# Common forum abbreviations list



## Tevaras (May 25, 2013)

Good morning, this seems to be the most appropriate forum for this, feel free to move if wanted.

Anyway, having browsed through a number of posts, I have started to see abbreviations that I am not 100% sure of what they mean, and thought it would be a good idea to create a list that new people can reference. For example, I can only assume W.I.P. means ?world in progress?, M.C. means ?main character?

To be useful, and so people do not have to read every post to find an abbreviation, I suggest when people list an abbreviation they include the previous ones as well. That way to use this thread, just go to the last post and you have all the abbreviations (preferably one per line) summarised.

Can anyone confirm this:

W.I.P. = World in Progress
M.C.   = Main Character


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## Ireth (May 25, 2013)

You're close. WIP means Work In Progress; the similar abbreviation NIP means Novel In Progress, though this is less frequent. MC, as you guessed, means Main Character.


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## The Unseemly (May 25, 2013)

Another common one is POV - point of view.

Insofar:

WIP = Work in progress 
NIV = Novel in progress
MC = main character
POV = point of view


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## Ireth (May 25, 2013)

FMC pops up every so often, for Female Main Character. I don't personally like this one much, since it implies that all MCs are male by default, which is not true. Anyway:

WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character


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## Tevaras (May 25, 2013)

Ireth said:


> You're close. WIP means Work In Progress; the similar abbreviation NIP means Novel In Progress, though this is less frequent. MC, as you guessed, means Main Character.



Good morning Ireth,

thank you for the clarification .

I think I saw the W.I.P. first in a post in the World Builders forum, and hence came to the erroneous conclusion ...

You have covered the three abbreviations I have seen (I could not recall the N.I.P. one) so far, which is great.

Have a good weekend.


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## Tevaras (May 25, 2013)

The Unseemly said:


> Another common one is POV - point of view.
> 
> Insofar:
> 
> ...



Good morning The Unseemly,

thank you, most useful 

Have a good weekend.


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## Devor (May 26, 2013)

Also, there's the books.

GOT / ASOIAF / GRRM = Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire / George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter


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## Tevaras (May 26, 2013)

Devor said:


> Also, there's the books.
> 
> GOT / ASOIAF / GRRM = Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire / George R.R. Martin
> LOTR = Lord of the Rings
> HP = Harry Potter



Good morning Devor,

thank you 

The list so far (Thank you to Ireth, The Unseemly, and Devor):
WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character
GOT / ASOIAF / GRRM = Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire / George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter


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## rhd (May 28, 2013)

UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin?


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## KorbentMarksman (May 28, 2013)

GRRM = George R. R. Martin, or GRRM as the sound a dog makes while biting down on something it doesn't like.


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## Tevaras (May 28, 2013)

With more contributions (rhd and KorbentMarksman):

WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character
GOT = Game of Thrones
ASOIAF = A Song of Ice and Fire
GRRM = George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter
UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin


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## A. E. Lowan (May 28, 2013)

Would we call "fasterskating" an abbreviation or a dance?


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## advait98 (May 29, 2013)

And how about a common forum acronym, OP? I've been racking my brains and the best I could have come up with from the contexts was Original Poster?


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## Tevaras (May 29, 2013)

advait98 said:


> And how about a common forum acronym, OP? I've been racking my brains and the best I could have come up with from the contexts was Original Poster?



Good evening advait98,

I would have guessed O.P. = Online poster, but I am not really sure.

It is a good one to add, I have seen it around. I'll await some consensus.

Have a good evening.


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## Ireth (May 29, 2013)

OP does mean Original Poster, I believe.


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## druidofwinter (May 29, 2013)

Would RIP=REVISING IN PROGRESS?


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## CupofJoe (May 29, 2013)

druidofwinter said:


> Would RIP=REVISING IN PROGRESS?


Eternal Revision!


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## Tevaras (May 30, 2013)

A. E. Lowan said:


> Would we call "fasterskating" an abbreviation or a dance?



Good evening A. E. Lowan,

umm, I'm not quite sure what you mean?


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## Tevaras (May 30, 2013)

Ireth said:


> OP does mean Original Poster, I believe.



Thank you Ireth.

Current list:
WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character
GOT = Game of Thrones
ASOIAF = A Song of Ice and Fire
GRRM = George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter
UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin
OP = Original Poster


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## Ireth (May 30, 2013)

A. E. Lowan said:


> Would we call "fasterskating" an abbreviation or a dance?



Neither; it's a euphemism. XD


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## Devor (May 30, 2013)

OP can sometimes also mean the Original Post.  Sometimes the "Original Poster" will still say "In the OP I asked..."  So either the first post or the person posting it.


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## Ireth (May 30, 2013)

Found another one that pops up now and again. WC = Word Count.


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## Tevaras (May 30, 2013)

Ireth said:


> Found another one that pops up now and again. WC = Word Count.



Good morning Ireth,
and here I was thinking W.C. meant 'Winston Churchill' or 'Water Closet' ;-).

Thank you Ireth


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## Tevaras (May 30, 2013)

Devor said:


> OP can sometimes also mean the Original Post. Sometimes the "Original Poster" will still say "In the OP I asked..." So either the first post or the person posting it.



Good morning Devor,

thank you for the clarification that O.P. can refer to either the person, or their first post (presumably in that thread).


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## Steerpike (May 30, 2013)

Anyone mention TANSTAAFL, or is that just a science fiction thing?


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## Tevaras (May 30, 2013)

The abbreviations list to date (big thank you to all the contributors):
WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character
GOT = Game of Thrones
ASOIAF = A Song of Ice and Fire
GRRM = George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter
UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin
OP = Original poster (the person) or Original Post (the first post in the thread)
WC = Word Count


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## druidofwinter (May 30, 2013)

I know that WOW stands for World of Warcraft. I do not play the game myself, but my brother did.


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## Grimmlore (May 31, 2013)

FP- first person
SP- second person
TP- third person (or if your funny it also stands for toilet paper)
this isn't anything popular but I think it should be.....


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## advait98 (May 31, 2013)

Ireth said:


> Found another one that pops up now and again. WC = Word Count.



Ah, so it doesn't mean World Cup. It kinda makes sense now.
And there I was thinking my guessing was getting better with OP...


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## Legendary Sidekick (May 31, 2013)

Steerpike said:


> Anyone mention TANSTAAFL, or is that just a science fiction thing?


I was brought up with the gramatically correct TINSTAAFL.
There is no such thing as a free lunch. (Or "ain't" in Steerpike's version.)


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## A. E. Lowan (Jun 1, 2013)

Legendary Sidekick said:


> I was brought up with the gramatically correct TINSTAAFL.
> There is no such thing as a free lunch. (Or "ain't" in Steerpike's version.)



Never.  Heinlein called it, TANSTAAFL, and thus it shall remain.


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## Tevaras (Jun 1, 2013)

Legendary Sidekick said:


> I was brought up with the gramatically correct TINSTAAFL.
> There is no such thing as a free lunch. (Or "ain't" in Steerpike's version.)


Good morning Legendary Sidekick,

what is T.A.N.S.A.A.F.L. AND T.I.N.S.T.A.A.F.L.?

Thanks


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## Tevaras (Jun 2, 2013)

The abbreviations list to date (big thank you to all the contributors):
WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character
GOT = Game of Thrones
ASOIAF = A Song of Ice and Fire
GRRM = George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter
UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin
OP = Original poster (the person) or Original Post (the first post in the thread)
WC = Word Count
WOW = for World of Warcraft
FP- first person
SP- second person
TP- third person


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## Devor (Jun 2, 2013)

WoW doesn't come up very often.  I've never seen the FP/SP/TP ones.

Sometimes you see "MS" for MythicScribes.


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## advait98 (Jun 2, 2013)

Don't forget BD for Black Dragon.


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## Chilari (Jun 2, 2013)

Devor said:


> WoW doesn't come up very often.  I've never seen the FP/SP/TP ones.
> 
> Sometimes you see "MS" for MythicScribes.



And sometimes MS means manuscript.


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## ALB2012 (Jun 5, 2013)

Someone on one of the ....more adult sites I belong to listed abbreviations... that was an education.


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## Tevaras (Jun 12, 2013)

The abbreviations list to date (big thank you to all the contributors):
WIP = Work In Progress
NIP = Novel In Progress
MC = Main Character
POV = Point Of View
FMC = Female Main Character
GOT = Game of Thrones
ASOIAF = A Song of Ice and Fire
GRRM = George R.R. Martin
LOTR = Lord of the Rings
HP = Harry Potter
UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin
OP = Original poster (the person) or Original Post (the first post in the thread)
WC = Word Count
WOW = for World of Warcraft
FP = first person
SP = second person
TP = third person
MS = Manuscript or Mythic Scribes
TINSTAAFL = There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
TANSTAAFL = There Aint No Such Thing As A Free Lunch (grammatically incorrect)
BD = Black Dragon


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## A. E. Lowan (Jun 12, 2013)

Tevaras said:


> Good evening A. E. Lowan,
> 
> umm, I'm not quite sure what you mean?



I'm sorry I took so long to reply, Tevaras.  "fasterskating" was me being a rude and naughty girl using an in-joke from a previous thread where we got in trouble for using questionable language which might have attracted unwanted traffic to our site.  It is a euphemism.  Say it out loud, and you will know what it means.


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## Tevaras (Jun 16, 2013)

Good evening A.E. Lowan,

I think I got it now - but for obvious reasons will not post the 'translation' on this forum ;-).

Where would society be without euphemisms? lol.

Have a good evening.


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## Ireth (Dec 22, 2013)

Found another abbreviation popping up now and again: HTH, for "hope this helps!"


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## Tevaras (Dec 23, 2013)

Good evening Ireth,

good to 'see' you online again, I hope the computer issues are well and truly sorted by now?

Anyway, thank you for the addition, nice to see you remembered the thread .


Have a good Christmas and New year,

Tevaras


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## Tevaras (Dec 23, 2013)

The abbreviations list to date (big thank you to all the contributors):
 WIP = Work In Progress
 NIP = Novel In Progress
 MC = Main Character
 POV = Point Of View
 FMC = Female Main Character
 GOT = Game of Thrones
 ASOIAF = A Song of Ice and Fire
 GRRM = George R.R. Martin
 LOTR = Lord of the Rings
 HP = Harry Potter
 UKL = Ursula K. Le Guin
 OP = Original poster (the person) or Original Post (the first post in the thread)
 WC = Word Count
 WOW = for World of Warcraft
 FP = first person
 SP = second person
 TP = third person
 MS = Manuscript or Mythic Scribes
 TINSTAAFL = There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
 TANSTAAFL = There Aint No Such Thing As A Free Lunch (grammatically incorrect)
 BD = Black Dragon 
HTH = Hope This Helps


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## psychotick (Apr 20, 2014)

Hi,

Not to be sexist but why do we have a female main character (FMC)? And if we must specify main characters by gender why is there not a male main character? (Of course MMC is also Mitsubishi Motors Corp but I don't think anyone will mind.)

To add to the list there's ROTF and ROTFLMAO (sometimes ROTFLMFAO) Rolling On The Floor Laughing My F***ing A**e Off!

Cheers, Greg.


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## Pythagoras (Apr 20, 2014)

what does IMO mean?


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## Devor (Apr 20, 2014)

Pythagoras said:


> what does IMO mean?



IMO = In My Opinion.  Sometimes you'll also see IMHO = In My Honest Opinion


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## psychotick (Apr 20, 2014)

Hi,

I thought it was In My Humble Opinion.

Cheers, Greg.


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## A. E. Lowan (Apr 20, 2014)

psychotick said:


> Hi,
> 
> Not to be sexist but why do we have a female main character (FMC)? And if we must specify main characters by gender why is there not a male main character? (Of course MMC is also Mitsubishi Motors Corp but I don't think anyone will mind.)
> 
> Cheers, Greg.



Not sexist, it's a valid question.  It's the answer that has it's roots in ambient sexism, and it's awesomesauce that you even have to ask - that means things are looking up.  A white male main character, as I'm sure many of us know, is seen as the default.  Therefore we have terms such as Female Main Character and Person of Color (POC) to specify that we are not working with the default settings.


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## Devor (Apr 21, 2014)

psychotick said:


> I thought it was In My Humble Opinion.



Woops, you're right.


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## BWFoster78 (Apr 23, 2014)

Can we refer to this list as the CFAL?


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## CupofJoe (Apr 23, 2014)

BWFoster78 said:


> Can we refer to this list as the CFAL?


And there really should be a TLA for CFAL... maybe its TFC - Tla For Cfal...
YMNF - Your mileage may vary [you might have a different opinion/experience]
TL-DR - Too long - didn't read [often meant somewhat ironically at the end of a long post so you can just read the summary of their argument]
and for authors I'd add
JRRT - Daddy Tolkien
PKD - Philip K Dick
HPL - Howard Philip Lovecraft
but I guess this list could be almost endless...


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## A. E. Lowan (Apr 23, 2014)

CupofJoe said:


> And there really should be a TLA for CFAL... maybe its TFC - Tla For Cfal...
> YMNF - Your mileage may vary [you might have a different opinion/experience]
> TL-DR - Too long - didn't read [often meant somewhat ironically at the end of a long post so you can just read the summary of their argument]
> and for authors I'd add
> ...



You and Brian are both bent... just tossing that out there, FYI.


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## Caged Maiden (Apr 23, 2014)

Right, I've seen it listed FPOV for first person POV, and I think that's how I write it more often than not, rather than spelling it out.  Otherwise, I'll say something like, "In a deep third limited POV, you get sentences like..."  I would not advocate overusing acronyms and getting really confusing.  We don't need it looking like a lonely hearts column. 

I'd also just like to mention a few abbreviations we use that have meanings too.  

Beta- Beta reader
Crit- Critique
fasterskating is a way of saying the author is writing details to please them self rather than considering the reader in the process.


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## chrispenycate (May 24, 2014)

and for those who're not as forum savvy I've copy/pasted a list of odd standards. Though I admit in my first forum I didn't even know what pm stood for until it was explained.


AAMOF = As a matter of fact
ASAP = As soon as possible
AFAIK = As far as I know
BEG = Big evil grin
EOT = End of text
FTL = faster than light
FYI = for your information
GEO = Geosynchronous Orbit (orbit with revolution period matching Earth's rotational period; in general, orbits with apogees and perigees between 30,000 and 40,000 km. Geostationary orbit = circular orbit with zero inclination irt equator -- most comm sats)
GMTA = Great minds think alike
HTH = Hope this helps
IMAO = In my arrogant opinion
IME = In my experience
IMO = In my opinion
IMHO = In my humble opinion
IMNSHO = In my not so humble opinion
KISS = Keep it simple, Stupid
LEO = 1. Law enforcement officer, 2. Low-Earth orbit (apogees and perigees below 3000 km -- most satellites)
MEGO = My Eyes Glaze Over. Informational overload, lost in jargon and/or technicalities.
NIMBY = Not in my back yard
OTL = Our timeline (vice alternate history timeline)
OT = Off topic
OTOH = On the other hand
PC = 1. Personal computer (esp. IBM-based technology); 2. Political Correctness (a statist political and social philosophy demanding (usu. quota-based) equal outcome at the expense of equal opportunity, and the elimination of all "offense" and "inequality" for defined minorities at the expense of those not defined as minorities.
PEBCAK = Problem Exists Between Chair and Keyboard
POV = Point of View
SWMBO = She Who Must Be Obeyed. Spouse/SO. Sometimes meant ironically, sometimes jokingly, sometimes facetiously, sometimes seriously. From Rumpole of the Bailey (pos. orig. She by H. Rider Haggard)
TAFITGFT = Tar And Feathering Is Too Good For Them
TfHB = Tinfoil Hat Brigade
TFIC = Tongue firmly in cheek
TIA = Thanks In Advance
YA = young adult (usually refers to books aimed at teenagers)


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## Devor (May 25, 2014)

I'm not sure how many of those I've seen.  But every time I look at this thread I think of at least one more.

YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary. It means that people are going to disagree about how much a particular point is a good thing or a bad thing.  _People use all sorts of crazy abbreviations.  YMMV about whether that's butchering the English language._

And of course, Mod = Moderator


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