You want to showcase your character on this Wiki, but aren't sure how to set up a good page?
Even confident creators can't always distinguish the important details from the dribble; and end up with a visually unpleasant layout and unfocused telling of their ideas. Gently said.
In the end, obviously, it's not a life-threatening issue. The template below is not part of some rule this Wiki wants you to follow, but a quick guide for whoever thinks to need it. Further down is an explanation to help you understand the set-up.
For guidance on what categories to choose, go here.
Good luck,
Ananasz
Template as an image:
A quick way to get an idea of the template before you dive into this thing, take a gander:
Template in text:
Click "Expand" to see the template. βββββββββ
TEDDY (intro)
Teddy (2006).
Teddy is a minor character from the comic series Ferret Friends Forever, created by Username.
He's a young ferret with the energy of an old man, and often seen sleeping in the background of the comics.
He made his first online appearance at Deviantart on June 2, 2006.
NOTE:
This page is not free to edit.
Background story
Teddy spent most of his youth without much physical contact, as he was born in a negligent ferret breeding kennel and one of the many pups conceived at the time. Eventually he was adopted by a young girl and got to meet the many other mustelids that were being kept by her mother as pets.
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Click "Expand" to read more:
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Personality
Teddy is mostly docile, though known to bite and run off when being pet for too long.
Little else is known about his likes and dislikes, except that he hates the feeling of clothes on his body, which causes him to become comically listless on the spot.
Because of his docile nature, though, he has no enemies and is one of the most tolerated members in the family. His lack of an opinion on anything helps him stay out of trouble.
Appearance
Teddy is entirely brown, of average size, with dark eyes and a pink nose. For a long time he believed the tip of his tail to be black, but this appeared to be dirt after he was given a good scrub at his new home. He is 2 years old.
Trivia
- Teddy's dislike for prolonged touch, like constant petting and clothes, might be thanks to the lack of contact he suffered as a pup.
- In one comic it was revealed that Teddy's voice sounds like Known Actor.
See also
- Ferret Friends Forever
Copy it if needed, but if you're planning on doing that, I suggest you first read the explanation below.
Template explanation:
About the Intro
The "intro" is the first paragraph of an article and the most important bit of text. Arguably. Keep it short and tell the basics, like:
- The name and species/job/main role of the character.
- What series they belong to (if they do at all).
- Who the creator is.
- When they were created.
- Perhaps the date and website they made their first appearance at. Proof is handy to have in case you get accused of idea theft.
Add a headshot or another relevant picture at the right side, so that people can immediately see what freak of nature they're dealing with. Make sure that the pixel width is of a decent size. You want people to actually be able to see this character, I imagine, while an unrestrained size ruins the page's layout and first impression it makes on readers. If you only have a drawing with odd dimensions available to work with, then use editing software to crop out the character's face, or apply a similar change.
You may also add a reminder that users shouldn't leisurely meddle with your page(s). Not that it helps, but still. The notification code is "{{NOTE}}".
As for the defective red links in the example, make sure they lead to something if you choose to mention these kind of things. So, if your character belongs to a series, add a link to it, whether it be a gallery folder at some art site or a page from another Wiki.
Your username should also link to something. "CoolchocCookie69" has no meaning to the common visitor, unless you're PewDiePie-famous. Have it lead to an art archive of some kind, or whatever that username is most associated with. If you only have your Wiki Fanon profile to brag with, that's fine too.
Website location is more or less the same deal, unless this account/website no longer exist. Then just link to the website as a whole (example: "https://www.deviantart.com"), or its Wikipedia page in case it's defunct.
Why? Well, because there's always that chance that a reader doesn't know the website in question.
About the (Back)story
Teddy spent most of his youth without much physical contact, as he was born in a negligent ferret breeding kennel and one of the many pups conceived at the time. Eventually he was adopted by a young girl and got to meet the many other mustelids that were being kept by her mother as pets. |
A backstory isn't always necessary. For example, when a character is part of a series that has its own page and this same backstory is more or less mentioned there. Skip the backstory section if so.. but also consider not setting up a page at all and adding your main characters as chapters to the series page. If this series is yours, of course.
Not every feather on a bird's wing needs its own cage, and you're not making the bird look better doing it.
The backstory chapter can be as long or short as you want it to be, but don't turn it into a 30 page fanfiction. That's not what a Wiki is for, despite it being used as such by many.
Regardless, if you need more than 600 words to tell your story and don't want to deal with an unappealing, unscrollable block of text, there are 2 methods you can apply:
- Add relevant images to function as breathers for the eyes. Like physical storybooks do.
- Use the expand code, as seen here:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="width:100%"><div class="mw-collapsible-content">TEXT HERE</div></div>
Expand is a way to hide text, until you press the "expand" link/button, which opens it up for whoever's curiosity has spiked enough to want to read further. This way you keep your page short for those who just want to do a quick browse.
Oh, and if your story mentions words or characters people might not know, again, add links. Generally we know what a ferret is, but many might not understand the word "mustelid".
As a closing statement, I ask every one of you to spellcheck yourself, create spaces and paragraphs, use proper capitalization, and avoid "talking about yourself" on your page. There's no excuse to have your page littered with spelling errors, the average internet browser comes with built-in dictionaries.
What does "talking about yourself" entail? Sentences that the common Wikipedia entry wouldn't have, like "-And I Made This Char When I Was Only 8, So Don't Hate", or unnecessary info like "the artist gave up on witing cause NOBODY was reading her fic and DONT CARE and shes NOT feeling it rite now, but mebbe later!", or announcements like "PS. I KNOW THERES NOT MUCH ON HERE BUT IM STILL BUSY WITH THIS PAGE SO NO ONE TOUCH OR DELETE PLOZX".
That's hideous writing. If you're under the age of 13.. well, don't take it too personally, but try to talk in the third person and keep a serious tone -like you're some random professional on the subject, but not the artist themselves.
Just put a basic level of care into it, friend.
About the Personality
Teddy sleeps alot and is mostly docile, though known to bite and run off when being pet for too long. |
One's personality can be described briefly, though I've seen users treat it like the backstory chapter. Not the right place.
Stick with the basics, and sure, support it with story examples. But keep in mind that you don't need 50 detailed examples of why a character is a jerk. The maximum is 2, like they say.
They is me.
About the Appearance
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Also a short section, unless your character changes wardrobe alot or has multiple forms. Haven't seen many users mess this up, really.
A good trick to keep in mind when you write a description is to pretend you're sending an art request to an artist, with nothing else to guide them with but, well, a description. You want this drawing in colour as well. Mention whatever is most noticeable about your character and needed in order to paint an accurate picture.
About the Trivia
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Generally speaking, trivia is for technical details and "fun facts" relevant to the character, but can be tricky to figure out. Sometimes you find yourself writing down bits you later wonder if not better suited in another chapter. The dirty tail bit in the appearance chapter could've very well gone here.
These decisions are for you to make.
About the "See also"
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It's good to post a link to the series, even if you already mentioned it at the top of the page.
If your character is heavily inspired by something else, you can put a link to that here too, or in case they have a very close connection with another character, a link to that character's page.