Wikipedia:Notability (fiction)

This is anessayonnotability.

It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one ofWikipedia's policies or guidelines,as it has not beenthoroughly vetted by the community.Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints.

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This page in a nutshell:Fictional elements are expected to follow the samenotabilityguidelines as any other topic.

There is no special guideline for thenotability of fictional elements(such as characters and episodes) on Wikipedia. See other relevantpolicies and guidelinesin order to determine which fiction-related articles are appropriate for inclusion on Wikipedia. In particular, editors should review:

Thegeneral notability guideline
The policy onwhat Wikipedia is not
The manual of style forwriting about fiction

For starters, the main work must be notable to begin with. If the work itself is not notable, it may be pointless to discuss the notability of its characters or episodes.

History and rationale

Several attempts have been made to establish specialized guidelines to cover the notability of fictional elements within Wikipedia. Until there is a successful proposal to treat fiction in a specialized way, consult other policies and guidelines for guidance on a wide range of topics, including fiction. Existing policies and guidelines have wide acceptance among editors and describe standards that all users should normally follow.

Improving articles

Information that may help provide the real-world discussion necessary for an encyclopedia article about a fictional topic includes reception, analysis, significance, development, legacy and influence, and relationships with or comparisons to other media. Dedicated sections are good, though sometimes in less developed articles, such information is contained in the lead but not the body.

Bear in mind that content in such information should be referenced toreliable,independent sources.

If such sections do not exist, before nominating the article for possible deletion, please adhere toWP:BEFOREand check whether sources to improve the article exists. A possible solution in the spirit ofWP:PRESERVEcan also take the form ofredirectingthe article to a list of similar entities or the article about the related, notable work this fictional element appears in.

Relevant guidelines and policies

Notability guidelines

TheWikipedia's general notability guidelineis appropriate and sufficient for demonstrating the notability of fictional elements. Specifically, fictional elements are presumed to be notable if there is significant coverage in independent secondary sources about the fictional element; when a fictional element is presumed notable, a separate article to cover that element is usually acceptable.

There are specialized notability guidelines for works of fiction which can be found in the following guidelines:

What Wikipedia is not

Articles on fiction are expected to follow existing content policies and guidelines, particularlyWikipedia is not simply plot summaries.Articles on fiction elements are expected to cover more about "real-world" aspects of the element, such as its development and reception, than "in-universe" details.

Manual of style

Editors interested in writing articles on fictional elements are encouraged to reviewWriting About FictionandWikipedia:Writing better articles#Check your fictionto understand the general approach and content of these articles.

Lists of fictional elements

Individually non-notable elements of a fictional work (such as characters and episodes)maybe grouped into an appropriate list article. Advice for the appropriateness of these list articles can be found atthe general notability guidelineand atStand-alone Lists and Topics.

Consult Wikiprojects

Editors should also review guidelines and recommendations made by WikiProjects that deal primarily with works of fiction. These include but not limited to:

AWikipedia:Fiction/Noticeboardwas created in 2009 but it was retired in 2010.

Previous proposals

User:Deckiller/Notability (fiction),the original attempted rewrite from c. 2007-2009
Wikipedia:Notability (fiction)/proposed-12-9-07,a previous failed proposal from 2007
User:Phil Sandifer/Fiction proposal,a previous proposal abandoned in 2008
Wikipedia:Plot-only description of fictional works,a previous failed proposal, in 2011 recategorized as an essay