Style guide
What a good entry looks like. Everything submitted is read by an editor before it goes live, and this is what they are checking against.
What belongs here
An entry earns a page when it has spread beyond the place it started — when people who never saw the original are using it. A single viral post is not a meme yet; a format other people remix is.
If something is genuinely ambiguous, write it up and let an editor decide. Suggesting is free and nothing goes live unreviewed.
How an entry is structured
Every entry opens with a one-paragraph summary that answers "what is this" without jargon, then covers origin, spread and usage. The origin section is the one readers arrive for, so it carries the most weight.
An FAQ closes the entry. Write the questions people actually type into a search box, not the ones that make the entry look thorough.
Sourcing
Every claim about where something came from needs a link a reader can check. Prefer the original post, thread or upload over a later article about it.
A dead link is worse than no link. If the original is gone, cite an archive of it and say so.
Voice
Write it the way you would explain it to someone who just asked. Plain sentences, no hedging, no throat-clearing.
Do not editorialise about whether a meme is good, dead or cringe. Say what it is, where it came from and how it is used.
Images
Use the clearest version of the format, not the funniest example of it. Readers come to identify something they saw elsewhere.
Every image needs alt text describing what is in the frame. Credit the creator where one is known.
How entries are graded
Every entry is scored automatically on length, sourcing, media and FAQ depth, and the grade shows at the foot of the page. Across 544 entries right now:
- Complete — Well sourced and well illustrated.
- 31
- Developed — Solid entry. A second source or another example would round it out.
- 414
- Start — Covers the basics. More history would help.
- 80
- Stub — Short entry — the origin story still needs filling in.
- 19
The short entries and wanted entries reports are the open work queue — start there if you want to help and do not know where.
Or browse the wiki tools to see where the gaps are.