Getting Started with W.I.P.

I recommend taking a look at the demo workspace that was provided with your purchase while you are reading through this Getting Started guide.

Workspace Overview #

The main page of the W.I.P. workspace is your dashboard. The dashboard serves as an overview of your multiple writing projects.

Projects #

At the top of the dashboard is a gallery view of all of your projects. You may toggle between views of your projects to see:

• Projects in concept
• Projects that are currently active
• Projects that have been archived

The project card displays the overall progress for your project with progress bar, the calculated total number of pages, and the calculated reading time. Clicking into a project will expand a sub-dashboard specific to that project, which you will use to manage all aspects of the project.

Word Count Tracker #

The Word Count Tracker contains a date card for each day of the year with your word count goal for each day. The 10 most recent cards will display on the dashboard. Daily word count targets are automatically calculated using information you define in each project:

• Project Target Date
• Project Target Words
• Project Words Actual

A formula will calculate how many words per day you need to write to meet your target date. The calculation takes into account how many words you’ve already written and if you are working on multiple projects with varying target dates. The daily word count goal will adjust dynamically every day depending on how much writing you do!

Note – if you want to set a static daily word count goal, see “Customizations”.

Databases #

In the left-hand column of your dashboard, you will find navigation links to each of the databases of your workspace:

• Projects
• Characters
• Research
• Storyboarding
• Chapters
• Lexicon
• Resources
• Word Count Tracker
• Revision Tasks

Revision Tasks #

An overview of all incomplete revision tasks display on your dashboard for quick access and completion. Check the “Done” checkbox to drop the task from the dashboard.

Links #

Use this area for quick access links to important references.

Files #

Use this area for quick access to documents.

Getting Started #

Creating a New Project #

1. At the top of your dashboard, click the blue “New” button next to the Projects database. A new project will generate and populate from the default template
2. By default, your project will be created with a status of “Concept”. If this is an active project, change the status to “Active”
3. In the “Plot Outline” property, enter a summary / description of the project
4. In the “Cover Image” property, upload a book cover or placeholder image for your project
5. In the “Genre” property, select the project genre(s) from the list
6. In the “Project Dates” property, enter the start and end dates (if known) for the project. If the project is not completed yet, do not enter an end date
7. In the “Target Words” property, enter the total word count that you would like to target for your project
8. In the “Target Date” property, enter the target date you would like to complete your project by

Note – the daily word count goal will dynamically calculate using the “Target Words” and “Target Date” properties for all active projects. The actual word count will automatically be rolled up from each chapter of the project and summed.

Formulas calculate and display on the project:

• Time that has elapsed since the start of the project (if start date has been set)
• Words per day needed to reach the target
• The total number of pages for your project, calculated by average number of words per page (250 words per page)
• The total reading time for your project, calculated by average reading speeds (238 words per minute)

Creating Characters #

1. With the project sub-dashboard expanded, navigate to the “Characters” area
2. Click the blue “New” button next to the “Characters” database. A new character will be created and automatically associated with the project
3. Populate additional information about the character

Adding Research #

1. With the project sub-dashboard open, navigate to the “Research” area
2. Click the blue “New” button next to the “Research” database. A new research record will be created and automatically associated with the project
3. Populate your research and notes

Pro tip – use the Notion Web Clipper to snip in articles, information, or graphics from the web directly to the “Research” database. Note – information clipped in form the web will need to be manually associated with a project.

Adding a New Chapter #

1. With the project sub-dashboard open, navigate to the “Chapters” area
2. Click the blue “New” button next to the “Chapters” database. A new chapter will be created populated from the default template, and automatically associated with the project
3. By default, your chapter will be created with a stage of “1. Planning“. Change the status to the current stage for your chapter
4. In the “Chapter” property, enter the numeric value for the chapter
5. In the “Summary” property, enter a summary / description for the chapter
6. Update the “Word Count” property with the current total word count for the chapter. If you have not started writing the chapter yet, leave the word count field blank

Storyboarding #

Storyboarding allows you to create plot cards associated with each chapter of a project, and rearrange them in swim lanes. This provides an overview and helps to set the beat for your chapters. The plot cards will also display within the chapter in the sidebar to help guide you while you are writing.

Adding a New Plot Card #

1. With the project sub-dashboard open, navigate to the “Storyboard” area
2. Click the blue “New” button next to the “Plot Cards” database
3. In the “Related to Chapter” property, search for and select the chapter to associate the plot point with
4. In the “Order” property, select the order of display for the plot card within the chapter swim lane

Set Up the Plot Card Display for the Chapter #

1. With the chapter open, navigate to the “Plot Cards” area in the right-hand sidebar
2. Click “Filter”, and choose “Filter by Project”
3. Search for and select the current project
4. Click the ellipsis (three dots) next to the “Plot Cards” database
5. Select “Group”
6. Click the eye icon next to the current chapter to make it visible in the plot cards swim lane

Hint – if the chapter isn’t available for display, add plot cards to the storyboard first.

Adding Revision Tasks #

1. With the project sub-dashboard open, navigate to the “Tasks” area
2. Click the blue “New” button next to the “Tasks” database
3. In the “Chapter” property, search for and select the chapter to associate this task with

Writing Workflow #

From your dashboard, click to open the active project that you are working on. From the chapters list, click to open a chapter. Highlight the “Begin typing” text in the main column of the chapter and delete. You may begin writing!

After each writing session, update the “Word Count” property on the chapter with the total number of words to-date.

Processing Stages #

The “Process” section of the project sub-dashboard gives a visual overview of the chapters in various stages of planning, draft, revision, and edit. Drag and drop the chapters to the next stage in the process. Once a chapter reaches the final stage, you may delete the Lexicon and Plot Cards from the sidebars since they are no longer needed for reference.

Using the Daily Word Count Tracker #

1. From your dashboard, click to open the card for today’s date
2. In the “Count” property, enter the total number of words completed for the day

A green checkmark will display if you have met or exceeded your daily word count goal. A yellow warning symbol will display if you have not met your daily goal.

To view a full overview of your daily word count progress, click directly into the Word Count database from the Databases section of your dashboard. Here you will see visual progress bars of your word counts for each day.