What is a WIP?

This is the first in a series on writing "vocabulary". For this to work well, I could really use some reader input (or else I'll just be telling you stuff you probably already know). Want to know what a certain subgenre is? A writing term I've used? If I don't know the answer, I'll attempt to find it. Just write your question down in the comments phrased as "What is..."

 This will be an on and off series from now till Christmas (or beyond if you guys send me good questions!).

You've probably noticed that I use the term WIP quite frequently. It's a handy little abbreviation.

One problem with abbreviations, though: we tend to forget what they mean (or we never knew what they stood for in the first place). Such as when signs read, "Free WiFi Inside". If you were to translate that literally, you'd get, "Free Wireless Internet Free Inside". It's rather repetitive and redundant.



Anyways, I digress. WIP stands for "Work in Progress". Authors use it quite frequently to denote a work that they're still working on.

Ex. "I did a macroedit on my current WIP during July, but there's still a lot to do before I send it to my critique partner." or "My dystopian novel is still a Work in Progress." (Authors typically say the whole phrase when actually conversing, but use the abbreviation for email communication.)

WIP also stands as a way to discuss a work without having to go through explaining what it is. This is especially handy if (like me) you have a hard time coming up with titles. When talking with my writer friends, I tend to speak of my WIP  with a genre attached.

Ex. "My fantasy WIP is currently on hold while I attempt to get over writer's block."

Any questions about WIP's? What other terms would you like me to define?