User blog:MrDupin/Pasta Submission Basics

After I kept encountering the same "rookie" mistakes over and over and over again, I decided to write a blog to guide new writers away from those mistakes.

This blog is not about how to make a story creepy/good. It is about the minor and easily avoided technical issues that can ruin a story.

How to submit a story:


Before you post a story, it is advisable that you change to the Source Editor. Go here and open the "Editing" tab. There, change the "Preferred Editor" to the Source Editor.

To post your story hit the "Contribute" button at the top right of your screen and then click the "Submit a Story" button in the dropdown menu that appears. Then enter the story title and simply copy and paste your story in the editor that appears. After that, hit the "Publish" button and you're done.

Also, you need to check if a story already exists with the title you chose. If one does, you have to rename your story.

One more thing: it is advisable that you post your story on the Writer's Workshop first to receive feedback.

Title:
a) The first letter of the title is alway capitalized.

Example: darkness <- bad

Darkness <- good

b) You don't put periods. Titles aren't supposed to be sentences.

Example: Darkness. <- bad

Darkness <- good

c) Words like 'a', 'an', 'of', 'like', 'the', 'to', 'and' etc. are not capitalized, unless they are the first word of the title. Every other word is capitalized.

Example: Goat And Goose <- bad

Goat and Goose <- good

The darkness <- bad

The Darkness <- good

d) It is advised that titles are as short as possible, but longer titles work too.

Capitalization:
a) Capitalize the letters after a period.

Example: The hacker danced until the moon read the book. It was a really fun party. <- see how the word 'it' is capitalized after the period?

b) Capitalize names.

Example: The hacker's name is George. <- see how "George" is capitalized?

c) Capitalize the 'i' when you are referring to the first person.

Example: The party was so fun that I didn't want to leave. <- see how 'i' is capitalized?

Tense:
Changing tense (from past to present and vice-versa) is one of the biggest turn-offs for a reader. Do not change the tense of your story halfway through, unless it is necessary for the plot. Pick a tense (past or present) and stick to it till the end.

Example: The hacker danced and I sing. <- bad

The hacker danced and I sang. <- good (past tense)

The hacker dances/is dancing and I sing/am singing. <- good (present tense)

Dialogue:
a) Dialogue goes between quotation marks.

Example: "I love you all."

b) Create a new line whenever a new person speaks. Between the two dialogue lines, there should be an additional blank line.

Example:

"Hi George." "Howdy Josh." <- bad

"Hi George."

"Howdy Josh."

^ good ^

c) Punctuation marks go inside the quotation marks.

Example:

"This is wrong". <- bad

"This is right." <- good

"I'm good. How arey you?" <- good

"I'm great! Thank you!" <- good

d) When the sentence doesn't end when the dialogue line ends, replace the period with a comma.

Example:

"I'm glad to hear that." Josh said. <- bad

"I'm glad to hear that," Josh said. <- good

Careful:

We only write a comma in the place of a period. Every other punctuation mark remains the same.

Formatting:
a) Don't italicize/bold your whole story. Also, don't change the font color, unless you do it very, very sparingly for plot reasons. Lastly, don't write in all caps.

b) Do not indent your paragraphs. That means, don't put spaces in front of your paragraphs.

Example:

And I grow so weary of the sound of screams. And I, Jack, the Pumpkin King, I've grown so tired of the same old thing. Oh, somewhere deep inside of these bones, an emptiness began to grow. <- bad

And I grow so weary of the sound of screams. And I, Jack, the Pumpkin King, I've grown so tired of the same old thing. Oh, somewhere deep inside of these bones, an emptiness began to grow. <- good

c) Space out your paragraphs. A wall of text is guarantee to chase away most readers.

Example:

Joy, beautiful spark of divinity, Daughter from Elysium, we enter, burning with fervour, heavenly being, your sanctuary! Your magic brings together what fashion has sternly divided. All men shall become brothers, wherever your gentle wings hover. Whoever has been lucky enough to become a friend to a friend, whoever has found a beloved wife, let him join our songs of praise! Yes, and anyone who can call one soul his own on this earth! Any who cannot, let them slink away from this gathering in tears! Every creature drinks in joy at nature's breast; Good and Bad alike follow her trail of roses. She gives us kisses and wine, a true friend, even in death; Even the worm was given desire, and the cherub stands before God. Gladly, just as His suns hurtle through the glorious universe, so you, brothers, should run your course, joyfully, like a conquering hero. Be embraced, you millions! This kiss is for the whole world! Brothers, above the canopy of stars must dwell a loving father. Do you bow down before Him, you millions? Do you sense your Creator, o world? Seek Him above the canopy of stars! He must dwell beyond the stars. I come from highlands down to shore, the valleys steam, the oceans roar. I wander silent, joyless here: my sigh keeps asking, Where? Oh, where? Their sun appears to me so cold, their blossoms limp, their life so old; and what they speak of, empty fare: I am a stranger everywhere. Where are you, land, beloved home? Imagined, sought, but never known! The land, the land, whence hope does flow, the land where all my roses grow, where friends shall never meet in vain, where all my dead shall rise again, the land that speaks my language true: Oh land, where are you?... I wander silent, joyless here, my sigh keeps asking, Where? Oh where? The specters answer my distress: "Where you are not, there's happiness."

^ bad ^

Joy, beautiful spark of divinity, Daughter from Elysium, we enter, burning with fervour, heavenly being, your sanctuary! Your magic brings together what fashion has sternly divided. All men shall become brothers, wherever your gentle wings hover. Whoever has been lucky enough to become a friend to a friend, whoever has found a beloved wife, let him join our songs of praise! Yes, and anyone who can call one soul his own on this earth! Any who cannot, let them slink away from this gathering in tears!

Every creature drinks in joy at nature's breast; Good and Bad alike follow her trail of roses. She gives us kisses and wine, a true friend, even in death; even the worm was given desire, and the cherub stands before God. Gladly, just as His suns hurtle through the glorious universe, so you, brothers, should run your course, joyfully, like a conquering hero. Be embraced, you millions! This kiss is for the whole world! Brothers, above the canopy of stars must dwell a loving father. Do you bow down before Him, you millions? Do you sense your Creator, o world? Seek Him above the canopy of stars! He must dwell beyond the stars.

I come from highlands down to shore, the valleys steam, the oceans roar. I wander silent, joyless here: my sigh keeps asking, Where? Oh, where? Their sun appears to me so cold, their blossoms limp, their life so old; and what they speak of, empty fare: I am a stranger everywhere. Where are you, land, beloved home? Imagined, sought, but never known! The land, the land, whence hope does flow, the land where all my roses grow, where friends shall never meet in vain, where all my dead shall rise again, the land that speaks my language true: Oh land, where are you?... I wander silent, joyless here, my sigh keeps asking, Where? Oh where? The specters answer my distress: "Where you are not, there's happiness."

^ good ^

Preview Your Story:
Sometimes, even if we have been very meticulous with our writing, there can still be some technical issues with our story that we didn't predict. Thankfully, the wikia has provided us with a neat feature. We can preview our story to see exactly how it will appear on the wiki.

On the right of the editor there is a panel that reads "Preview". Under that are two large buttons that read "Mobile" and "Desktop". Hit the "Desktop" button and a window will appear. What appears in the window is exactly what will appear on the wiki. So make sure there are no issues there.

Categorizing:
Although not vital, categorizing your story will help other editors a lot. You know your story better than anyone, so it is easy to add the appropriate categories.

To add a category, you go to the panel that reads "Categories" (on the right of the editor). There you will find a text field that reads "Add category..." Type in the category name and hit enter.

Be careful though, you can't make up categories. You must use the categories that are listed here. You must also read the categories' rules.