Wikipedia:WikiProject Military history/Academy/Are style guides set in stone?

The initial answer to the question "are style guides set in stone?" is "no" because the Manual of Style is a guideline and not policy. However, the higher up the quality scale an editor aims to make an article, the stricter the requirements that an article be appropriately styled. Wikipedia's lowest quality articles, known as stubs, may completely lack any form of styling, whilst the best—Featured articles—need to comply with the full manual closely to meet the criteria. Articles destined to become Good articles must meet the criteria for a select number of manual guidelines, but these are limited and any other standards are optional, though generally recommended.

The Military history Project has high standards in terms of its own assessment scale. An editor can expect most reviews carried out by project members to recommend applying various styling practices. This is particularly relevant during a MILHIST A-class Review, but some recommendations are likely even at B-class and GA reviews, even if technically not part of the relevant criteria. It is in the best interests of an editor, and the articles they write, to apply and maintain high-quality standards so that an article can develop steadily. It also helps to promote readability and presents a professional quality to our work. In this regard, editors should familiarise themselves with the Manual of Style and apply standards early in the article writing process. This could be as an article is written on a word-for-word basis or, as some editors may prefer to do, after a draft has been written offline. For instance, some editors like to draft the entire prose of their articles in an external word processor before transferring it to a sandbox for further development and styling on Wikipedia. In this instance, styling tags and Wiki markup will interfere with grammar and spell checking, which may be distracting.

Whichever way an editor writes articles, it is important that they check the quality criteria carefully before nominating an article for review. It will detail the requirements an article must follow in terms of content and styling. A well-written Wikipedia article should not be a "wall of text"; it includes sections, images, tables, quotes and supporting media, to break-up the prose and make it interesting for a reader. Each type of content will have separate styling guidelines which should be observed so that the article is presentable. Various elements, such as the use of foreign words, currencies, dates, and so on may need to be treated differently from normal prose. Always check the manual carefully for relevant guidelines. If in doubt, ask an experienced editor or project member to help wikify the article – many editors will not simply apply the minimum standards required, but will aim to use all standards so that the article is very well presented. This practice is encouraged.

A well formatted article, when nominated for review, can usually be reviewed faster as there is less work involved for reviewers if they are able to focus on the content and give immediate feedback without having to correct or detail numerous style concerns beforehand. Editors should also be aware that in addition to the main manual of style, WikiProjects often have their own manual to cover finer details of specific topics in their scope. The Military history Project maintains its own styling manual at WP:MILMOS, and editors are encouraged to use it when working on topics that fall within the project's remit. WikiProject styles are an extension to Wikipedia's overall standards, and you will usually be required to apply them in order to pass the assessment criteria, particularly at A-class and Featured Article reviews. Finally, though, it is important to remember that we are here to build an encyclopedia. Arguing about minor points of style is not always conducive to promoting collaboration and, at least at lower assessment levels, some leeway can be applied while focusing on content.