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User:TimothyBlue/Timothy's Guide To Basic Article and Copy Editing

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Checklist for basic copy and format editing for new articles. This will ensure the article is ready for mainspace and prepare the article for a more in-depth edit of the prose, such as by the Guild of Copy Editors. It is not perfect. If others find it useful, I'm glad.

Remember: Do not over tag an article; only tag what is really needed. WP:TAGBOMB

Start[edit]

  • Determine that the article is not likely to end up as a successful WP:CSD or WP:AfD.
  • Run a copyright check and make necessary changes. Earwig's Copyvio Detector. Notify editors responsible if diffs can be found.
  • Does it need WP:DRAFTIFY?
  • Is the article a possible merge WP:MERGE or does the article need to be split WP:SPLIT?
  • Mark article {{in use}} if you want to work uninterupted, but remove if you're away.

Headings[edit]

  • Remove any links or unorthodox formatting in headings
  • If you have to change a section title, it is unlikely to need an anchor if it is new. Check what links here for any possible problems. Template:Anchor

Basic copy editing and formatting[edit]

  • Basic read through copy edit / typo check per WP:CE, WP:TYPO.
  • Check for any uninteligible sections/paragraphs/sentences that need rewriting immediately, rather than wait for a more indepth copy edit.
  • Determine the type of English and dating used. Add appropriate tags. MOS:ENGVAR MOS:DATE.
  • Fix dates MOS:DATE. Use User:Ohconfucius/script/MOSNUM dates.
  • Check for appropriate use of bold and italic text. MOS:BOLD, MOS:ITALIC
  • Make sure lists are formatting appropriately.
  • Spelling and grammer check.
  • Clean up any overall formatting issues. Remove any unorthodox formatting which violates WP:MOS or accessibility.
  • Make sure titles of works are formatted appropriately. MOS:WORKS
  • Remove any controversial unsourced material from BLP. WP:BLP
  • Use inline tags as necessary. List of Inline tags. Remember WP:TAGBOMB.
  • Check for WP:UNIT and add convert and coord templates.
  • Add Language templates as needed. Template:Lang MOS:FOREIGN
  • Add columns as appropriate to appendix sections. H:COL

More detailed copy editing[edit]

Accessibility[edit]

  • Captions and alt text for images.
  • Tables and lists formatted have appropriate headers and scopes
  • Remove any non-Wikipedia standard formatting from text.
  • Contrast check and color blindness check
  • Remove contractions. MOS:CONTRACTION
  • Skip to talk {{skip to talk}}

Gnomish[edit]

  • Remove extra spaces
  • Replace breaking spaces with non-breaking spaces where appropriate {{nbsp}}
  • Check for spaces between period and ref tag: . <ref
  • Check for spaces between refs: </ref> <ref

Wikilinks

  • Remove unnecessary, duplicate wikilinks per Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Linking
  • Add appropriate redlinks and Remove redlinks to unlikely articles. WP:REDLINK
  • Fix redlinks where article exists under a different title.
  • Add wikilinks to WP:DAB pages
  • Add wikilinks to new article from other articles. WP:WIKILINK
  • Add wikilinks to and from appropriate Content, Outline, and Index articles.
  • Add wikilinks to related lists.
  • Add wikilinks to any appropriate Bibliographies, Filmographies, Discographies.
  • Add hat notes to page and sections. WP:HAT#Hatnote templates Template:Hatnote templates
{{Main}} {{Further}} {{See also}} {{For}} {{About}} {{Other}}

Appendix Sections[edit]

References[edit]

Main pages: WP:REF, Help:Footnotes, Wikipedia:Inline citation, and Help:Referencing for beginners
  • Correct any formatting problems with the References sections
  • Is there a consistent citation style? If there are minor inconsistencies fix them.

Other[edit]

  • Check appendix sections, See also, Bibliography/Further reading, External Links for errors.
  • Is there a meaningful See also section?
  • Add any relevant Outlines, Indexes or Timelines to See also
  • Add any relevant Bibliography at a hat note to further reading if it exists, else to Bibliography or See also.
  • Do External links meet WP:EL (including those in the body of the article).

Talk page[edit]

Main page: WP:TALKLAYOUT
  • Skip to talk {{skip to talk}}
  • Add appropriate English variety statement. {{American English}} {{British English}} {{Indian English}}
  • Add BLP statement if appropriate. {{BLP}}
  • Add talk header if appropriate. {{talkheader}} Template:Talk header
  • Add DS notice if appropriate. Template:Ds/topics
  • Add archiving if appropriate.

Finish[edit]

  • Common tags {{more footnotes}} {{more citations needed}} {{notability}} {{pov}}
  • Full list of page templates here
  • Create any needed redirects.

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

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