In trying to create the site our foremost goal has always been that anyone who visits will be able to rely on the work we do here. In order to achieve this we strive to attain a certain level of baseline quality. This means proper spelling, grammar and use of language, correct citations, adequate research and factchecking and on a larger level, trying to maintain a balanced selection of articles.



Now we understand that not everyone who writes for us is going to have a degree in English, so in order to help out we have decided to provide an editorial guidelines document to provide some basic tips and criteria for writing and publishing here on the site. If you have any questions or need any further help you should also feel free to contact our editorial staff at editor.



For ease of use this document is divided into two main sections. First we've outlined the basics of publishing a document, all staff members *must* read this before publishing a document, there are things you will have to do which may not be immediately obvious. Don't worry, it's nothing time-consuming or complex-- you just need to know it. Secondly of course, we'll provide basic suggestions on how to structure different kinds of content.

Publishing a Document

The basics are simple, in order to publish a document go to 'create content' under the main menu on the left of the page. Then create either a page, a story or a poll as you like. The difference between a page and a story is that a page is permanent and assigned a unique 'address', which will take the form node/(number) unless otherwise specified. Links to a page should therefore take the form [a href="http://greysanctuary.net/node/112"]link[/a] with <> replacing [].



Stories are temporary, but if appropriately set up will show up on the main page, like a blog entry. Polls are currently set up so that the most recent one will automatically be placed on the main page, but they can be linked to as well. As a result please be considerate and don't simply put up a new poll without looking.

This next part is important. There will be a section on the 'create page' page which will ask you to enter tags. If you do not see this please immediately contact an administrator. These tags are a part of how we index pages by subject matter, and by date. There is a standard format for them. Every page should have the following tags: Year-month, main subject area, specific topic, related. For example: 2009-march, economics, quantitative easing, monetary policy, recession, central bank. The first entry lets us (and anyone else) view all articles from march 2009, the second by subject area, the rest are specific tags you may think are relevant.

We will publish an updated list of tags currently in use as regularly as we can, if we find that several people are using similar but different tags we may merge them into one tag, and if that happens we'll inform everyone affected. This is just to maintain neatness.

The tag system is important for helping to make navigation simple. Other than that, you should use 'full html' as on some themes filtered html doesn't seem to work very well, and we reccomend using a double line break [br][br] at the end of a paragraph instead of [p]
(again [=<) for the moment for much the same reason. We'll update you on any format, or formatting changes.


Writing Guidelines

When writing a document for the purposes of reporting factual information of any kind, be it for the purposes of news writing or for exploring an issue objectively, it is better to avoid the use of the first person. Use formal language and be careful to avoid making specific claims without clear justification. This justification can be made via citations and footnotes, or written argument within the article. Your number one goal should always be to maintain clarity and not to present a viewpoint out of context.

Conversely when writing an editorial, column or opinion piece you are free to use your own style to a much greater extent. However GS differs from many sources of information in that require citations (where relevant) or some evidence that the author is qualified to make the statement. So if you are commenting on a specific subject such as economics or linguistics we require either citation or that you have completed at least an undergraduate degree in that subject. Even if you are qualified we strongly prefer that you provide citations where you can. Obviously if you are commenting on basic theory in your subject we don't need a list of textbooks, the requirement is intended to avoid claims materialising out of thin air.

Similarly, we require you to maintain the other standards set out by the site. Vulgarity is not strictly forbidden, but neither should it be used gratuitously or without purpose. We're holding ourselves to a certain level of maturity and professionalism here, and the editor will intervene if necessary.

When considering how to approach an issue, our guidelines-- and they are only guidelines-- are that wherever possible we prize diverse perspectives and objectivity above neutrality. This is a difficult goal to achieve, as when an argument is objective, but not neutral, it may be perceived as biased nonetheless. For that reason if a controversial issue is broached we will not expect neutrality, but we will ask (not require) that contributors as a whole try to cover all the arguments. Debate is extremely welcome, for objectivity like truth is something that is found gradually as layers of perception are chipped away. We especially welcome collaberative work on research and writing.