User:Uncle G/Describe this universe

''This was a draft of a Wikipedia policy proposal. It was never submitted to the Policy thinktank, and was never completed. Other editors took this particular ball and ran with it to create Manual of Style (writing about fiction).''

Wikipedia is an encylopaedia comprising descriptions of verifiable items, that exceed certain thresholds of distinction and stability, in this universe. When adding content to Wikipedia, please bear in mind the admonition to describe this universe.

It is a race that can never be won.
For every popular science-fiction television series, every computer game, every series of dective novels, and so forth, there is a writer, quite often a team of writers, whose full-time or part-time job it is to create new "facts" (people, things, places, and events) in their given fictional universes. These "facts", after all, comprise the books, television programs, and movies that they sell. Often, these teams of writers refer to a series "bible", a central reference of the "facts" in the fictional universe, in order to render all of their stories self-consistent.

It is not the task of Wikipedia to become the amalgam of the series "bibles" of fictional universes.

This doesn't mean that you cannot discuss fiction
This does not preclude Wikipedia from discussion fictional universes.

The following does not discuss this universe at all, even tangentially, and is a (made up) example of the type of treatment of a subject that should thus be avoided for Wikipedia:


 * In Star Year 8891 the Spudheads of Volgon were infected with the Kroxyldyph virus by a bio-warfare special operations unit on a clandestine mission, without the approval of Star Command, led by the father of Commander Kink, which rewrote their DNA causing their chests to become all knobbly.

The following is a (made up) example of the type of treatment of a subject that is suitable for Wikipedia, because it discusses the fictional universe in respect of events, people, and things in this universe:


 * In the later series, a larger budget allowed for a greater number of actors to wear more extensive special effects makeup, and the facial design of the Spudhead was altered from that of the earlier series. This caused problems for the writers in episode 9.1, where some characters travelled back in time to episode 2.6 and footage with the original episode and original makeup design was interwoven with new footage with the new makeup design.  The writers "explained" this by writing a genetic misfortune into the series "bible" history of the Spudheads, taking place in the times between episodes 5.14 and 6.0.  This was later expanded into a novel The Trouble with Kroxyldyph: What Commander Sim Kink really did on his holiday by author Honda MacHinery.

It is worthwhile noting that this latter form of article serves the fans better. Fans can, after all, find out the fictional universe account of events by the simple expedient of reading the books and watching the films and television programmes.

Alternative outlets for fictional universe articles

 * Memory Alpha - Describes the Star Trek universe
 * Wookieepedia - Describes the Star Wars universe
 * Bulbapedia - Describes the Pokémon universe