WIP Lenses

A lens in WIP, or Work in Progress, is a lens that fits certain criteria:

1. It is new and has never been published.
2. It has been published but has less than four modules.
3. It has been published but has a LensRank below our cutoff threshold.

If your lens is brand spanking new, or you've never published it, you'll need to do a little bit of work to get your lens out of WIP and allow it to be published.

1. Write a great intro module.
The intro module should explain what your lens is about and make your reader want to learn more. Tell a story, show off some great photos, and engage them in your topic. This is the first impression lensmasters will get of your lens, and you want it to be great.

2. Add supporting modules.
A lens is rarely only four modules long. Some of our greatest ones DO get to be long! How can you use Squidoo modules to tell a story? Try using the BlackBox module (available in colors!) to break up long lenses into sections. Use the Text List and Link List modules to add bullet points without knowing HTML or CSS. Use the Text with BIG Picture to add life-size (or close) images of your topic at hand. And don't forget a Guestbook so readers can contact you.

3. Polish your lens.
Technically, all lenses are works in progress. You never want to totally let your lens sit. But your debut is important, so shine up your lens before publishing it.

4. Get help from our mentors.
If you're new to Squidoo and want some one-on-one help building your lens, ask one of our many helpful Mentors. They know everything from creating your first lens to adding HTML links and videos and writing great copy!

5. Get a critique.
Once you've finished and published your lens, get even more help with a critique at our SquidU Forum.

Lenses don't come out of WIP immediately. This will take some time. Usually, we update our LensRank every morning. Once it "rolls over," as we say, your lens should, if it meets all the criteria, climb up into the featured ranks.

If we're running special updates or running into glitches, this process may take two or three days. Sorry for the inconvenience! If your lens has been published, has more than four modules, AND has been in WIP for more than a week, please file a bug report and let us know. Be sure to give us the lens URL.