Norapedia:Guidelines

As a collaborative effort, it is necessary to set guidelines that will help maintain uniformity throughout the Wiki. These guidelines are not meant to overwhelm, but rather to facilitate contributions from members in a consistant manner. Do not feel restricted by all that is listed on this page; if a contribution doesn't follow the guidelines, it can be tweaked at a later date. Editors with a concern or disagreement regarding Norapedia's guidelines can discuss differences of opinion in an effort to reach a solution through our community forum).

Article Names

 * Creating a page: Capitalize the words in the title (except for "articles" and "conjunctions" such as: a, as, but, for, is, of, the, to).
 * Character articles: Titles of character articles should be the characters full first and last name as given in the book.
 * If the character is known by a partial name or nickname, then that can be noted in the article itself.
 * It may be necessary to create redirect pages for any and all alternate names that may be used in a search when looking for a specific article. To create a redirect page, type the following in the edit field: #REDIRECT Name of Correct Article.

Infoboxes

 * Infobox provide an overview of information is that is easy to find and easy to read. Templates are copied and pasted into new articles, then the information is added by the appropriate parameter.
 * Templates can be found in the template category or on the main page.
 * The information in the information and the image in the infobox must correspond with one another. Therefore, if you have found an image for the original release, but do not have the publication date or ISBN number, then that information must remain blank until it can be obtained.
 * Likewise, if you have the information and image for a later release, then that can go into the infobox.
 * In which case, if there is an image for the original release, it can be placed in the "Other Releases" section with its status listed in the caption.

Headlines and Sections

 * Following standard Wiki practice, the title or subject of the article should appear in the first line in bold.
 * Please note the following sections for books pages:
 * Plot Summary
 * Memorable Quotes
 * Real World - if there is information that relates to real world people, events, or places
 * Other Releases - includes reprints under the original title or a collection with the year of publication
 * References - be sure to include under the section heading
 * Please note the following sections for character pages:
 * Description - physical description of the character
 * Background - information about the character's past
 * His Story or Her Story - information provided about the character that takes place during the story
 * Please not the following sections for secondary or minor characters:
 * Description - physical description of the character
 * The Story - includes background information, as well info provided about the character as revealed in the story

Quotes

 * Quotes should be dialogue from a Nora Roberts' book that stands out as memorable, noteworthy, or simply humorous. However, Book pages and Character pages should not become a clearinghouses for a litany of dialogue. If necessary, quotes can be placed on a Talk page and a consensus can be reached about which ones to include.
 * Add quotes using the standard quote format:
 * Character's Name: type the lines of quoted text.
 * continue using the same format for the rest of the quote (link the character's name the first time it appears in a quote)

Other Releases

 * Images of covers for reprints, reissues, or additional formats can be included in this section, along with the media type and publication date.

Perspective and Tense

 * "in-universe" (IU): describes people and events that exist within the world of the book (ex: Rafe NcKade).
 * All IU articles (books and characters) are to be written in the present tense, as if it is current.
 * The body of an IU article should never refer to its content as part of a book, but rather as if it were a real life occurrence.
 * "out-of-univerise" (OOU): describes people and events that exist in the real world (publisher).
 * All OOU articles (ex: themes) are to be written in the present tense, unless specifically referring to an event or person from the past.
 * Reader's may be interested in a real world subject as it provides context for what is taking place in the story.
 * Information can be added under the "Real World" heading, with external links if elabloration is necessary.

Saving your Contributions

 * Before clicking on the "Save page" button, show the preview in an effort to limit the number of edits. Often times, by looking at the preview, you can spot incorrect wiki code or typos.
 * Add a brief explanation in the summary field so that other editors can readily see the changes made without having to go to the page or its history.