This is to encourage people to stick with the stories they commit to at the beginning of the challenge. It kind of defeats the purpose if people can just add whatever extra plot bunnies happen to pop into their minds during February.)
8. The maximum amount of colors anyone can win is one week’s worth, whether you are signed up as a writer, a reviewer, or both. For example:

• If WriterSeven commits to writing 3000 words and reviewing 2 stories, and makes both commitments, they receive 3 + 1 = 4 days’ worth of colors. (Again, remember that colors for reviews go by every two reviews.)
• If WriterEight commits to writing 5000 words and reviewing 4 stories, and makes both commitments, they receive 5 + 2 = 7 days’ worth of colors (the maximum).
• But if WriterNine commits to writing 5000 words and reviewing 6 stories, and makes both commitments, they still receive 7 days’ worth of colors (i.e., NOT 5 + 3 = 8 days).

9. If you end up not being able to keep your full commitment for any reason at all, don’t worry! Just do what you can, because you can still earn colors and have a good time!
10. Any further questions, feel free to ask right here in the thread!

Now good luck, and may the WIPs be with you!
​

 

The WIPuary Index!
Titles of posted stories are linked; titles of unposted stories are shown in italics. Boldface numbers indicate current word or review counts. Boldface story titles indicate finished stories.

Writers: Finishing Option
(NB: If word counts are reported, they will be added in bold. Once the story is complete, they will be removed, but the whole story title will be bolded.)
Raissa Baiard: Shadow of a Doubt
*Mira_Jade: We Claim Our Own Landscape, The Genus of Pulchritudinous Mora, The Worlds Your Hands Touch, and To The Young Believers
SiouxFan: Not-So-Aggressive Negotiations
Findswoman: Gem of My Beaches (originally with working title Beached) and A Private Place
*mavjade: fic-gift for Bri and untitled West Wing story

Writers: Word Count Option
Names of users who have achieved their word count goal are in bold.
Raissa Baiard: 5000 (total) on Wolf Brother, All Our Yesterdays, and The Journal of Ronen Syndulla-Jarrus, Jedi Action Hero (Or Something): 4154
devilinthedetails: 5000 (total) on Cold Harvest and Diary of a Very Sympathetic Padawan: 5607
Kit': 2000 (total) on USJS and Fitting In: 2908
Sith-I-5: 5000 on Mary Formal and E-Branch: 1030
*Mira_Jade: 10,000 (total) on In That There That Isn't Here, Even Without a Voice, and This Soft Season Will Come: 6754
*Briannakin: 3000 on So Much More Than Fairytales: The Land of Gods And Monsters: 115
SiouxFan: 5000 on Expectations
Findswoman: 1000 on Dinner with the Trilashas: 1252
RX_Sith: 5000 on These Are the Continuing Voyages of the USS Enterprise: 5687
JediMaster_Jen: 6000 (total) on Knightfall I: Sins of the Father, The First Knights of Ren, and Giver of Light Book II: Sons in Shadow: 6012
Kahara: 3000 (total) on Cloud Nine, Drifters and Stardust, and an untitled story: 3273
Pandora: 6000 (total) on The Wrong Side of History, Water Flowing Underground, and The Winter Queen: 4138

Reviewers
Names of users who have achieved their reviewing goal are in bold.
devilinthedetails: 8: 4 (USJS, The Winter Queen, A Private Place, The First Knights of Ren)
Kit': 5: 5 (Cold Harvest, A Private Place, This Soft Season Will Come, Wolf Brother, The Winter Queen)
WarmNyota_Sweet Ayesha: 10: 10 (Diary of a Very Sympathetic Padawan, The Continuing Voyages of the USS Enterprise, USJS, Cold Harvest, A Private Place, In That There That Isn't Here, Shadow of a Doubt, Knightfall I, Gem of My Beaches, The First Knights of Ren)
*Mira_Jade: 10: 4 (Diary of a Very Sympathetic Padawan, Shadow of a Doubt, A Private Place, Knightfall I)
*Briannakin: 2: 2 (Diary of a very Sympathetic Padawan, A Private Place)
SiouxFan: 3
Findswoman: 4: 4 (Cold Harvest, In That There That Isn’t Here, The First Knights of Ren, Shadow of a Doubt)
JediMaster_Jen: 5: 5 (Shadow of a Doubt, Cold Harvest, A Private Place, The Worlds Your Hands Touch, We Claim Our Own Landscape)
RX_Sith: 4: 4 (Cold Harvest, Shadow of a Doubt, A Private Place, The Worlds Your Hands Touch)
Kahara: 6: 6 (USJS, All Our Yesterdays, The Genus of Pulchritudinous Mora, Gem of My Beaches, The First Knights of Ren, The Winter Queen)
*mavjade: 3: 3 (The First Knights of Ren, The Winter Queen, Gem of My Beaches)

*mod; not competing for colors

 

(And one more reserved post, just in case.)

 

What an excellent idea to brighten up the month of February and to give us motivation to finish or work on those works in progress that are tormenting us with their lack of completeness! I'll commit to both writing for my own works in progress as well as supporting others who are writing their works in process.

For the writing, I'll commit to the word count option of writing 5000 words toward my latest WIP: Cold Harvest.

For reading, I'll commit to reviewing 8 stories for my fellow writers.

I hope to see many more people enter this event and give me great stories to read and review!

For @Findswoman in case you need the link to the story I'll be working on: https://boards.theforce.net/threads...qui-gon-multi-chapter-mission-story.50053040/

 

WIPs, what WIPs? Oh, alright: you've got me! I feel like this challenge was tailormade for me and just what I need to get the muse in gear. It's time to hunker down and clear out the ol' WIP folder. Though not competing for colors, I would love to join in on the fun and mutual encouragement of this event!

So, for reviewing, I would like to sign up for 10 reviews, though I will try my best to read and leave feedback as much as I can throughout the month.

And as for writing . . . oh boy, but where to even begin? Let's just say that 10,000 words will be my goal, split between "In That There That Isn't Here", "Even Without a Voice", and my NSWFF story "This Soft Season Will Come." Then, I am going to try my best to Finish "We Claim Our Own Landscape", "The Genus of Pulchritudinous Mora", and my outstanding NSWFF stories "The Worlds Your Hands Touch", and "To The Young Believers."

. . . that should be more than ambitious enough for the month. Yep, I have a good feeling about this!


(And thank-you so very much, @Findswoman, for hosting this challenge! It's a beyond brilliant idea, and now I can't wait to see what comes from it. )

 

Ooh, what a fantastic turnout so far! The index is updated now—hopefully everything looks accurate, and if there’s anything that needs to be fixed, just let me know.

To answer the questions that have been asked: yes, for the Word Count Option, word counts can definitely be cumulative among several stories. Also yes, you are welcome to change your mind about which stories you commit to at any time before January 31, so even if you’re not completely sure yet what you want to work on, you can feel free to sign up now and make changes later. And finally, there’s no such thing as too little or too much in this challenge! It’s all about what you can manage.

Thank you all! This is shaping up to be fun!

 

All sounds good, Bri. And yes, it is totally fine for the WIP to be something not yet posted yet and thus not yet linkable (that's probably what I'll do, myself, once I get my brain in order). Index updated, and once again, hope all looks accurate!

 

Good to see you here! Pretty much any WIP counts; heck, just write down a title or a few stray notes and you can consider it a WIP as far as I'm concerned! So shall I put you down in the Finishing Category for the Danni Quee story? (Remind me of the title and link, please?) And in the Word Count Category for the other story? (Do you have any sort of title or description for that, even if it's just a working title?)

And I have you down for 3 reviews. Thanks again!

 

Yes, of course a non-posted WIP is totally fine! Got everything in the index now—hope it looks right. Thanks again!

 

You are very welcome, very glad to help!

And now I'm going to officially sign up myself. I'll be working on things that aren't yet posted, and my plan is as follows:

• Finish the post-Rogue One vignette I've had in mind for my now-long-overdue OTP #12 Landscape prompt, with the working title "Beached."
• Finish a short entry for the current MMM KISS prompt (no working title just yet).
  
• Write at least 1000 words on working title "Dinner with the Trilashas" (a counterpart to "Dinner with the Orrelioses").
• And review four (4) stories by fellow WIPers!

All righty, adding myself to the index... let's see if I can pull this off!

 

OK, so would you like to be in the Finishing Category for this one, or do you have a word count in mind? Just let me know, and I'll put you down in the appropriate spot.

 

Excellent, got it—thanks!

 

You got it, @JediMaster_Jen ! Thanks so much for signing up, good to have you here!

So, as a reminder, there is now exactly ONE WEEK LEFT to sign up for WIPuary, or to make any changes to an existing sign-up. January 31 is the last day to sign up or make any changes, and then it's on!