Wikipedia:Notability (fiction): Difference between revisions

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This page documents an English Wikipedia notability guideline.

Editors should generally follow it, though exceptions may apply. Substantive edits to this page should reflect consensus. When in doubt, discuss first on this guideline's talk page.

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[[:|WP:FICT
WP:FICTION]]

This page in a nutshell: Articles about topics within a fictional universe are notable if they provide sufficient real-world information in well organized units. Non-notable information should be deleted only when all other options have been exhausted.

For the guidelines on out-of-universe material and presenting fiction from an out-of-universe perspective, see Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction).

From Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is Not:

Wikipedia articles on published works (such as fictional stories) should contain real-world context and sourced analysis, offering detail on a work's development, impact or historical significance, not solely a detailed summary of that work's plot. A brief plot summary may be appropriate as an aspect of a larger topic, but not as a separate article.

From the Wikipedia:Notability:

"A topic is presumed to be notable if it has received significant coverage in reliable secondary sources that are independent of the subject."

This guideline defines notability for fiction by elaborating on the above excerpts.

Defining notability for fiction

For articles about fictional concepts, "reliable secondary sources" (a major factor in the general notability guideline) cover information such as sales figures, critical and popular reception, development, cultural impact, and merchandise; this information describes the real-world aspects of the concept, so it is "real-world content".

Based on this reasoning and the above excerpts, articles about fictional concepts are notable if they contain substantial real-world content from reliable primary and secondary sources. These topics are also organized into complete articles instead of numerous small ones. To ensure that our articles are adequate for inclusion, notability must be established within a reasonable time of the article's creation. After notability is established, the article is presented correctly.

Dealing with fiction

The following sections use the term "article" to encompass both articles and lists.

Notable topics

Topics within a fictional work (characters, places, items, concepts, etc.) are covered in the article on that work of fiction, with two exceptions:

If these concepts are by themselves notable and an encyclopedic treatment causes the article on the work itself to become long, then the concepts are split into succinct sub-articles that maintain such an encyclopedic treatment; this shows that the information is notable enough to stand on its own. However, the material should be well organized; excessive sub-articles lead to disorganization and unbalanced coverage.
Although the sub-article may be kept if is there is a clear availability of real-world information, please do not create sub-articles until this material is added.

Non-notable topics

Articles that do not show notability can be kept for a short time, merged, moved elsewhere, or deleted.

The article can be kept if an obvious potential for notability (i.e. an availability of real-world content from reliable sources) is shown, or such information is added to the article. If this obviousness is challenged, the sources should be shown or included.
Parts can be merged to a notable article to provide better context. If material is merged, the article is not deleted per the GFDL. Do not delete meaningful real-world content.
The article is transwikied to a suitable Wiki (such as Wikia or its Wikipedia Annex) if the above options are unavailable. The article is then redirected to the most relevant article to preserve edit history for the transwiki.
The article can be deleted only if the above options are either redundant or unavailable.

Articles that have potential to show notability should be given reasonable time to develop. To avoid this problem, do not split or create content unless the new article includes substantial real-world content (and ideally an out-of-universe perspective) from the onset. Editors must prove that there is an availability of sources covering real-world information by: providing hyperlinks to sources detailing real-world information about the topic; outlining a rewrite, expansion, or merge plan; and/or gaining the consensus of established editors. Otherwise, the article will be subject to the options mentioned above. Place appropriate clean-up tags to stimulate activity and mark the articles as sub-par (but with potential).

Articles that are too small or narrow in scope — even if they are notable — should be merged into a larger article to avoid disorganization and a potential overload of plot summary.

Fanfiction and unreleased fiction

Fanfiction is vanity, which is grounds for deletion. Examples include: anything self-published, put on fanfiction.net, or done by vanity press; information about a player's character in roleplaying or MMORPGs; and unofficial computer game modifications ("mods") or custom maps.

Fiction not yet written will often be considered speculation, which is grounds for deletion because Wikipedia is not a crystal ball. This includes not-yet-released books, movies, games, etc., unless there has already been substantial press coverage about the to-be-released item.

Examples

For examples of what Wikipedians consider "high quality" fiction articles, please see the lists of articles that have been rated as Good and Featured quality. Other specific examples of the treatment of fictional topics include:

Superman is universally well known and transcends the original work he appeared in, which means there is plenty of information available to allow for an encyclopedic coverage. Thus, he has his own article.
World of Final Fantasy VIII, Characters of Final Fantasy VIII, and Clone Wars (Star Wars) were evolved from lists of terms, characters, events, and/or concepts into articles with both real-world content and an out-of-universe perspective.
The article on Prince Hamlet can obviously contain significant real-world information about the character; he has his own article.
The 1st Battle of Sarapin was an article that summarized a portion of the plot for the game Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds. Relevant information was merged into the plot synopsis of the Galactic Battlegrounds article, and the 1st Battle of Sarapin link now redirects there.
Alyosha Karamazov is a major character from the novel The Brothers Karamazov. He is covered comprehensively in the Brothers Karamazov article, and the Alyosha Karamazov link redirects there for convenience due to lack of real-world content.
The Xenosaga lists on planets, terms, and organizations had no chance of showing notability, so they were transwikied to the Xenosaga Wikia and redirected to the main Xenosaga page.
List of Star Destroyers was deleted because it failed to include the substantial out-of-universe information to show notability for fictional concepts. The information was already available on Wookiepedia and a merge was considered unnecessary, so deletion was the suitable option.

Relocating non-notable fictional material

Wikibooks, Wikipedia's sibling project, contains instructional and educational texts. These include annotated works of fiction (on the Wikibooks:annotated texts bookshelf) for classroom or private study use. Wikisource, similarly, holds original public domain and GFDL source texts. See Wikisource:Wikisource and Wikibooks. One possible action to consider is to make use of all of the Wikimedia projects combined: to have an encyclopedia article about the work of fiction on Wikipedia giving a brief outline, a chapter-by-chapter annotation on Wikibooks, the full source text on Wikisource (if the work is in the public domain), and interwiki links joining them all together into a whole. However, Wikibooks opposes in-universe books, so it is not an appropriate place to transwiki large quantities of in-universe material.

Fictional material unsuited or too detailed for Wikipedia can be transwikied to the appropriate Wikia, such as Final Fantasy Wikia and Wookieepedia. Other sites, such as Gaming Wiki, may also accept material. Transwikied material should be edited to meet the guidelines of specific wikias; do not just copy and paste. The Wikia Annex is a staging area for transwikied material and a place for non-notable fictional material that does not have another home; the original Wikipedia versions will also be stored there.

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 {{Wikipedia subcat guideline|notability guideline|Fiction|[[WP:FICT]]<br />[[WP:FICTION]]}}
 {{IncGuide}}
+{{nutshell|Articles about topics within a fictional universe are notable if they provide '''[[WP:N|sufficient real-world information]]''' in well organized units. Non-notable information should be deleted only when all other options have been exhausted.}}
-:'''A [[User:Deckiller/Notability (fiction)|rewrite of this guideline]] is being proposed at [[Wikipedia talk:Notability (fiction)#Rewrite proposed]].'''
-:''For the fiction style guidelines, see [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)]].''
+:''For the guidelines on out-of-universe material and presenting fiction from an out-of-universe perspective, see [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)]].''
-From [[Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not#Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information|WP:NOT#IINFO]]:
+From [[Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is Not]]:
-:'''''Plot summaries'''. Wikipedia articles on works of fiction should contain real-world context and sourced analysis, offering detail on a work's achievements, impact or historical significance; such articles are not solely or overwhelmingly a summary of a work's plot. A plot summary may be appropriate as an aspect of a larger topic.''
+:''Wikipedia articles on published works (such as fictional stories) should contain real-world context and sourced analysis, offering detail on a work's development, impact or historical significance, not solely a detailed summary of that work's plot. A brief plot summary may be appropriate as an aspect of a larger topic, but not as a separate article.''
-==Fiction in Wikipedia==
+From the [[Wikipedia:Notability]]:
+:''"A topic is presumed to be notable if it has received significant coverage in '''[[WP:RS|reliable secondary sources]]''' that are independent of the subject."''
-#'''Major characters''' and major treatments of such matters as places and concepts in a work of fiction are covered in the article on that work. If an '''[[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)|encyclopedic treatment]]''' (a real world perspective backed by sources independent of the work) of a character causes the article on the work itself to [[WP:SIZE|become long]], that character is given a main article.
-#'''Minor characters''' and minor treatments of such matters as places and concepts in a work of fiction are '''[[Wikipedia:Merge|merge]]d''' with short descriptions into a ''"List of characters."'' This list resides in the article relating to the work itself, unless it [[WP:SIZE|becomes long]], in which case a separate article for the list is created.
-#:<small>The difference between ''major'' and ''minor'' characters is intentionally vague; the main distinguishing criterion is how much nontrivial information is available on the character. Some works could plausibly have multiple major characters.</small>
-#It is useful to add '''[[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]]s''' to the article page or list of minor characters, from listed items<!--Is that clear enough? "in there" certainly wasn't-->.
-#'''Plot summaries''' are kept reasonably short, as the point of Wikipedia is to describe the works, not simply to summarize them. It is generally appropriate for a plot summary to remain part of the main article rather than standing alone as an article. In some cases, sub-articles and lists are created when the potential for an ''encyclopedic coverage'' is hindered by the ''recommended length guidelines'' for articles. Guidance and exercises<!--tension between this and the next title--> appear [[Wikipedia:Fiction#Making good use of Wikibooks and Wikisource|below]].
-===Examples===
-For examples of what Wikipedians consider "high quality" fiction articles, please see the lists of articles that have been rated as [[WP:GA|Good]] and [[WP:FA|Featureable]] quality.  Other specific examples include:
-*[[Anakin Skywalker]] and [[Padme Amidala]] are major characters in the ''[[Star Wars]]'' films. They are discussed briefly in the ''Star Wars'' articles, but their own articles contain much more detailed information.
-*[[Harry Potter (character)]] is a major character in the ''[[Harry Potter]]'' series of novels. His own article was created in order to prevent the main ''Harry Potter'' article from becoming too long, though it still retains a short summary of his character.
-*[[Alyosha Karamazov]] is a major character from the novel ''[[The Brothers Karamazov]]''. He is covered comprehensively in the ''Brothers Karamazov'' article, and the [[Alyosha Karamazov]] link redirects there for convenience.
-*[[Superman]] is universally well known and transcends the original work he appeared in, so he has his own article.
-*[[Horses of Middle-earth]] creates a single, substantial article out of a list of characters otherwise too insignificant for their own individual articles.
-*[[List of Mavericks]] provides information on minor characters in the ''[[Mega Man X (series)|Mega Man X]]'' series of video games who have some background, but lack sufficient relevance to the overall plot.
-*The [[1st Battle of Sarapin]] was an article that summarized a portion of the plot for the game ''[[Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds]]''. Relevant information was merged into the plot synopsis of the ''Galactic Battlegrounds'' article, and the [[1st Battle of Sarapin]] link now redirects there.
-*[[World of Final Fantasy VIII]], [[Characters of Final Fantasy VIII]] and [[Clone Wars (Star Wars)]] were evolved from lists of terms, events and concepts into general encyclopedia articles.
+This guideline defines notability for fiction by elaborating on the above excerpts.
-==Being bold==
-If you find articles (particularly stubs) on fictional characters (and places, concepts, etc.) you may want to [[wikipedia:be bold|be bold]] and merge them into an appropriate article or list. This allows the information to become more organized and easier to access, with a future option of compressing and trimming excess information. However, if you should do so, '''be careful not to delete meaningful out-of-universe content'''.
+==Defining notability for fiction==
-You should obviously remove redundant headers ('this is a fictional character from such-and-such book by such-and-such author') and original research, but you should not summarize or otherwise reduce the articles in question unless the information can be compressed in a succinct manner.
+For articles about fictional concepts, "[[WP:RS|reliable]] [[secondary source]]s" (a major factor in the general notability guideline) cover information such as sales figures, critical and popular reception, development, cultural impact, and merchandise; this information describes the real-world aspects of the concept, so it is "real-world content".
+Based on this reasoning and the above excerpts, articles about fictional concepts are notable if they '''contain substantial real-world content from reliable primary and secondary sources.''' These topics are also organized into complete articles instead of [[WP:STUB|numerous small ones]]. To ensure that our articles are adequate for inclusion, notability must be established within a reasonable time of the article's creation. After notability is established, the article is [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)|presented correctly]].
-==Details==
-This ''guideline'' was created from strong consensus at [[Wikipedia:Deletion policy/Minor characters]] and other discussion at [[Wikipedia:Deletion policy/Middle-earth items]]. It should be helpful for making a decision on keeping, merging or deleting of fiction-related articles.
+==Dealing with fiction==
-If you are unfamiliar with a certain field or are unsure whether some character (concept, place, etc.) should be considered minor or major, please ask around on the relevant talk pages before making radical changes.
+The following sections use the term "article" to encompass both [[Wikipedia:Article|articles]] and [[Wikipedia:List|lists]].
+===Notable topics===
-Fiction includes books, TV series, films, computer games and roleplaying games, and so forth.
+Topics within a fictional work (characters, places, items, concepts, etc.) are covered in the article on that work of fiction, with two exceptions:
+:* If these concepts are by themselves '''[[#Defining notability for fiction|notable]]''' and an '''[[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)|encyclopedic treatment]]''' causes the article on the work itself to [[WP:SIZE|become long]], then the concepts are split into succinct [[Wikipedia:Summary style|sub-articles]] that maintain such an encyclopedic treatment; this shows that the information is notable enough to stand on its own. However, the material should be well organized; excessive sub-articles lead to disorganization and unbalanced coverage.
+:*Although the sub-article may be kept if is there is a clear availability of real-world information, please do not create sub-articles until this material is added.
+===Non-notable topics===
-'''[[Fan fiction|Fanfiction]]''', on the other hand, may well be considered ''vanity'' (not by default, but often so), which is grounds for deletion. This includes, for example: anything self-published, put on [[FanFiction.Net|fanfiction.net]], or done by [[Vanity press|vanity press]]; information about a player's character in roleplaying or MMORPGs; and computer game mods or custom maps.
+Articles that do not show notability can be kept for a short time, merged, moved elsewhere, or deleted.
+:*The article can be '''kept''' if an obvious potential for notability (i.e. an availability of real-world content from reliable sources) is shown, or such information is added to the article. If this obviousness is challenged, the sources should be shown or included.
+:*Parts can be '''merged''' to a notable article to provide better context. If material is merged, the article ''is not deleted'' per the [[GFDL]]. Do not delete meaningful real-world content.
+:*The article is '''transwikied''' to a suitable Wiki (such as [http://www.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page Wikia] or its [http://annex.wikia.com Wikipedia Annex]) if the above options are unavailable. The article is then [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirected]] to the most relevant article to preserve edit history for the transwiki.
+:*The article can be '''deleted''' only if the above options are either redundant or unavailable.
+Articles that have potential to show notability should be given reasonable time to develop. To avoid this problem, do not split or create content unless the new article includes substantial real-world content (and ideally an [[WP:WAF|out-of-universe perspective]]) from the onset. Editors must ''prove'' that there is an availability of sources covering real-world information by: providing hyperlinks to sources detailing real-world information about the topic; outlining a rewrite, expansion, or merge plan; and/or gaining the consensus of established editors. Otherwise, the article will be subject to the options mentioned above. Place appropriate clean-up tags to stimulate activity and mark the articles as sub-par (but with potential).
-Fiction not yet written may be considered ''speculation'' (again, not by default, but often so) which is grounds for deletion because [[Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not#Wikipedia_is_not_a_crystal_ball|Wikipedia is not a crystal ball]]. This includes not-yet-released books, movies, games, etc., unless there has already been substantial press coverage about the to-be-released item.
+Articles that are too small or narrow in scope &mdash; even if they are notable &mdash; should be merged into a larger article to avoid disorganization and a potential overload of plot summary.
-See also [[Wikipedia:Guide to writing better articles#Check your fiction]] and [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)]].
+===Fanfiction and unreleased fiction===
-==Making good use of Wikibooks and Wikisource==
+[[Fan fiction|Fanfiction]] is vanity, which is grounds for deletion. Examples include: anything self-published, put on [[FanFiction.Net|fanfiction.net]], or done by [[Vanity press|vanity press]]; information about a player's character in roleplaying or MMORPGs; and unofficial computer game modifications ("mods") or custom maps.
-[[Wikibooks]], Wikipedia's sibling project, contains instructional and educational texts.  These include annotated works of fiction (on the [[Wikibooks:Wikibooks:annotated texts bookshelf|Wikibooks:annotated texts bookshelf]]) for classroom or private study use.  [[Wikisource]], similarly, holds original public domain and GFDL source texts.  See [[Wikisource:Wikisource:Wikisource and Wikibooks|Wikisource:Wikisource and Wikibooks]].
+Fiction not yet written will often be considered ''speculation'', which is grounds for deletion because [[Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not#Wikipedia_is_not_a_crystal_ball|Wikipedia is not a crystal ball]]. This includes not-yet-released books, movies, games, etc., unless there has already been substantial press coverage about the to-be-released item.
-One possible course of action to consider, which has already been successfully employed for several works of fiction, is to make use of all of the projects combined: to have an encyclopaedia article about the work of fiction on Wikipedia giving a brief outline, a chapter-by-chapter annotation on Wikibooks, the full source text on Wikisource ('''if''' the work is in the public domain), and [[Help:interwiki linking|interwiki links]] joining them all together into a whole.
 ===Examples===
+For examples of what Wikipedians consider "high quality" fiction articles, please see the lists of articles that have been rated as [[WP:GA|Good]] and [[WP:FA|Featured]] quality.  Other specific examples of the treatment of fictional topics include:
-*''Atlas Shrugged'' has [[Atlas Shrugged|a Wikipedia article]] and [[Wikibooks:Atlas Shrugged|a chapter-by-chapter detailed annotation of the work on Wikibooks]].
+*[[Superman]] is universally well known and transcends the original work he appeared in, which means there is plenty of information available to allow for an encyclopedic coverage. Thus, he has his own article.
-*''Lord of the Flies'' has [[Lord of the Flies|a Wikipedia article]] and [[Wikibooks:Lord of the Flies|a chapter-by-chapter detailed annotation on Wikibooks]].
+*[[World of Final Fantasy VIII]], [[Characters of Final Fantasy VIII]], and [[Clone Wars (Star Wars)]] were evolved from lists of terms, characters, events, and/or concepts into articles with both real-world content and an [[WP:WAF|out-of-universe perspective]].
-*''Of Mice and Men'' has [[Of Mice and Men|a Wikipedia article]] and [[Wikibooks:Of Mice and Men|a detailed analysis on Wikibooks]].
+*The article on [[Prince Hamlet]] can obviously contain significant real-world information about the character; he has his own article.
-*The ''Harry Potter'' series of novels has articles on the individual novels on Wikipedia (such as [[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince]]) and a [[Wikibooks:Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter|Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter]] on Wikibooks, comprising a detailed book-by-book chapter-by-chapter annotation of the whole series, including a topical index to link each topic in Harry Potter to the chapters in which it appears.
+*The [[1st Battle of Sarapin]] was an article that summarized a portion of the plot for the game ''[[Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds]]''. Relevant information was merged into the plot synopsis of the ''Galactic Battlegrounds'' article, and the [[1st Battle of Sarapin]] link now redirects there.
+*[[Alyosha Karamazov]] is a major character from the novel ''[[The Brothers Karamazov]]''. He is covered comprehensively in the ''Brothers Karamazov'' article, and the [[Alyosha Karamazov]] link redirects there for convenience due to lack of real-world content.
+*The ''[[Xenosaga]]'' lists on planets, terms, and organizations had no chance of showing notability, so they were transwikied to the Xenosaga Wikia and redirected to the main ''Xenosaga'' page.
+*[[List of Star Destroyers]] was [[Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/List of Star Destroyers|deleted]] because it failed to include the substantial out-of-universe information to show notability for fictional concepts. The information was already available on Wookiepedia and a merge was considered unnecessary, so deletion was the suitable option.
+==Relocating non-notable fictional material==
-==Related topics==
+[[Wikibooks]], Wikipedia's sibling project, contains instructional and educational texts.  These include annotated works of fiction (on the [[Wikibooks:Wikibooks:annotated texts bookshelf|Wikibooks:annotated texts bookshelf]]) for classroom or private study use.  [[Wikisource]], similarly, holds original public domain and GFDL source texts.  See [[Wikisource:Wikisource:Wikisource and Wikibooks|Wikisource:Wikisource and Wikibooks]]. One possible action to consider is to make use of all of the Wikimedia projects combined: to have an encyclopedia article about the work of fiction on Wikipedia giving a brief outline, a chapter-by-chapter annotation on Wikibooks, the full source text on Wikisource (if the work is in the public domain), and [[Help:interwiki linking|interwiki links]] joining them all together into a whole. However, Wikibooks [http://en.wikibooks.org/w/index.php?title=Wikibooks:Staff_lounge&oldid=468012#I_love_video_game_books opposes in-universe books], so it is not an appropriate place to transwiki large quantities of in-universe material.
-* [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style (writing about fiction)]]
+Fictional material unsuited or too detailed for Wikipedia can be transwikied to the appropriate Wikia, such as [http://finalfantasy.wikia.com Final Fantasy Wikia] and [http://starwars.wikia.com Wookieepedia]. Other sites, such as [http://www.gaming-wiki.com/index.php?title=Main_Page Gaming Wiki], may also accept material. Transwikied material should be edited to meet the guidelines of specific wikias; do not just copy and paste. The [http://annex.wikia.com Wikia Annex] is a staging area for transwikied material and a place for non-notable fictional material that does not have another home; the original Wikipedia versions will also be stored there.
+==See also==
 * [[Wikipedia:Guide to writing better articles#Check your fiction]]
-* [[Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not#Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information|Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information (#7, Plot summaries)]]
 * [[Wikipedia:Centralized discussion/Television episodes]]
+* [[Wikipedia:Fancruft]]
-* [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions]]:  [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (television)|TV]] | [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (books)|Books]] | [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (films)|Films]]
-* Possible proliferation of fictional-universe-related articles is discussed in the essay [[Wikipedia:Fancruft]] and its talk page.
 * [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels/Style guidelines#Plot summary|WikiProject Novels guidelines on plot summaries]]
 * [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Films/Style guidelines#Plot|WikiProject Films guidelines on plot summaries]]
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 [[de:Wikipedia:Artikel über Fiktives]]
 [[fr:Wikipédia:Notoriété (fiction)]]
+[[Category:Wikipedia notability guidelines]]