wikiHow:After You Publish (for Students)

So you're here on wikiHow to complete an assignment . You've published your new article and are waiting for review. Maybe you haven't heard back yet, or maybe you're not clear on where your article stands in the process. Asking for help and input is great, but there are some Dos and Don'ts to keep in mind, especially if you're writing for an assignment.

Dos

  • Ask yourself if you've met all our guidelines yet. You should be able to answer "Yes" to all these questions:
    • Did you pick a unique topic that doesn't already exist on wikiHow and adds value for a significant number of readers (not just you or a small group of people)?
    • Did you write a thorough, detailed, and well-developed how-to that provides all the information a reader needs to achieve the task?
    • Did you use the default section order, labels, and layout in our formatting guidelines ?
    • Did you use only images you own the copyright to or have correctly licensed? If you can't make your own images, consider reusing wikiHow images instead. If you're writing about a tech program/app or a video game, screenshots are okay, too. Main step-by-step images should generally go on the main step (#), not the substep (#*).
    • Did you remove any personal references (I/me/my)?
    • Did you start each step with a verb that instructs the reader to do something? (For example "Fry the bacon," not "Frying the bacon" and not "Before you cook the eggs, fry the bacon.")
    • Did you divide the article into 2-3 parts or methods (or more, if applicable)? Only very simple articles should be one section; articles with more than 5-6 steps generally benefit from being divided up. You can also use substeps (#*) to break up very long steps.
    • Did you reference your sources? Unless the article is a very straightforward process with a clear end product (like a recipe or tech article), readers will want to know why they should trust the advice. Citing authoritative sources is the way to assure them it follows best practices in the given field.
    • Did you thoroughly proofread your article for issues with spelling, punctuation, and capitalization (capitalize the beginning of all sentences and things like software menu items, to match how they appear on buttons, but don't include extra capitalization in regular sentences), and other regular writing conventions?
  • Do remove the {{ inuse }} tag, if you used one, after you're sure the page meets all our requirements. Removing the inuse tag is what releases the article for review. However, removing it before you've done all the needed editing to get it up to our standards may mean the article is demoted, rather than promoted live.
  • Do be patient. Most articles are reviewed within 2-3 days (after you remove any inuse tag). Wait at least that long, and you'll probably either receive a message about your article or see edits on the article itself from where it was reviewed.
  • Do double check how your article appears. If you don't think it looks "right," check out some other fully promoted articles, for example on our homepage , and compare their format to yours. Does something look different? If so, check out the formatting guidelines and editing basics page to find out what to fix.
  • Do make sure you are identified as a student on your userpage . This helps our volunteers provide the right kind of help to you.
  • Do reach out for help after 3 days, if you're sure your article meets all the requirements and you haven't had feedback yet. If you are positive the article meets all of our guidelines, is adequately detailed and helpful, and is completely ready for promotion. However, you published it more than 3 days ago and it's still blurred out, you can reach out on the Article Review Team .


Don'ts

  • Don't harass wikiHow editors for promotion. Part of your assignment is making sure your guide meets our guidelines. It's nobody else's job to fix that for you, make exceptions, or promote your guide outside of our usual process. Do not ask for this special treatment, or your account may be blocked and your guide removed.
  • Don't assume you can use a different format. We have a standard layout for articles, and our software relies on articles using the set order and headers for different article sections. Please comply with our formatting guidelines , and don't substitute your own layout.
  • Don't keep asking for review if you haven't acted on the feedback you've been given. If you already received feedback and your article needs fixing, fix it. Don't repeatedly ask other editors for help unless you yourself have made edits to address any remaining issues on the article.
  • Don't republish the same guide twice. If your article was moved into Quality Review, do not republish it under a new title. Use all of the resources available to help fix it, instead.
  • Don't publish copied content or images that aren't legal to share here. It's great to do research from reputable resources to help with your article, but you do need to reword any information you get from elsewhere, and cite your sources.

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