Wikipedia:WikiProject Slipknot/Guidelines

WikiProject Slipknot Information Main Project page Main Discussion page Article of Focus Current History To do Scope Assessment Outreach Guidelines Portal Guidelines Welcome to the guidelines for how to write an article related to Slipknot. Please remember that these are just guidelines; nothing is set in stone here, each article is subjective and these are just recommendations. Also, Project members are actively encouraged to contribute to the guidelines to further aid the Projects impact upon articles within its scope. Article Structure Infobox Sample Album Studio album by WikiProject Slipknot Released January 2008 Recorded January 2008 Genre Metal Length 666 Label WikiProject Slipknot Producer WikiProject Slipknot WikiProject Slipknot chronology Sample Album Sample Album Sample Album Professional ratings Review scores Source Rating WikiProject Slipknot One thing that cannot be stressed enough is the importance of an infobox in an article. For those who do not know what an infobox is, an infobox is a box on the right hand side of the page that gives the reader basic information on the article. The infoboxes used for Slipknot related articles is {{Infobox Album}}, {{Infobox Song}}, {{Infobox Single}}, and {{Infobox Musical artist}}. A full list of musical infoboxes is available at: Category:Music infobox templates. An example of what an album infobox might look like is to the right-hand side of this paragraph. The necessary codes for all infoboxes for articles within the Project's scope are below. Not all of the code is needed for absolutely every article, although for the ease of future editing, please copy all of it when the infobox is being created in case another editor decides they want to fill it in. Band and band members {{Infobox Musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject Musicians --> | Name = | Img = | Img_capt = | Img_size = <!-- Only for images narrower than 220 pixels --> | Landscape = | Background = | Birth_name = | Alias = | Born = | Died = | Origin = | Instrument = | Genre = | Occupation = | Years_active = | Label = | Associated_acts = | URL = | Current_members = | Past_members = | Notable_instruments = }} Code Display solo_singer Background information non_vocal_instrumentalist Background information non_performing_personnel Background information group_or_band Background information classical_ensemble Background information temporary Background information Albums {{Infobox album | name = | type = | artist = | cover = | alt = | released = <!-- {{start date|||}} --> | recorded = | venue = | studio = | genre = <!-- Do not add unsourced genres --> | length = | label = | producer = | prev_title = | prev_year = | next_title = | next_year = }} Code Display studio Studio album by artist demo Demo album by artist EP EP by artist single album Single album by artist live Live album by artist greatest Greatest hits album by artist remix Remix album by artist box Box set by artist compilation Compilation album by artist mixtape Mixtape by artist soundtrack Soundtrack album by artist film Film score by artist cast Cast recording by artist video Video by artist other other by artist Singles {{Infobox Single <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Songs --> | Name = | Cover = | Caption = | Artist = | from Album = | A-side = | B-side = | Released = | Format = | Recorded = | Genre = | Length = mm:ss | Label = | Writer = | Producer = Please note: This is not necessarily the same as "Artist" | Certification = | Chart position = | Last single = | This single = | Next single = | Misc = }} Songs {{Infobox Song <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Songs --> | Name = | Cover = | Caption = | Type = | Artist = | alt Artist = | Album = | Published = | Released = | track_no = | Recorded = | Genre = | Length = | Writer = | Composer = | Label = | Producer = | Chart position = | Tracks = | prev = | prev_no = | next = | next_no = | Misc = }} Lead The first thing needed in an article is a hatnote (if necessary). This is simply a link to a disambiguation page or an article with the same name, often this isn't needed due to originality but they are required were necessary. The first question that the reader will probably ask themselves is "Is this the article that I am looking for?" The lead is one of the most important parts of the article as it gives the reader a general overview of the article. The first sentence should include the name of the subject in bold ('''Subject'''). For albums also add italics to the subject ('''''Album Name'''''). For songs add quotations outside of the bold ("'''Song Name'''"). The lead should also includes some basic information (even if it is already covered in the infobox). A lead in is a summary of the article and it's recommended that you write it retrospectively. A common mistake in the lead is using weasel words and saying something to the effect of "Many believe that this is the best album ever." An improved replacement for such a phrase would be "This album is widely regarded as a good album." followed by references to reviews from well-known music review websites. Layout The sectioning of an articles content helps establish key areas that groups of information fall under. All articles should have multiple sections where possible. Here is a list of recommended sections to be used in articles within the projects scope: Band Members Biography Musical Career Personal Life (Other notable careers e.g.; director/actor/author) Style Equipment Influences (both of the artist and influences on other artists) Discography Videography Example: John Lennon Albums Recording and production Music style and lyrical themes Reception Track listing Chart positions Personnel Example: Reign in Blood Songs/Singles Background and writing Music and structure Reception/Reviews Appearances Music video Formats and track listings Example: All You Need Is Love Writing Style When editing any article within the project's scope bear in mind that Wikipedia's editorial policy is the "neutral point of view," which offers that all articles must be written without bias opinion and provide facts and not opinions. All articles should also follow the Manual of style (see WP:MOS). Images Wikipedia policy determines that some usage of copyrighted materials without permission of the copyright holder can qualify as fair use in the United States (see WP:IUP). All articles regarding albums, singles and DVDs should have an image depicting the product, these images require a fair use rationale (see WP:RAT). Any images regarded as in the public domain may be used in any article, however the usage must be beneficial to the article and not just used because it's available. Wikimedia Commons has free media related to Slipknot. Templates The appropriate template to place at the bottom of all Slipknot related articles is {{Slipknot}}. Regardless of the subject, this template is to be present on all articles related to Slipknot. All articles within the project's scope should also have the {{Slipknot Project}} template on their talk page. Stub templates A stub is an article containing only a few sentences of text which is too short to provide encyclopedic coverage of the subject, but not too short as to provide no useful information (see WP:STUB). All stub articles should use stub templates were necessary. Please use {{musician-stub}} for band member articles, {{band-stub}} for band articles, {{Album-stub}} for album related articles, and {{song-stub}} for song related articles. For a full list of music related stub templates visit Wikipedia:WikiProject_Stub_sorting/Stub_types#Music. The stubs listed above are not the ones you have to use, if you can find a better one please use it. Of course, stub templates are only necessary if the article is stub-sized. Categories If the article is a band member article then it should be placed in Category:Slipknot (band) members. If the article is an album article then it should be placed in Category:Slipknot (band) albums. If the article is a song article it should go in Category:Slipknot (band) songs. If the article is a DVD article it should go in Category:Slipknot (band) video albums. All other Slipknot related articles that do not fit in to any of the previous categories should be placed in Category:Slipknot (band). See WP:CAT. Citations Citation is one of the most important factors when writing an article for Wikipedia, in accordance with Wikipedia policy, facts and assertions should be attributed to verifiable, reliable sources wherever possible (see WP:V and WP:RS). The Project's preferred method for this is inline citations using the <ref> tag. All citations should use citation templates were possible (see WP:CIT). Examples Citing a news article: <ref>{{cite news |last = Goldenberg |first = Suzanne |author2 = Ewen MacAskill |title = Obama in overdrive as Clinton falls behind |work = The Guardian |publisher = Guardian Unlimited |date = 2008-01-08 |url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections08/story/0,,2236962,00.html |accessdate = 2008-01-08}}</ref> See below for result. Reusing a reference: To reuse a reference you need to set the parameter "name" in the <ref> tag. First use: <ref name="ObamaGuardian">{{cite news |last = Goldenberg |first = Suzanne |author2 = Ewen MacAskill |title = Obama in overdrive as Clinton falls behind |work = The Guardian |publisher = Guardian Unlimited |date = 2008-01-08 |url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections08/story/0,,2236962,00.html |accessdate = 2008-01-08}}</ref> See below for result. Second use: <ref name="ObamaGuardian"/> See below for result. Footnotes The citations are displayed by placing a {{reflist}} tag at the bottom of the article (see Template:Reflist). Multiple book citations However if you are using multiple references from the same book, it is preferred that the book is sourced inside the references section and footnotes are created using Harvard referencing (see Template:Harvard_citation_no_brackets). Place the book citation in the references section: {{cite book |last = Osbourne |first = Sharon |authorlink = Sharon Osbourne |title = Sharon Osbourne Extreme: My Autobiography |publisher = Little, Brown Book Group |year = 2005 |isbn = 0316731315}} Then use Harvard referencing for footnotes: <ref>{{Harvnb | Osbourne | 2005 | p=46}}</ref> For an example see Slipknot (band)#References. Further Reading Wikipedia:Footnotes - More details about the ref tag and footnotes Wikipedia:Citing sources - A more general overview Reliable sources This is a list of potentially useful sources deemed reliable by Project members. General RoadrunnerRecords.com AMG Billboard.com AOL RIAA Gold/Platinum Database News/Magazine Websites RollingStone.com MetalHammer.co.uk Kerrang.com NME.com BlabberMouth.net MTV.com VH1.com BBC News