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The 'Shroom:Manual of Style: Difference between revisions
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The 'Shroom strives to welcome writers of all skill levels. Whether they are relatively inexperienced with writing or you make a living writing, we want The 'Shroom to serve as a medium through which all interested members of the community can share their passions and work to improve their writing skills. The newsletter must, however, maintain certain standards and expectations of quality. For this reason, we have to establish base standards for the content that appears in the newsletter. | The 'Shroom strives to welcome writers of all skill levels. Whether they are relatively inexperienced with writing or you make a living writing, we want The 'Shroom to serve as a medium through which all interested members of the community can share their passions and work to improve their writing skills. The newsletter must, however, maintain certain standards and expectations of quality. For this reason, we have to establish base standards for the content that appears in the newsletter. | ||
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To aid new writers in understanding the standards of quality expected of content featured in The 'Shroom, this Manual of Style lays out the base standards which writers should be familiar with and follow. | To aid new writers in understanding the standards of quality expected of content featured in The 'Shroom, this Manual of Style lays out the base standards which writers should be familiar with and follow. | ||
If you are unsure about anything concerning the newsletter or its guidelines, feel free to [[The_%27Shroom:Contact_us|contact the 'Shroom Core Staff.]] We're more than happy to answer any questions you may have. Members of the Core Staff can assist you with editing your sections, can answer questions about the Wiki markup or content in your section, or can direct you to appropriate resources, so please be certain to contact them if you are unable to find an answer on your own. | If you are unsure about anything concerning the newsletter or its guidelines, feel free to [[The_%27Shroom:Contact_us|contact the 'Shroom Core Staff.]] We're more than happy to answer any questions you may have. Members of the Core Staff can assist you with editing your sections, can answer questions about the Wiki markup or content in your section, or can direct you to appropriate resources, so please be certain to contact them if you are unable to find an answer on your own. | ||
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==Basic Formatting:== | ==Basic Formatting:== | ||
In order to ensure The 'Shroom has a certain degree of readability, writers are expected to exercise fundamental writing and formatting skills. Team directors will edit formatting errors and other mistakes, but you should not rely on them to catch every mistake in your section. Team directors are not obligated to accept and edit sections with numerous glaring errors in basic grammar, spelling, and formatting. Proofread your sections, and ask a Core Staff member for assistance when you need it. All writers are expected to do their best to maintain their own section quality before sending them in. To properly format your section to match The 'Shroom's standards, we advise you to: | In order to ensure The 'Shroom has a certain degree of readability, writers are expected to exercise fundamental writing and formatting skills. Team directors will edit formatting errors and other mistakes, but you should not rely on them to catch every mistake in your section. Team directors are not obligated to accept and edit sections with numerous glaring errors in basic grammar, spelling, and formatting. Proofread your sections, and ask a Core Staff member for assistance when you need it. All writers are expected to do their best to maintain their own section quality before sending them in. To properly format your section to match The 'Shroom's standards, we advise you to: | ||
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*For more advanced formatting, such as tables, special links to YouTube, embedded videos, and templates, feel free to inspect the coding of past sections or reach out to a more experienced writer or staff member for assistance. | *For more advanced formatting, such as tables, special links to YouTube, embedded videos, and templates, feel free to inspect the coding of past sections or reach out to a more experienced writer or staff member for assistance. | ||
You can test out your formatting in the [[MarioWiki:Sandbox|Sandbox]]. You may use the preview function to check the formatting of your entire section at once, but you should not publish an entire section in the Sandbox. | You can test out your formatting in the [[MarioWiki:Sandbox|Sandbox]]. You may use the preview function to check the formatting of your entire section at once, but you should not publish an entire section in the Sandbox.</div> | ||
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==Numbers and Other Questions of Style:== | ==Numbers and Other Questions of Style:== | ||
The 'Shroom does not have an official style guide, nor does it endorse any existing style guides. On most questions of style, we encourage writers to use their best judgement and to prioritize readability and consistency. Nonetheless, there are a few recommendations we make in the interest of readability. | The 'Shroom does not have an official style guide, nor does it endorse any existing style guides. On most questions of style, we encourage writers to use their best judgement and to prioritize readability and consistency. Nonetheless, there are a few recommendations we make in the interest of readability. | ||
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**If two numbers are written next to each, one should be written as a word and the other as a numeral, e.g. “ten 10-year old dogs,” as opposed to “10 10-year old dogs.” | **If two numbers are written next to each, one should be written as a word and the other as a numeral, e.g. “ten 10-year old dogs,” as opposed to “10 10-year old dogs.” | ||
**If a sentence begins with a number, that number should be written out as a word rather than as a numeral. | **If a sentence begins with a number, that number should be written out as a word rather than as a numeral. | ||
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==Section Size:== | ==Section Size:== | ||
The 'Shroom does not set any minimum or maximum length for sections. Don't focus on an arbitrary minimum. What we're looking for are sections that feel complete and that make their point. The minimum length of your section should be however long it needs to be to fully develop your ideas. That will be shorter for some sections than others. Likewise, use good judgement and exercise good writing skills when thinking about the maximum length of your section. If your section is too long, continuing well after it has made its points, you'll lose the interest of readers. A key element to a good section is making it long enough to fully develop and complete your ideas and not much longer than that. | The 'Shroom does not set any minimum or maximum length for sections. Don't focus on an arbitrary minimum. What we're looking for are sections that feel complete and that make their point. The minimum length of your section should be however long it needs to be to fully develop your ideas. That will be shorter for some sections than others. Likewise, use good judgement and exercise good writing skills when thinking about the maximum length of your section. If your section is too long, continuing well after it has made its points, you'll lose the interest of readers. A key element to a good section is making it long enough to fully develop and complete your ideas and not much longer than that. | ||
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==Coverage:== | ==Coverage:== | ||
While the 'Shroom was originally focused solely on the ''Mario'' series and the MarioWiki, we have evolved over time and broadened our coverage. Currently, the 'Shroom accepts coverage of all subjects, with the exception of obscene, offensive, or otherwise unacceptable content that would not be allowed on the Wiki. | While the 'Shroom was originally focused solely on the ''Mario'' series and the MarioWiki, we have evolved over time and broadened our coverage. Currently, the 'Shroom accepts coverage of all subjects, with the exception of obscene, offensive, or otherwise unacceptable content that would not be allowed on the Wiki. | ||
*The 'Shroom remains neutral on all political ideologies, but we urge all writers to try to keep any discussion of politics relevant to the newsletter and to their section. A Critic Corner section discussing current events, for example, will be allowed more leeway for political discussion than a Fake News section about cooking fictional recipes. Keeping your section focused on its purpose, rather than meandering into tangents and unrelated topics, is simply an element of good writing. | *The 'Shroom remains neutral on all political ideologies, but we urge all writers to try to keep any discussion of politics relevant to the newsletter and to their section. A Critic Corner section discussing current events, for example, will be allowed more leeway for political discussion than a Fake News section about cooking fictional recipes. Keeping your section focused on its purpose, rather than meandering into tangents and unrelated topics, is simply an element of good writing. | ||
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==Strong Content and Spoilers:== | ==Strong Content and Spoilers:== | ||
Strong Content is defined as any material seen as potentially offensive to any person or group of persons, such as swearing, crude humour, spoilers, sexual references, and other such terms. The 'Shroom is not against the use of strong content to a degree in the newsletter, but we have guidelines to ensure our writers don't go overboard. | Strong Content is defined as any material seen as potentially offensive to any person or group of persons, such as swearing, crude humour, spoilers, sexual references, and other such terms. The 'Shroom is not against the use of strong content to a degree in the newsletter, but we have guidelines to ensure our writers don't go overboard. | ||
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*The 'Shroom makes no guarantees that its content will not include spoilers for media, including recently released media. Writers are encouraged but not required to include a spoiler warning at the start of their section using the appropriate template. | *The 'Shroom makes no guarantees that its content will not include spoilers for media, including recently released media. Writers are encouraged but not required to include a spoiler warning at the start of their section using the appropriate template. | ||
*When including strong content or spoilers in your sections, please be sure to add {{tem|ShroomStrongContent}}, indicating the type of content your section includes. | *When including strong content or spoilers in your sections, please be sure to add {{tem|ShroomStrongContent}}, indicating the type of content your section includes. | ||
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