Hi! Nice to have you with us. This guide will walk you through the steps you have to take if you want to contribute a word or some code to the project. Let’s go.
The contribution process currently relies on some knowledge of working with Github and writing in Markdown. We understand that this creates a barrier to entry for folks who haven't worked with either of those before. Long term, we hope to provide a solution that can minimise these sorts of barriers.
We also want to encourage you to dive into Github and Markdown even if you haven't before. We've collected a list of useful links that may help you understand both Github and Markdown:
Please remember that the contributing team is always here to [help](#get-help). No question is "too simple" or "too easy". We'd rather you ask, as someone else might want to know, too!
**Note:** We also have [documentation](https://www.selfdefined.app/documentation/) that covers development and build processes, provides examples, frequently asked questions, and describes front matter configurations.
If you know a word that should be defined, but—for whatever reason—don’t feel confident writing the definition yourself (or maybe you disagree with an existing definition), please [open an issue](https://github.com/tatianamac/selfdefined/issues/new). We can then collectively figure out how to best get this word defined.
An issue might also be appropriate if you are unsure about some nuances of a definition you want to define. By opening an issue you start a conversation, and that is always a good thing!
If you are new to Github and feel unsure about what an issue should look like, see examples of a [good first issue](https://github.com/tatianamac/selfdefined/issues?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=is%3Aissue+label%3A%22good+first+issue%22+).
You got a definition and want to define it. That’s awesome. Let’s go. Currently, you need to fork this repository and open a pull request (PR) out of your fork. If that sounds like gibberish to you, Chaser Pettit wrote a [great introduction to the workflow](https://gist.github.com/Chaser324/ce0505fbed06b947d962).
Always remember that if you are unsure, you can first open an issue or create a PR with «WIP» in the title («WIP» stands for «work in progress») and ask for early feedback. For example, it might be called *«\[WIP\] Propose definition for spirit animal»*.
Replace `word` with the word or the phrase you are defining. Write it in all-lowercase letters with hyphens instead of spaces.
In our example, we would create the file named `obsessive-compulsive-disorder.md` (as it is already defined, you can have a look at the [finished definition of «Obsessive Compulsive Disorder»](11ty/definitions/obsessive-compulsive-disorder.md)).
All definitions consist of two parts: **front matter** and **content**. Front Matter is a technical bubble for some structured data about your content. On our website you can find the [complete documentation on Front Matter](https://www.selfdefined.app/documentation/front-matter/). Here’s a quick run down:
-`slug` is a string that we'll use to link to this word. It should be a URL-friendly, all-lowercase hyphenated version of the full title. In our example it's `obsessive-compulsive-disorder`.
-`speech` stores information about the word's part of speech. What kind of word you are defining? A noun? Or an adjective? That’s what `speech` is for. In our example it is a `noun`.
[The finished definition of «Obsessive Compulsive Disorder»](11ty/definitions/obsessive-compulsive-disorder.md) has some more content. We encourage you to take a look around, add things to the file with your word's definition, and see what happens on the page.
We have created some examples that you can use as the baseline for your work. Take a look at the [File Examples](https://www.selfdefined.app/documentation/examples/) section of our documentation.
**Related:** [When should I open an issue versus a pull request (PR)?](https://www.selfdefined.app/documentation/frequently-asked-questions/#when-should-i-open-an-issue-versus-a-pull-request)
If you've already tried reading through our [documentation](https://www.selfdefined.app/documentation/) and are stuck, we're here to help and ask your questions:
