The First author of an article has a special role in the peer-reviewed Wiki publishing process. The designation of a first author for an article should not be based on academic rank nor is first authorship to be assigned as an honor. There are no "honorary authors" in wiki publishing. Only people who actually author an article are authors. Major authors of articles should be listed in the title page section in order of their level of contribution to the article. If you wish to acknowledge contributions to an article that do not involve the actual writing of the article, include such acknowledgements in the acknowledgements section of the article.
Selecting the First Author
In wiki publishing, the first author should be a person who:
- takes primary responsibility for the article in all phases of the publishing process.
- has a user name registered with Wikicities
- is available to be contacted during the peer review process. This obligation includes reading comments in talk pages for the article, reading and responding to peer reviews, having an email address that is regularly monitored and available for messages from members of the wiki publishing community.
Designating someone as first author who does not meet these obligations can be grounds for rejection of articles by the wiki publishing community.
The role of Journals
If your goal is to have an article peer-reviewed by peers who understand your work, it is important to find a community where others share your interests. Wiki journals are such communities. It is technically possible to try to have your article peer-reviewed without associating the article with a particular wiki journal, but it may be difficult to accomplish. You should try to find a active wiki journal and follow the rules of that journal for article format and peer review.