Sunday, August 11, 2013

I Am a WYSIWYG Person—Are You?

The acronym WYSIWYG—pronounced "whizzy wig"—comes from computing.
WYSIWYG = What You See Is What You Get
Not my license plate. But wouldn't it be cool?
It refers to text on a computer that looks exactly the same while you're editing it as it will look after you publish it. Geek out here if you want to know more.

I think it’s high time the term WYSIWYG was brought into the mainstream. Why? Because it’s so useful to describe things other than text on a screen. For one thing—people!

Like Me, For Instance

I am a WYSIWYG person. With me, what you see is what you get.

Somebody asked me my age today. And I told him. I can’t be bothered with the conventional wisdom that a woman must never reveal her age. Who cares? If he wants to know, I’ll tell him.

WYSIWYG and proud
I have a hard time being fake in any way. I would make a terrible salesperson, and a rotten actor. I say what I mean, and I mean what I say. I don’t flatter people unless it’s sincere. I have a hard time lying, even in situations where I know I should lie.

Being this way got a lot easier as I got older and stopped giving a rat’s fanny about what other people think. I look forward to being that old lady who has absolutely no filter. I’ll be able to get away with anything! It will be awesome.

Are You WYSIWYG Too? Let’s Be Friends

I can spot other WYSIWYG people a mile away. Within minutes of meeting you, I know whether you’re a kindred spirit.

If you are, then I’ll admire you for your lack of bullshit. And I need friends like you, because I have a deep need to be able to take people at face value. I will be emailing or texting you to try to make you my friend, because I have no tolerance for “don’t call right away, give it a few days” and other such games. (Dating sucked. I’m so happy I married my WYSIWYG husband.)

The WYSIWYG Personality

Image credit: Allthingsd.com
A lot of folks in my family have very literal minds. My brother, even at the ripe old age of 30-something, often thinks you’re being serious when you’re clearly (to most people) joking. I don’t think he could lie if he tried.

This makes us great at jobs that require literal thinking. Science, technology, programming, foreign languages, even writing and proofreading.

This is either the coolest, or the creepiest, ad of all time.
Image credit: Coloribus.com
But the creative arts are another thing. I find blogging fun. Nonfiction is easy. But fiction takes me out of my comfort zone. I can write it, but I have to get my head out of the mundane and take it to a different plane.

It’s my dream to write a novel. I may accomplish that one day. But until then—what you see is what you get!

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28 comments:

  1. www.icescreammama.comAugust 13, 2013 at 7:28 AM

    so in your novel you will be something totally different, huh.

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    1. JenAugust 13, 2013 at 7:32 AM

      Well, *I* won't be different. But I'll have to figure out how to say things in the characters' voices rather than in my own voice. This has been a stretch for me when I've tried it so far. The characters end up too much alike!

      Delete
  2. Kirsten OliphantAugust 13, 2013 at 8:11 AM

    I feel like I heard about wsiwyg on a movie recently, and now it's going to drive me nuts til I remember. I am like this in some instances, but then other times, not so much. Fiction writing is so different for me as well, but not for the same reasons. I have to access this other part of me that doesn't come out unless I've got real time to devote and no children around and all that kind of stuff. So, yeah. One day. :)

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    1. JenAugust 13, 2013 at 8:19 AM

      I totally understand because I have the same obstacle. It's impossible to write, let alone let your imagination roam freely, when you've got little children in the room. Nothing brings you back down to earth like your kid saying, "Mommy! I just peed my pants!"

      Delete
  3. GiaAugust 13, 2013 at 10:25 AM

    I think a wysiwyg is a good thing to be! I kind of am...

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  4. AlyAugust 13, 2013 at 2:41 PM

    Dream your novel-writing dreams! I like a no-bullshitter, it's how I also prefer to spend my time.

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  5. MamarificAugust 13, 2013 at 7:30 PM

    Wysiwyg is the way to be. With every candle I add to the birthday cake, I become more this way. Keep your dream going, whatever it takes!

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    1. JenAugust 13, 2013 at 8:16 PM

      Ain't it the truth? Each year I care less and less about pretending to be anything but myself.

      Delete
  6. UnknownAugust 13, 2013 at 11:21 PM

    I think the wysiwyg concept is much easier to understand in terms of personality than text. I think its the way to go.

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  7. dorothyadeleAugust 14, 2013 at 5:51 AM

    I also am not shy about my opinion, but as I have aged I have learned the importance of a filter. I like your analogy.

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    1. JenAugust 14, 2013 at 8:00 AM

      I definitely have a filter. It just filters out less than it used to! It took me years to master that thing called tact, so I'm not giving it up completely.

      Delete
  8. psychochefAugust 14, 2013 at 8:34 AM

    I have a WYSIWYG personality as a social creature; however, I am an abject failure at most things that involve science and technology.

    Like you, I am more attracted to writing nonfiction. Good luck with your novel!

    Karen

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    1. JenAugust 14, 2013 at 9:15 AM

      Interesting! I wondered whether this type of personality would correlate with science-y jobs. Maybe not so much.

      Delete
  9. Whoa! Susannah (Formerly Write, Rinse, Repeat)August 14, 2013 at 10:12 AM

    I wish I was more of a whizzy wag or whizzy wig or however you pronouced it in real life. I blog what I think, but I'm actually fairly shy in person. I envy you.

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    1. JenAugust 14, 2013 at 10:41 AM

      I understand, I was pretty shy most of my life. Only lately, at the age of thirty-something, am I more of a people person. I find it so much easier to express things in writing than face to face.

      Delete
  10. RachelAugust 14, 2013 at 2:33 PM

    WYSIWYG. I love it. You're right, that should creep its way into the main stream. I'd like to think I'm a kindred spirit here, but I can be kind of shy sometimes. I love writing nonfiction too though--it is much easier than fiction for me too. I look forward to reading your novel one day though!

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    1. JenAugust 14, 2013 at 6:47 PM

      I am far less shy on my blog than in person. Yay for the written word.

      Delete
  11. Soulz RebelAugust 14, 2013 at 6:33 PM

    I wanna be a WYSIWYG person but I'm not sure I'm completely there. It's some thing that I am still working on.

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    1. JenAugust 14, 2013 at 6:47 PM

      For me it was the reverse, my natural tendency is to share way too much and I've spent my life scaling it back!

      Delete
  12. Natalie DeYoungAugust 15, 2013 at 10:25 AM

    I'm sure my husband wishes I was a WYSIWYG...

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    1. JenAugust 15, 2013 at 11:46 AM

      HA! I have dated guys that I wished were WYSIWYG because I never knew what was going on in their brains!

      Delete
  13. Christie TateAugust 15, 2013 at 10:36 AM

    I totally get that vibe from you. I am still sort of fakey in high pressure situations, but I want to be more WYSIWYG. I am working on it!

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    1. JenAugust 15, 2013 at 11:48 AM

      Well, there is something to be said for "fake it until you make it." It's hard (for me anyway), but sometimes it's worth doing.

      Delete
  14. IASoupMamaAugust 15, 2013 at 11:37 AM

    I was 17 when an adult told me, "You are sometimes hard for people because you are wide-open and unpretentious about everything." I was confused at the time, but now know she was telling me that I sucked at playing the social games that other people played. I'm OK with that.

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    1. JenAugust 15, 2013 at 11:47 AM

      I appreciate people like you because I never have to wonder whether you mean what you say! I can't take the "games" either.

      Delete

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