User:Mandarax/Construction
Do not edit this page. This is a userspace draft for an expansion to an existing Wikipedia article. When ready, I will copy and paste it into article space, which would not be allowed if it had content from other users. Any edits made by users other than myself will be reverted. After this is in article space, constructive edits will be wholeheartedly welcomed. I know that I don't own this page. But, according to the user page guidelines, "If a user asks you not to edit their user pages, it is sensible to respect their request". |
Usage
[edit]For a new article
[edit]{{User:Mandarax/Construction|new}}
Displays:
Do not edit this page. This is a userspace draft for a new Wikipedia article. When ready, I will copy and paste it into article space, which would not be allowed if it had content from other users. Any edits made by users other than myself will be reverted. After this is in article space, constructive edits will be wholeheartedly welcomed. I know that I don't own this page. But, according to the user page guidelines, "If a user asks you not to edit their user pages, it is sensible to respect their request". |
For an expansion to an existing article
[edit]{{User:Mandarax/Construction}}
Displays:
Do not edit this page. This is a userspace draft for an expansion to an existing Wikipedia article. When ready, I will copy and paste it into article space, which would not be allowed if it had content from other users. Any edits made by users other than myself will be reverted. After this is in article space, constructive edits will be wholeheartedly welcomed. I know that I don't own this page. But, according to the user page guidelines, "If a user asks you not to edit their user pages, it is sensible to respect their request". |
Explanation of reasoning
[edit]All users are free to place this template on their drafts. My reason for using it:
I always have my drafts deleted after I put an article in mainspace because I don't want people to be able to refer to a permanent record of my sandbox editing, which is just for my own use. These edits are extremely different from those I make elsewhere; usually choppy and sloppy, sometimes strewing bits and pieces about, often with tiny changes, sometimes with errors, and always without proper edit summaries. It's fine to copy and paste an article to mainspace and delete my drafts when I'm the only contributor, but that shouldn't be done when there's content from anyone else. In that case the article should be moved into article space rather than the cutting and pasting that I prefer. Plus, for expansions to existing articles, a simple move would not be possible; an administrator would have to be called in to do a merge. This may all seem silly to some, but if I had to write drafts knowing that the full history would be preserved forever in the article's history, I'd do it much more carefully and methodically, which would inhibit my natural writing style, such as it is, and it would take me much longer to write than it does now (if that even seems possible).