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Chalo Chatu:Writing better articles: Difference between revisions
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Chalo Chatu:Writing better articles (view source)
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===First sentence content=== | ===First sentence content=== | ||
The article should begin with a short declarative sentence, answering two questions for the nonspecialist reader: "What (or who) is the subject?" and "Why is this subject | The article should begin with a short declarative sentence, answering two questions for the nonspecialist reader: "What (or who) is the subject?" and "Why is this subject notable?"<ref>For example: | ||
<blockquote> '''Levy Patrick Mwanawasa''' (3 September 1948 – 19 August 2008) was the third Republican President of Zambia. He ruled the country from January 2002 until his death in August 2008. | <blockquote> '''Levy Patrick Mwanawasa''' (3 September 1948 – 19 August 2008) was the third Republican President of Zambia. He ruled the country from January 2002 until his death in August 2008. | ||
He is credited for having initiated a campaign to rid the country of corruption.</blockquote> | He is credited for having initiated a campaign to rid the country of corruption.</blockquote> | ||
This example not only tells the reader that the subject was a Politician, it also indicates his field of expertise and work he did outside of it. The years of his birth and death provide time context. The reader who goes no further in this article already knows when he lived, what work he did, and why she is notable.</ref> | This example not only tells the reader that the subject was a Politician, it also indicates his field of expertise and work he did outside of it. The years of his birth and death provide time context. The reader who goes no further in this article already knows when he lived, what work he did, and why she is notable.</ref> | ||
* If possible, the page title should be the subject of the first sentence:<ref>For example: | * If possible, the page title should be the subject of the first sentence:<ref>For example: | ||
<blockquote>This '''Manual of Style''' is a | <blockquote>This '''Manual of Style''' is a style guide containing ...</blockquote> | ||
not | not | ||
<blockquote>This | <blockquote>This style guide, known as the '''Manual of Style''', contains ...</blockquote></ref> However, if the article title is merely descriptive—such as [[The 2016 General Elections]]—the title does not need to appear verbatim in the main text. Similarly, where an article title is of the type "List of ...", a clearer and more informative introduction to the list is better than ''verbatim'' repetition of the title. | ||
* When the page title is used as the subject of the first sentence, it may appear in a slightly different form, and it may include variations.<ref>For example, in the article "[[United Kingdom]]": | * When the page title is used as the subject of the first sentence, it may appear in a slightly different form, and it may include variations.<ref>For example, in the article "[[United Kingdom]]": | ||
<blockquote>The '''United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland''', commonly known as the '''United Kingdom''', the '''UK''', or '''Britain''', is a [[Sovereignty|sovereign]] [[island country]] located off the northwestern coast of [[continental Europe]].</blockquote></ref> Similarly, if the title has a parenthetical disambiguator, the disambiguator should be omitted in the text.<ref>Thus, the article [[Egg (food)]] should start like this: | <blockquote>The '''United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland''', commonly known as the '''United Kingdom''', the '''UK''', or '''Britain''', is a [[Sovereignty|sovereign]] [[island country]] located off the northwestern coast of [[continental Europe]].</blockquote></ref> Similarly, if the title has a parenthetical disambiguator, the disambiguator should be omitted in the text.<ref>Thus, the article [[Egg (food)]] should start like this: | ||
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<blockquote>In [[cryptography]], a '''trusted third party''' is an entity that facilitates interactions between two parties who both trust the third party.</blockquote></ref> | <blockquote>In [[cryptography]], a '''trusted third party''' is an entity that facilitates interactions between two parties who both trust the third party.</blockquote></ref> | ||
* If the article is about a fictional character or place, make sure to say so.<ref>For example: | * If the article is about a fictional character or place, make sure to say so.<ref>For example: | ||
<blockquote>''' | <blockquote>'''Jason Kabanana''' is a fictional character in ''Kabanana''.</blockquote></ref> | ||
<!-- | |||
{{ | ===First sentence format=== | ||
* As a general rule, the first (and only the first) appearance of the page title should be in boldface as early as possible in the first sentence: | |||
<blockquote>{{xt| The '''2017-18 Zambia cholera outbreak''' in an on going epidemic of cholera affecting much of Zambia.}}</blockquote> | |||
* However, if the title of a page is descriptive and does not appear ''verbatim'' in the main text, then it should not be in boldface. So, for example, [[ History of Zambia]] begins with: | |||
<blockquote>{{xt| This article deals with the history of the country now called [[Zambia]] from prehistoric times to the present. .}}</blockquote> | |||
* If the subject of the page is normally [[Wikipedia:ITALICS#Italic type|italicized]] (for example, a work of art, literature, album, or ship) then its first mention should be both bold and italic text; if it is usually surrounded by quotation marks, the title should be bold but the quotation marks should not: | |||
<blockquote>{{xt| '''''Voiceless Woman''''' is the fourth studio album by | |||
Zambian recording artist B Flow, released on 24 September 2013...}}</blockquote> | |||
<blockquote>{{xt|"'''Dear Mama'''" is a song by Zambian singer and songwriter [[B Flow]] and the title track from his fifth studio album Dear Mama (2016).}}</blockquote> | |||
* Use as few links as possible before and in the bolded title. Thereafter, words used in a title may be linked to provide more detail: | |||
<blockquote>{{xt| '''Kalulushi District''' is a [[Districts of Zambia|district]] of [[Zambia]], located in [[Copperbelt Province]]. The capital lies at [[Kalulushi]].}}</blockquote> | |||
=== The rest of the opening paragraph === | |||
Then proceed with a description. Remember, the basic significance of a topic may not be obvious to nonspecialist readers, even if they understand the basic characterization or definition. Tell them. For instance: | |||
:'''Peer review''', known as ''refereeing'' in some academic fields, is a scholarly process used in the publication of manuscripts and in the awarding of money for research. Publishers and agencies use peer review to select and to screen submissions. At the same time, the process assists authors in meeting the standards of their discipline. Publications and awards that have not undergone peer review are liable to be regarded with suspicion by scholars and professionals in many fields. | |||
=== The rest of the lead section === | |||
If the article is long enough for the lead section to contain several paragraphs, then the first paragraph should be short and to the point, with a clear explanation of what the subject of the page is. The following paragraphs should give a summary of the article. They should provide an overview of the main points the article will make, summarizing the primary reasons the subject matter is interesting or notable, including its more important controversies, if there are any. | |||
The appropriate length of the lead section depends on the total length of the article. As a general guideline: | |||
{| class="wikitable" | |||
|- | |||
! Article Length | |||
! Lead Length | |||
|- | |||
| Fewer than 15,000 characters | |||
| One or two paragraphs | |||
|- | |||
| 15,000–30,000 characters | |||
| Two or three paragraphs | |||
|- | |||
| More than 30,000 characters | |||
| Three or four paragraphs | |||
|} | |||
=== "Lead follows body" === | |||
The sequence in which you edit should usually be: first change the body, then update the lead to summarize the body. Several editors might add or improve some information in the body of the article, and then another editor might update the lead once the new information has stabilized. Don't try to update the lead first, hoping to provide direction for future changes to the body. There are three reasons why editing the body first and then making the lead reflect it tends to lead to better articles. | |||
First, it keeps the lead in sync with the body. The lead, being a summary of the article, promises that the body will deliver fuller treatment of each point. Generally, wiki pages are imperfect at all times, but they should be complete, useful articles at all times. They should not contain "under construction" sections or refer to features and information that editors hope they will contain in the future. It's much worse for the lead to promise information that the body does not deliver than for the body to deliver information that the lead does not promise. | |||
Second, good ways to summarize material usually only become clear after that material has been written. If you add a new point to the lead before it's covered in the body, you only think you know what the body ''will'' eventually contain. When the material is actually covered in the body, and checked and improved, usually by multiple editors, then you ''know.'' (If having a rough, tentative summary helps you write the body, keep your own private summary, either on your computer or in your User space.) | |||
Third, on contentious pages, people often get into edit wars over the lead because the lead is the most prominent part of the article. It's much harder to argue constructively over high-level statements when you don't share common understanding of the lower-level information that they summarize. Space is scarce in the lead, so people are tempted to cram too much into one sentence, or pile on lots of references, in order to fully state and prove their case—resulting in an unreadable lead. In the body, you have all the space you need to cover subtleties and to cover opposing ideas fairly and in depth, separately, one at a time. Once the opposing ideas have been shaken out and covered well in the body, editing the lead without warring often becomes much easier. Instead of arguing about what is true or what all the competing sources say, now you are just arguing over whether the lead fairly summarizes what's currently in the body. | |||
== Use color sparingly == | |||
If possible, avoid presenting information with color only within the article's text and in tables. | |||
Color should only be used sparingly, as a secondary visual aid. Computers and browsers vary, and you cannot know how much color, if any, is visible on the recipient's machine. Wikipedia is international: colors have different meaning in different cultures. Too many colors on one page look cluttered and unencyclopedic. Specifically, use the color red only for alerts and warnings. | |||
Awareness of color should be allowed for low-vision viewers: poor lighting, color blindness, dark or overbright screens, and the wrong contrast/color settings on the display screen. | |||
== Other issues == | |||
; Honorifics : Do not use honorifics or titles, such as Mr, Ms, Rev, Doctor, etc. | |||
; Inappropriate subjects : If you are trying to dress up something that doesn't belong in Chalo Chatu—your band, your Web site, your company's product—think twice about it. Chalo Chatu is not an advertising medium or home page service. Wikipedians are pretty clever, and if an article is really just personal gratification or blatant advertising, it's not going to last long—no matter how "important" you say the subject is. | |||
; Integrate changes: {{anchor|Integrate changes}}When you make a change to some text, rather than appending the new text you would like to see included at the bottom of the page, if you feel so motivated, please place and edit your comments so that they flow seamlessly with the present text. Chalo Chatu articles should not end up being a series of disjointed comments about a subject, but unified, seamless, and ever-expanding expositions of the subject. | |||
; Avoiding common mistakes : It is easy to commit a Chalo Chatu''faux pas''. That is OK—everybody does it! Nevertheless, here are a few you might try to avoid. | |||
; Make a personal copy : Suppose you get into an edit war. Or worse, a revert war. Therefore, you try to stay cool. This is good. Congratulations! However, what would be great is if you could carry on working on the article, even though there is an edit war going on, and even though the version on the top is the evil one favored by the other side in the dispute. | |||
:So, '''make a personal copy''' as a subpage of your user page. Just start a new page at [[Special:MyPage/Article name]] (it can be renamed in the URL address to start a page with a different article name), and copy and paste the wiki-source in there. Then you can carry on improving the article at your own pace! If you like, drop a note on the appropriate [[Chalo Chatu:talk page|talk page]] to let people know what you are doing. | |||
:Some time later, at your leisure, once the fuss has died down, merge your improvements back in to the article proper. Maybe the other person has left Wikipedia, finding it not to their taste. Maybe they have gone on to other projects. Maybe they have changed their mind. Maybe someone else has made similar edits anyway (although they may not be as good as yours, as you have had more time to consider the matter). | |||
== Notes == | == Notes == | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
{{Template:Chalo Chatu}} | |||
[[Category:Chatu how-to]] | [[Category:Chatu how-to]] | ||
[[Category:Chalo Chau essays on building the encyclopedia]] | [[Category:Chalo Chau essays on building the encyclopedia]] | ||
[[Category:Chalo Chatu editor help]] | [[Category:Chalo Chatu editor help]] | ||
[[Category:Chalo Chatu essays about editing]] | [[Category:Chalo Chatu essays about editing]] | ||
[[Category:Chalo | [[Category:Chalo Chatu page help]] | ||
[[Category:Chalo Chatu]] | |||
