Board Thread:Site Problems and Appearance/@comment-4854965-20141204205127

The following is a draft for the official guidelines for the wikia for transcript format. This is where any corrections/suggestions will be made before going up officially (with the admins' help). The spacing is not intentional, this is just how the text box is formatted.

1) Stage directions — If the stage directions are short, they should be written in italics and parentheses in the speech box.  If the stage directions are lengthy (e.g. the Globnar fight) it gets its own speech box. The character box should be left blank. No parentheses are needed.

Example:

!

| ''Soos leaves, walking around the corner of the Mystery Shack. Wendy and Stan walk in from around the corner, staring at Soos.''

|-

2) Scene changes, theme song, and commercials— All three always get their own speech box, with no character name, and written in italics but with no parentheses. Scene changes should begin with simple phrasing, such as “cut to”. The theme song should always be written as “cut to theme song”. For scene transitions where a commercial would be aired if played on TV, it should always be written as “commercial break”. Grammar should be used as normal, such as using a period.

<span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">| Cut to the Mystery Shack.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">3) Dialogue

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">a) Character sounds—If a character makes a sound (e.g. gasp, bleat) within either their own or another character’s dialogue, the description should be in the same speech box in line with the rest of the dialogue. If it is done between the dialogue of two different characters, the description should be at the end of the former character’s speech.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example 1: Within same-character dialogue. (Ellipses used below because example is an excerpt)

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!Mabel

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|…Who could it be? Who could it be? (Wompers bleating and squealing) What’s that Wompers? Someone we already know?...

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example 2: Between two characters’ dialogue.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!Lee and Nate

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|Lick that sponge! Lick that sponge! (Thompson groans and licks a dirty sponge)

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!Lee, Nate, and Mabel

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|(laughing) Oh!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">b) Special Dialogue— If a character changes their tone or affects an accent (e.g. mimicking another character, using a sarcastic tone, etc) it should be written in italics and in parentheses within the speech box. If a character narrates to the audience (the viewers) it should be written in the character box.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example 1:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!Mabel

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">| No. He’s more like (puts on trucker hat and mocks Dipper’s voice) Aaah! Let’s solve a mystery! I kiss a pillow with Wendy’s face drawn on it!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example 2:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!Dipper (Narrating)

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">| My name is Dipper. The girl about to puke is my sister Mabel.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">c) Addressing other characters—If a character specifically addresses another character, it should be noted in italic in parentheses within the speech box.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">!Dipper

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|Stan! Stan! (Sees Wendy drive up in a golf cart) (To Wendy) Wendy! Wendy! I need to borrow the golf cart so I can save my sister from a zombie!

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|-

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">4) Links—Links should be done on the very first use of the character’s name (or alias).

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">Example:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">!Hank

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">| <span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">You want cheese on that  <span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;border:1ptnonewindowtext;padding:0in;">hun <span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language:EN"> <span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">?

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";mso-ansi-language: EN">|- <span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:16.5pt;"> 5) Grammar <span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;">—Grammar should, as always be used. For everything, stage directions included, a period should be used. Only one space should be used between sentences. <ac_metadata title="Transcript Format Guidelines: Final Draft"> </ac_metadata>