Help:Your first article: Difference between revisions

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| quote = Creating an article is <strong>one of the more difficult tasks</strong> on Wikipedia, and you'll have a higher chance of success if you [[WikipediaSpecial:Task CenterHomepage|<strong>help out with other tasks</strong>]] first to learn more about how Wikipedia works. You can always come back to create an article later; there is [[Wikipedia:There is no deadline|no rush]]!

If you have a personal or professional relationship with what you want to write about, weit wouldis prefer itbest if you didn'tdo not create the new article yourself. Editing with a [[Wikipedia:Conflict of interest|conflict of interest]], regardless of whether you feel you can do so neutrally, isgives seenthe toappearance give a tendency toof bias and undermines public confidence in Wikipedia. If you create an article despite your conflict of interest, you should [[Wikipedia:Conflict of interest|disclose your relationship]] and make sure that it is reviewed by another editor. If you have a ''financial'' conflict of interest in the topic (for example if you have been paid to edit it) you ''must'' make the required [[Wikipedia:Paid-contribution disclosure|paid-contribution disclosure]] and abide by the community's [[Wikipedia:Conflict of interest#Paid editing|restrictions on paid editing]].

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The English Wikipedia already has {{Round|{{#expr:{{formatnum:{{NUMBEROFARTICLES}}|R}}/1000000}}|1}} million articles. Before creating a new one, try to make sure there is not already an article (or a Draft in development) on the same topic, perhaps under a different spelling, or even a different name.

<div class="YFA-search-top">'''Search for articles (or drafts) that already exist:'''</div>

<div class="YFA-search-bottombox">

namespaces=Main**,Draft**

If you're sure that there is no article or draft available for your topic, then there is just one big task to do before you start writing your first article: you have to <strong>gather sources about the topic</strong> in order to <strong>establish its notability</strong>.

Your topic must be '''[[WP:N|notable]]''', <em>as Wikipedia uses the term</em>, in order to warrant an article. Wikipedia has articles on many topics, but not <em>every</em> topic. Notability is tricky to define, but in a nutshell, if there are multiple published [[WP:RS|reliable sources]] about a topic, then it may be notable. A topic is not notable if itthere aren'st hard to find anysufficient reliable sources about it. ('''Important:''' unreliable ones like [[WP:BLOG|blogs]], [[WP:SOCIALMEDIA|social media]], and [[WP:UGC|websites anyone can edit]] don't count!). The [[WP:GNG|General notability guideline]] gives more details on how to tell if a topic is notable or not. If you're not sure if your topic is notable, ask for help at the [[WP:TEA|Teahouse]].

**if the the content within the source originates from the subject, including most [[Wikipedia:Interviews|interviews]] and all [[press releases]], even if published by a third-party (sometimes called "[[churnalism]]"), or

*<strong>[[WP:SIGCOV|Significant coverage]]</strong>. The sources must discuss your subject [[WP:SIGCOV|in depth]], in multiple paragraphs. A mention in one or two sentences or the appearance of your subject in a table or list is not enough to help establish notability. The special notability guideline for businesses has [[WP:CORPDEPTH|lots of good examples]] of what is considered significant.

{{Further|Wikipedia:Drafts|HelpWikipedia:SandboxAbout the sandbox}}

* in "[[WP:DRAFTDrafts|Draftspace]]"{{snd}}this is a special area of Wikipedia dedicated to creating new articles, and is a good choice because other editors can find your draft here and help out.

* in [[HWP:SANDBOXAbout the sandbox|your sandbox]]{{snd}}this is a page you can always easily find, {{if mobile|by tapping the user icon in the top right corner to show the menu linking your sandbox|by clicking 'Sandbox' at the top of any page at Wikipedia}}. Downside: you can only create one article at a time there, and it's not so easy for other editors to find.

{{Further|Help:Editing|WP:Neutral point of view|WP:Verifiability|Help:Referencing for beginners|Help:Introduction to referencing with VisualEditor}}

*You can [[Help:Pictures|add images]], [[Help:Template|templates]] like a an [[Help:Infobox|infoboxesinfobox]] at the top, or a [[Wikipedia:Stub|stub]] at the bottom, and [[Help:Categories|categories]] to your article.

{{Further|Wikipedia:Citing sources|Help:Find sources|Help:Referencing for beginners|Help:Introduction to referencing with VisualEditor}}

If you are sure your draft is ready, and you do <strong>not</strong> have a [[#Are you connected to the article topic?|§&nbsp;conflict of interest with the topic]], you can publish it directly by moving the page from the draft namespace to the main article namespace. To do so, follow the instructions in [[Help:How to move a page|how to move a page]].

===Congratulations, you've created your first article!===

{{Help desk}}<!-- Not recommending asking mentors through the mentorship module. See [[Special:Permalink/1236591037#Regarding mentorship questions]] for reasoning. -->

* The best placesplace to ask for assistance areis at the [[WP:TH/QTeahouse|Teahouse]], andwhich atis thededicated mainto [[WP:HD|Helpanswering newer desk]]editors' questions.

* {{replace|{{edit|Special:MyTalk|Click here to ask for help on your talk page|section=new|preload=Help:Contents/helpmepreload|preloadtitle=Help me!}}|noprint|<!--Remove noprint class from template output to not hide this in printable version-->}}. A volunteer will visit you there shortly!

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