Archive recovery note

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A few weeks ago, I stayed up until 2am making a theme.json-only child theme for Twenty Twenty Four. I was excited about the colorways. You can read about it here.

I learned about color theory and theme.json, and I had a lot of fun. Giving users more versions of the default themes seemed worth encouraging.

I submitted it to WP.org. The reviewer rejected it because the changes were “too minor” and the name broke the rules. I’d called it “Twenty Twenty Four (Dark Edition),” and I could understand the objection to that name.

In the commercial world, like with WooCommerce, you can use a trademarked term in a project name only if it falls under nominal fair use. Essentially, “Twenty Twenty Four (Dark Edition)” isn’t okay, but “Dark Mode for Twenty Twenty Four” is fine because it clarifies that it’s for Twenty Twenty Four but not an official “Twenty” product. This way, users won’t be misled into thinking it’s an official WP.org release.

I submitted it again and explained why I thought the styles deserved a separate child theme. That seemed to persuade them.

They still rejected the name, even after I explained how the new version addressed the problem. I know some people will say, “Just do what they say, and they’ll let you in,” but I can’t do that.

What bothered me most was that the reviewer didn’t seem interested in getting the theme into the repo. It felt as though closing the ticket mattered more. I’d like reviewers to help people get their themes accepted and encourage them to make more.

The team seems to see its job as protecting users from people making things. I want it to help bring more cool stuff into WordPress. How do we change that?