Co-Authors
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Pro. This feature requires WB Member Blog Pro. The free plugin must be installed and active first. See the Pro index for every Pro module.
Co-authors let several members write one post together. The post’s author invites other members; each one accepts or declines. Once they accept, they can edit the post and their name appears in the byline next to the author’s.
Use it for interviews, joint guides, team write-ups, or any post with more than one writer. The module is off by default.
Turn it on
Section titled “Turn it on”- Go to WB Plugins > Member Blog > Manage Modules.
- Switch on Co-Authors. The switch saves as you flip it.
- Open the Co-Authors tab that now appears in the Member Blog settings sidebar.
- Review the settings below and click Save Settings.
Members accept invitations from the Co-Authors section of their Settings tab. That section is part of the Author Dashboard module and is on by default. You can hide it on the Author Dashboard tab under Visible sub-tabs.
Settings
Section titled “Settings”Found on WB Plugins > Member Blog > Co-Authors.
General and invitations
Section titled “General and invitations”| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum Co-authors Per Post | How many co-authors one post can have, 1 to 20. Pending invitations count toward the limit. | 5 |
| Allow Email Invitations | Lets the author find someone by typing their full email address, as well as by name or username. | On |
| Invitation Expiry (Days) | How long an invitation stays open, 1 to 30 days. | 7 |
Notifications
Section titled “Notifications”| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Email on Invitation | Emails the invited member. | On |
| Email on Acceptance | Emails the author when an invitation is accepted or declined. | On |
On BuddyPress or BuddyBoss sites with notifications active, invitations and replies also create on-site notifications. Each member can turn these emails and notifications off in their own notification preferences.
Permissions
Section titled “Permissions”| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Co-authors Can Remove Themselves | Allows a co-author to take themselves off a post. A co-author sees a Leave this post button next to their name in the author list on the post form, and confirms before leaving. They then lose edit access to the post. | On |
| Editing Session Length (Minutes) | How long a post stays locked to the person editing it, 5 to 60 minutes. See Editing at the same time. | 15 |
Display
Section titled “Display”| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Show All Authors in Byline | Shows the author and every co-author in the byline on single posts. | On |
| Byline Separator | Characters between names. | , |
| Last Author Separator | Characters before the last name. | & |
A Byline Preview under these settings shows the result, for example “John Smith, Jane Doe & Bob Wilson”. See Customize the Co-Author Byline.
Editorial Workflow
Section titled “Editorial Workflow”These add review tools on top of moderation. Whether posts are held for review at all is decided by one switch in the free plugin’s access settings (Publish immediately).
| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Front-end review tools | Shows Approve & Publish and Request Revision buttons to reviewers in the front-end post editor, and shows the reviewer’s feedback to the author. Administrators and editors can always review in Posts > Member submissions. | Off |
| Reviewer Roles | Extra roles that may approve or request revisions, from the front-end editor and from Posts > Member submissions. Administrators and editors can always review. A reviewer role can open another member’s post while it is pending review, so the review buttons are within reach; once the post is published or back in drafts, only its author, co-authors and editors can edit it. A reviewer role cannot approve its own submission. | Administrator, Editor |
| Workflow Email Notifications | Emails co-authors when a post they share is published or sent back for revision. | On |
What co-authors can and cannot do
Section titled “What co-authors can and cannot do”| Co-authors can | Co-authors cannot |
|---|---|
| Edit the post’s content, title, categories and tags | Delete the post |
| Upload media to the post | Invite other co-authors |
| Appear in the byline | Change the primary author |
The Co-Authors tab
Section titled “The Co-Authors tab”At the top of the tab:
- Posts with Co-authors, Co-author Assignments and Pending Invitations counts.
- A Pending Invitations table listing each open invitation with Post, Invited by, Invitee, Sent and Expires. Click Revoke to cancel one immediately.
In the WordPress post editor, a Co-Authors box shows a post’s co-authors.
Shortcodes and blocks
Section titled “Shortcodes and blocks”| Shortcode | Block | Shows |
|---|---|---|
[bp-member-blog-coauthors] |
Co-Authors | The byline for a post, with every author |
[bp-member-blog-invitations] |
Co-Author Invitations | The logged-in member’s pending invitations, with Accept and Decline |
[bp-member-blog-coauthored-posts] |
Co-Authored Posts | Posts a member co-authors |
Attributes are listed on Customize the Co-Author Byline and Invitations, Editing Together and Removing Co-Authors.
Pages in this section
Section titled “Pages in this section”- Invite Co-Authors - for the post’s author.
- Invitations, Editing Together and Removing Co-Authors - for invited members, authors and site owners.
- Customize the Co-Author Byline