Customizing the Co-Author Byline

Control how co-author names appear on published posts. Customize separators, display order, and formatting to match your site’s style.

What You’ll Learn

Default byline format
Customizing separators
Changing author display order
Linking names to profiles

Default Byline Format

By default, co-author names display like this:

“By Alice, Bob, Carol & Dan”

The format uses:

Comma + space between names
Ampersand (&) before the last name

Byline Settings (Admin)

Site administrators can customize bylines in Member Blog → Co-Authors:

Setting	Default	Description
Separator	, (comma space)	Between names except the last
Last Separator	& (space ampersand space)	Before the final name
Link to Profiles	Yes	Make names clickable
Show Avatars	No	Display small avatars next to names

Separator Examples

Oxford Comma Style

Separator: ,
Last Separator: , and
Result: “Alice, Bob, Carol, and Dan”

Ampersand Style (Default)

Separator: ,
Last Separator: &
Result: “Alice, Bob, Carol & Dan”

Simple And Style

Separator: ,
Last Separator: and
Result: “Alice, Bob, Carol and Dan”

Bullet Style

Separator: •
Last Separator: •
Result: “Alice • Bob • Carol • Dan”

Changing Author Display Order

The primary author can reorder how co-authors appear in the byline:

Open the post for editing
Find the Co-Authors section
Drag the handles next to each name to reorder
Save the post

By default, the primary author appears first, followed by co-authors in the order they accepted.

Profile Linking

When Link to Profiles is enabled:

Each name becomes a clickable link
Links go to the author’s BuddyPress/BuddyBoss profile
Readers can easily find more content by that author

Disable this option if you prefer plain text bylines.

Avatar Display

Optionally show small avatars next to author names:

Go to Member Blog → Co-Authors
Enable Show Avatars in Byline
Set avatar size (default: 24px)
Save changes

This creates a more visual byline with recognizable faces.

Byline Placement

The byline automatically appears where your theme displays author information, typically:

Below the post title
Above the content
In post meta sections

The exact location depends on your theme. Most modern themes support co-author bylines automatically.

Styling the Byline

Add custom CSS to style the byline:

/* Byline container */
.bpmb-coauthors-byline {
    font-size: 14px;
    color: #666;
    margin-bottom: 15px;
}

/* Individual author links */
.bpmb-coauthor-link {
    color: #0073aa;
    text-decoration: none;
}

.bpmb-coauthor-link:hover {
    text-decoration: underline;
}

/* Avatar images */
.bpmb-coauthor-avatar {
    border-radius: 50%;
    margin-right: 4px;
    vertical-align: middle;
}

Two Authors Only

With exactly two authors, only the last separator is used:

“By Alice & Bob”

The system automatically handles this case.