Malazan Wiki:Manual of Style

This is a work in progress. Please make changes as required or discuss ideas/proposals on the talk page.

## Layout guide

*Main article: Malazan Wiki:Layout Guide*

Şablon:Malazan Wiki:Layout Guide

## Maximum widths

Because of the limitations of the Oasis skin, there are constraints on how wide inserted items can be on various parts of the page.

### Text

* Maximum widths of text, tables, divs, etc on a page is `650px`. After that it will start to overlap other parts of the page or, in the case of tables, a horizontal scroll bar will appear on the table.

### Images general

* Maximum widths of individual images is `680px` as they can be slightly larger without creating a problem however, images of that size are used only in exceptional cases. For images on article pages that need to be large (e.g. diagrams) set a maximum width of `450px`
* The IOTW has a maximum height of `600px`
* Slideshows on artist's pages are set to `600px`
* Infobox images are automatically set a maximum width of `270px`

### Images within content pages

* Add the thumbnail code `thumb` to all images
* In addition, for portrait images add a width code of `140px`

Using only thumbnails will automatically set a maximum width of `250px`, which is ideal for landscape images, however, in some cases due to image properties, you may need to add an individual width code `?px`, to adjust to other images on the page. See editing history for Silchas Ruin for examples of standard thumbnails. Where there are only one image one or two images on a page, they may be set slightly larger but not exceeding 300px.

## Writing style

**Edits should be in your own words and apart from occasional quotes where appropriate, do NOT copy verbatim from the books or other sources.**

### Accurate

Our main aim is to accurately reflect the information given in the books. Edits need to be presented as factual and objectively as possible. For example, if the book is ambiguous about something the edit needs to also reflect this. Choose your words carefully - the phrase 'were able to do something' implies a lot of things which the phrase 'did something' does not.

### On topic

Every sentence should have some direct connection to the topic of the article. For example if the topic is 'Darujhistan' then 'was the largest, most influential and last of the Free Cities on Genabackis' is on topic. Adding 'the other ones being X Y Z' would be going off on a unnecessary tangent as 'Free Cities' should be linked and that info would be found there.

### Referenced

NEVER add information based just on memory. All edits should be made based on the editor having just read the relevant information in the book. Add a minimum of book and chapter reference to your edit - if unsure about formatting a ref, add the source in brackets.

* See Help:Referencing

### Impartial

Do not use emotional language not contained in the writing. Avoid using expressions like 'luckily', 'sadly', 'unfortunately' etc. when they are your own evaluation of a situation. For example use 'a large battle' rather than 'the largest battle ever' unless it is a case of 'character X described the battle as the largest ever'. Rule of thumb - if it isn't in the book, don't make it up for the Wiki.

### Spelling

Both authors of the Malazan world are Canadian therefore Canadian English will be used as the baseline language of this wiki.

### Tense

Articles are generally written in past tense because there is no omnivalent present time in the Malazan world from the various readers' point of view. However, for real World articles, which include authors pages, as well as all book and chapter summaries, present tense is used. Within those book/chapter summaries, past perfect progressive is used where a characters recollect events of another past (see NoK Chapter 1 for example). Other than that, we write like historians in the future of the Malazan world writing about its past.

### Linking

The first time a name, place, object etc. appears on a page which users might search for, it should be put in [ [ ] ] link brackets (no spaces), regardless of whether a page already exists for it. Each subsequent instance of that name, place etc. on that page will not be linked (infoboxes and navboxes are exceptions here). If the page does not yet exist, the linked term will be appear red in the text and will automatically be included in the 'wanted pages' category. Once the page has been created (whenever someone gets round to it), the brackets will automatically change colour to indicate that.

## Very short articles

A subject may have only a single piece of information about it that can be sourced from a primary reference. In this case it can still have its own article. All named characters should have their own page.

## Theme

### Colours

Hex codes for theme colours

Links in titles need to be made white. Here is an example of how to do it: `[[Gardens of the Moon|<font color=white>Gardens of the Moon</font>]]`

## Standard abbreviations

### Linking codes and written abbreviations

* Malazan Book of the Fallen
* Novels of the Malazan Empire
* Bauchelain & Korbal Broach
* Kharkanas Trilogy
* Path to Ascendancy
* Witness Trilogy

 Assail | A | Assail

 Walk in Shadow | WS | WiS

 Kellanved's Reach | KR | KR

 Untitled 3rd book | ?? | ??

Using linking codes as written abbreviations is also acceptable (except for Assail). Using allcaps versions is also ok.