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All The Tropes:How to Write An Example: Difference between revisions
All The Tropes:How to Write An Example (view source)
Revision as of 18:45, 2 February 2018
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* '''Make Sure it's Accurate:''' At times there can be dozens of different tropes that describe very similar events. Be aware of those other tropes before you start shoving in wave after wave of examples into the wrong trope. We have the [[Canonical List of Subtle Trope Distinctions]] just for that purpose. It is also very easy to go ranting about whatever problem a specific production may have without realizing that your comment is in fact the antithesis of what the trope is about. So in a trope about, say... [[Visual Effects of Awesome]], there is no need to go about and list every [[Special Effects Failure]] in the movies listed as having generally great special effects. There is a reason there are multiple pages on the subject, list where it is appropriate.
** '''[[All The Tropes:Examples Are Not Arguable|Examples Are Not Arguable]]:''' Do not coat words like "arguably" or "to some" around examples. A trope is either used or not used. If you can't make a case beyond there being a work "debatably" using a certain trope, don't list it. Even on [[Your Mileage May Vary|YMMV]] pages there is no need to do this because everything is already subjective anyway, making the inclusion of words like "arguably" [[Department of Redundancy Department|redundant]]. Don't write "arguable examples".
* '''Avoid Irrelevant Potholing and References:''' We know Jewel Staite was in ''[[Firefly]]'', so why does nearly every ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'' example featuring her character have a [[Pothole]] to an unrelated show? A [[Pothole]] can be very much like its real world version, an annoying bump in the road. It should be used to help the flow of the information without flooding the reader with [[All the Tropes Will Ruin Your Vocabulary|wiki injokes and terminology]] (like so). Around here, we have come to refer to the "bad" sort as [[Sinkhole|Sinkholes]].
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* '''Write From A Generic Time Frame:''' Don't be surprised that an example has not been listed -- just list it yourself. Saying "This Troper is surprised that (show/movie/anime/webcomic) has not been listed yet..." then going on to talk about it is nonsensical because, hey, now we have. Your "Surprised it is not listed yet" example may become closer to the top of the page instead of the bottom within a few weeks time.
* '''[[All The Tropes:Examples Are Not Recent|Don't Use the Word "Recent"]]:''' TV episodes and comic book issues (and some movies) come out on different dates in different parts of the world, so what is to you the most recent episode might be old hat to someone in America or Japan, or it might be several months away from being seen in the UK or Australia. Besides, its status as
** It's best to avoid reference to the time at which you wrote your example. This dates your comment considerably and does little except distract the reader.
* '''[[All The Tropes:Examples Are Not Local|Don't Use the Word "Local"]]:''' As we just said, works may appear in different parts of the world, and some may not find themselves widely distributed, either by chance or design. On the other hand, All The Tropes' readership is ''global''. If you are citing a work which was only available in one country, state/province or city, ''explicitly include that location'' (and as much other information as you can). An example which says something like "a commercial for a local firm did X" tells later readers nothing that they can use to find the work and see it for themselves. Indeed, it might qualify for outright deletion because it is so vague.
* '''Remember That This Is A Wiki:''' Therefore, you cannot rely on certain elements remaining on the page. Page quotes and images may be swapped out as tastes change and new works come out, so don't have an example specifically refer to information therein. Also, be very careful about starting an example with "Similarly," or "Like in the [[Care Bears]] example above," if it isn't part of the same group. That example may get deleted, even if it seems like it wouldn't. This goes double on pages that aren't categorized by media yet; if the trope grows popular enough, media categories will be added, and suddenly the "above" example you were comparing it to is now three-quarters of the way down the page.
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