The following are simple templates intended to make it easier for new users of the Wiki to add material in a format that is consistent with our established usage. Each contains a skeleton page of its type, with some explanatory notes and useful advice. Simply edit the template page (by clicking on the "Edit Page" button at its top or bottom) and copy its contents to the page you are creating, then add real content to replace the sample material.
Templates
The basic page types found on the Wiki are:
Note: If you are creating more than one page at a time, you may want to save copies of the templates on your local machine and work from them. This is because (as of this writing) the edit process "locks" a page for ten minutes -- and if you leave it without saving you can't get back in until that ten minutes is up.
While some simple formatting advice can be found in each template, complete formatting guidelines and codes can be found on the pages
Tips For Editing and
Text Formatting Rules.
Style Guidelines
We have a few loose guidelines as to layout style that apply to all of the following templates. (These are, however, only a loose consensus, and subject to argument and revision.) Many of these help standardize the look of a page, and usually contribute to readability both in and out of the page editor. It's possible to code things in the editor to be impossibly opaque there while still clean and easily read when displayed, but that might be considered rather antisocial. Maximizing the readability of the page
source is good practice that makes it easier for others to build on your work.
To this end, please try to be familiar with these basic formatting guidelines:
- There are two ways to form Wiki Words:
- Remove all the spaces between the words of a phrase: OrWasItADream will become Or Was It A Dream. Most pages can be created/referenced with this kind of Wiki Word.
- Single words, or phrases with embedded dashes or which need for some reason to retain any internal spaces can be Wikified by surrounding them with double curly brackets: For instance, {{Stargate SG-1}} becomes Stargate SG-1 when the Wiki magic works its way upon it.
- You'll also want to do this if you want to add letters to the beginning or end of a word; for instance, {{Achilles Heel}}s becomes Achilles Heels.
- Don't combine the two! It'll be a working link, but it'll look wrong: OrWasItADream.
- Trope/program names with embedded symbols ("M*A*S*H", "Ranma 1/2") are a little harder. You must use a symbol-less version of the name as the actual Wiki Word/page name ("{{MASH}}", "RanmaOneHalf"). To get it to look right in the Wiki, you can use a special coding that applies a Wiki Word link to any abitrary text. For instance, [[RanmaOneHalf Ranma 1/2]] produces a link in the form Ranma 1/2.
- It's a good idea to turn every program/series name into a Wiki Word, even if there's no entry for it yet. Someday someone may write one, and you want to be ready for it.
- Similarly, make the names of books, comics, films, video games, and anything else that someone might want to link to someday into a Wiki Word.
- Don't italicize the names of tropes.
- Do italicize the names of series, films, books, etc.
- Exception: Don't italicize anyhting on index pages (e.g., Canadian Series).
- Put the names of episodes, short stories, and non-epic poetry in "double quotes".
- Webcomics and other web content can be directly linked if you want, but it's not mandatory. This is done using a variation of the "arbitrary text" coding mentioned above: [[(URL here) Link text here]]
- Whenever using special coding to form a link, always put the italics markup outside the coding, or it will not parse properly: ''[[RanmaOneHalf Ranma 1/2]]'' will result in Ranma 1/2, but [[RanmaOneHalf ''Ranma 1/2'']] will become ''Ranma 1/2''.
- Don't use ALL CAPS or *asterisks* for emphasis. Use italics instead. There is a special coding for what we call asscaps (all caps) [[AC:(your text)]]. It uses a smaller bold font, allowing you to shout in an indoor voice.
- Be sparing in the use of horizontal rule lines -- most of the time they're needed only to separate the description from the examples and the examples from the navigation bar.
- It's not necessary to be brief, but try not to ramble too much.
- Please keep "in-line" examples of a trope to a minimum -- save them for the "Examples" section at the end of the page. We have started segregating examples by media because Anime examples, for instance, only work for Anime folks and Speculative Fiction Literature examples only work for people who read that sort of thing. There is a big overlap in those two groups, of course, but some fans of Live Action TV, to pick a medium at random, don't do either, so the examples are just wasted space to them.
- Please try to avoid common and simple spelling errors, like "teh" for "the", "thier" for "their" and so on. Also, although they may not be all that common in usual speech, on this site "existence" and "villain" come up a lot, so please don't spell them "existence" and "villain". Especially when naming a trope. While the Wiki Magic will take care of these sooner or later, you'll earn more props and credibility among the other contributors if your work looks polished to start with.
- Similarly, try to adhere to basic syntax and grammar rules. Incomprehensible, rambling or incoherent text will get removed or replaced very quickly on the Wiki.
- That said, there's nothing wrong with being funny. In fact, it's encouraged. One reason this Wiki exists is to make fun of how often these stock elements are shamelessly reused by hack writers. Mocking them is perfectly all right.
- Before you submit an edit, check the very bottom of the entry field. If there is an empty line there, leave it. If not, add one. The Page Histories always show the last line of any given entry as being edited, and it's easier to read if that line is a blank space rather than a category bar. Do not delete the empty lines. We beg you.
