User:LtDk/Style Guide

This set of rules is never perfect and always changing and expanding. There will always be exceptions, and there will always be new rules to make. If you have a suggestion or confusion regarding the Style Guide, feel free to discuss it with other wiki contributors!

Grammar, Syntax, and Punctuation

For all matters of grammar, unless specified otherwise, the Animal Well Wiki defers to the English Wikipedia Manual of Style.

Spelling

The Animal Well Wiki uses American English orthography. This means that words such as "colour" and "defence" should be instead written as "color" and "defense".

Tone

To maintain a formal tone, do not use instructional, presumptuous, or self-referential language. Do not refer to the reader directly in the second person, and do not refer to the Animal Well Wiki or any of its contributors at all. The Animal Well Wiki is a database of information before it is a guide or manual, and its language and appearance to the reader should reflect that.

The use of future tense should be avoided when not strictly necessary. Future tense refers to phrases that include the words "will" and "would."

For instance, instead of:

(example in future tense)

Use:

(example in present tense)

The use of passive voice is encouraged, and it's preferred that you keep an encyclopedic tone.

Numbers should be formatted as numerals instead of words for readability.

Referring to Animals & the Player

All animals in the game, including the player, should always be referred to with gender-neutral language and the personal pronouns they, them, their, theirs, and themselves. Avoid using it, its, or itself when referring to creatures and the player. The only exceptions for this are direct quotes from developer, which we prefer to keep as accurate as possible.

When writing a sentence with two subjects, be sure to specify each subject by name to avoid confusion. For instance, instead of:

(vague example)

Try:

(less-vague example)

Use "the player" when referring to actions the player may take. For instance, instead of:

(example with you)

Use:

(example with the player)