Help:Beginner's guide to deletion

There are two main pages for deletion of works and other pages on Wikisource. This page provides an overview of both.

If a work should be deleted due to a suspected copyright violation, then possible copyright violations should be used. For everything else, use proposed deletions.

Copyright violation
If you find a work on Wikisource that you believe is in violation of United States copyright law:


 * 1) Add the template copyvio to the page (just below the header).  This will blank the work below that point.
 * 2) Go to Copyright discussions.
 * 3) Click "Add topic"
 * 4) If possible, use a wikilink to the work as the subject line
 * 5) In the body, explain why you think the work is a copyright violation.  Sign this with four tildes:
 * 6) Save the page.

Following this, other users may add comments which will usually wither support or oppose deletion. This is not a vote. Each user should also give their reasons. Eventually an administrator will close the discussion and either delete the work or keep it based on the reasons given.

The beginner's guide to copyright, and related pages, may help in determining whether or not a copyright violation has taken place.

General deletion
Works can be proposed for deletion if they are otherwise unsuitable for Wikisource. Non-copyright reasons for proposing deletion may be:


 * The work is so lacking in content (and not under active construction) that it's not useful
 * The text is merely raw OCR (computer-generated text) and isn't formatted for readers
 * The work is out of Wikisource scope (see What Wikisource includes)

Works proposed for non-copyright-related deletion will be listed at Proposed deletions.

My works was proposed for deletion! What do I do!
The first thing to do is not panic. Wikisource deletion processes take at least a week (two for a copyright discussion, and usually many months if there's an objection), so discussion can be had beforehand. A deletion proposal will never be closed until discussion is complete. Even if a work is "deleted", it's still present in the Wikisource database and can be "undeleted".

You should be informed if a work you have recently worked on is listed for deletion. You are then welcome to explain why you think the work should be kept.
 * If a work is proposed for deletion due to concerns about its content or presentation (e.g. if it is a copy-paste of uncorrected OCR), you can improve it, and you can ask for advice on what is needed.
 * If the the work is proposed for deletion on the grounds that it is out of scope or it is a copyright violation, you can present an argument for why you think it is not.