How do I cite a biographical note?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook . For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook .

To cite a biographical note, mention it in your prose and then include the work in your works-cited list:

According to a biographical note in Edith Wharton’s  The Age of Innocence , the author “was born . . . into such wealth and privilege that her family inspired the phrase ‘keeping up with the Joneses.’” Work Cited Wharton, Edith.  The Age of Innocence . Barnes and Noble Classics, 2004.

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APA Style 7th Edition

  • Student Paper
  • Professional Paper
  • In-Text Citations
  • Reference Citations
  • Additional Resources

Audio Recording

Album  • Track   • Radio   • Spoken Word

See also Podcasts .

Needed Information

  • If no artist, author, or speaker is listed move the title of the work of art into the place of the author (before the date).
  • If there is no date associated with the work use the designation 'n.d.' in place of the date
  • If the work is untitled, in square brackets give a description of the work
  • Type of work - album, song, audiobook, audio track, interview, speech audio recording
  • Label, publisher, website, content holder
  • If the item is in physical format give the location (generally city, state, nation)
  • If the item is online give the URL

Barnum, P. T. (2011). The art of money getting [Audiobook]. LibriVox. (Original work published in 1880) https://librivox.org/the-art-of-money-getting-by-p-t-barnum/

Bob Marley and the Wailers. (1984). Legend [Album]. Island; Tuff Gong.

Brown, B. (2018). Dare to lead: Brave work, tough conversations, whole hearts [Audiobook]. Random House Audio.

Mozart, W. A. (2008). Mozart: The symphonies [Album recorded by the Prague Chamber Orchestra]. Telarc. (Original works composed 1764-1778)

Panrucker, S. (2015). Hello my name is Simon Panrucker [Album]. Free Music Archive. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Simon_Panrucker/Hello_My_Name_Is_Simon_Panrucker

van Schalkwyk, W. (Pianist), & Faganel, G. (Cellist). (2018, February 7). Faculty recital [Album]. University of Northern Colorado.

Verdi, G. (2015). Requiem mass [Album recorded by the UNC Symphony Orchestra & Choirs]. University of Northern Colorado. (Original work composed ca. 1874)

Wonder, S. (1976). Songs in the key of life [Album]. Tamla.

Beyoncé. (2020). Black parade [Song]. Park; Columbia.

Creedence Clearwater Revival. (1969). Fortunate son [Song]. On Willy and the poor boys . Fantasy.

Manson, M. (2016). The tyranny of exceptionalism [Audio track] . In The subtle art of not giving a f*ck: A counterintuitive approach to living a good life . HarperCollins; Blackstone Audio.

Roberts, D. (2021). Race [Audio track]. In N. Hannah-Jones, C. Roper, I. Silverman, & J. Silverstein (Eds.), The 1619 project . One World.

Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra. (1953). Mi prieta [Song]. On Mambo . Mercury; Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/lp_mambo_xavier-cugat-and-his-orchestra

Coates, E. J. (2019, August 20). Audio recording of interview with Elaine J. Coates [Interview]. University of Maryland Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives. https://archives.lib.umd.edu/repositories/2/digital_objects/18120

Saunders, V. (1990, December 1). The living memory of the Jewish community: Saunders, Vernon (Part 3) [Interview]. British Library Sounds. https://sounds.bl.uk/Oral-history/Jewish-Holocaust-survivors/021M-C0410X0101XX-0300V0

Scroggins, B. (n.d.). Bessie Scroggins [Interview]. University of Northern Colorado, Archives & Special Collections @ Digital UNC. https://digarch.unco.edu/islandora/object/cogru:4095

Wynne, S. W. (1931, November 30). Diet and health with Dr. Shirley W. Wynne, health commissioner [Interview]. WYNC, NYPR Archive Collections. https://www.wnyc.org/story/1140-a-m-diet-and-health-dr-shirley-w-wynne-health-commissioner

Gore, K. (2000). [Kristen Gore, daughter of Tipper Gore, gives a speech about her mother] [Speech audio recording]. Michigan State University Libraries, East Lansing, MI, United States.

Harding, W. G. (1920). National and Americanism [Speech audio recording]. Library of Congress. https://www.loc.gov/item/2004650664/

Poehler, A. (2011, May 26). Harvard University class day commencement address [Speech audio recording]. American Rhetoric. https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/amypoehlerharvardcommencement.htm

Ruth, G. H., Jr. (1947, April 27). Dying Babe Ruth addresses fans [Speech audio recording]. History. https://www.history.com/speeches/dying-babe-ruth-addresses-fans

Truman, H. S. (1934, July 28). Judge Harry S. Truman Speech, Springfield, Missouri (SR84-1) [Speech audio recording]. Harry S. Truman Library & Museum, Independence, MO, United States.

When discussing an entire blog in your paper (and not indicating a specific idea, fact, or document) it is acceptable to simply include the URL of the website in parentheses within your writing.  If you are referring to a specific piece of information or directly quoting information on a blog, a text and reference citation are required .

The blog  Just a Colorado Gal  (http://www.justacoloradogal.com/) covers not only hiking gear, routes, basics, and specifics, but also follow’s the life of the blogger.

Authors of academic papers can find useful tips and answers to APA questions not covered in the  Publication Manual  on the  APA Style Blog  (http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/).

With the tag line 'writer. professor. part-time hippie.' the  Stacia L. Brown  blog (http://stacialbrown.com/) offers readers current news topics with a human element and a humane eye.

Adventures of a Labor Nurse: The Highs and Lows of Labor and Delivery  blog (http://adventuresofalabornurse.com/) looks at the nursing profession and the people with humor and grace.

Information Needed

  • Date of Post (Year, Month Day)
  • Title of Post
  • Title of Blog

Hoffman, C. (2022, March 3). Your wif-fi is in Google and Microsoft's databases: Should you care? How-To Geek .  https://www.howtogeek.com/788837/your-wi-fi-info-is-in-google-and-microsofts-databases-should-you-care/

McAdoo, T. (2020, March 16). How to create an APA Style reference for a canceled conference presentation. APA Style.   https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/canceled-conferences

Our fave podcasts + audio books for holiday travel. (2019, November 19). Love Sweat Fitness.   https://lovesweatfitness.com/our-fave-podcasts-audio-books-for-holiday-travel/

Comment on Blog Entry

  • Author screenname/username or proper name
  • Date of comment (Year, Month Day)
  • Title of comment or first 20 words of comment
  • Title of blog

Azavedo, M. (2021, March 2). Your approach excites me, is what I too do. I really want to get my hands on the book you [Comment on the article “Creative writing for social research”]. The Research Whisperer. https://researchwhisperer.org/2021/03/02/creative-writing-for-social-research/

Jonathan. (2013, January 6). It’s not that work is less important, but that you can get it done efficiently, the right way [Comment on the article “Do you have an overwork problem?”]. Get a life, PhD. http://getalifephd.blogspot.com/2013/01/do-you-have-overwork-problem.html

Woshiernog. (2022, March 16). Why are people so gung-ho about talking about sexual things to K-3 rd graders and hiding those thing from the student parents? [Comment on the article “Marvel Studio denounces ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill as Disney employees plan walkout”]. Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/marvel-studios-disney-florida-lgbtq-bill-backlash-1848660759

Authored Book • Edited Book   • Anthology   • Book Edition   • eBook with DOI   • eBook from Library Dat abase   • Other eBooks

If citing only a chapter from an edited book, see examples for chapters in edited books .

  • Author(s) or editor(s)
  • Year of publication
  • Title of book
  • Publisher Name (if the author and the publisher is the same, omit the publisher)
  • If not the first edition of a book: Edition number
  • If part of a multi-volume set: Volume number
  • If an ebook: DOI or URL, unless ebook is from library database

Authored Book

Cabaniss, A. (1970). Liturgy and literature: Selected Essays . University of Alabama Press.

Chandler, D., & Werther, W. B., Jr. (2014). Strategic corporate social responsibility: Stakeholders, globalization, and sustainable value creation (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.

Rhodes, C. (2020). Disturbing business ethics: Emmanuel Levinas and the politics of organization . Routledge.

Edited Book

Felker, G. M., & Mann, D. L. (Eds.). (2020). Heart failure: A companion to Braunwald's heart disease . Elsevier.

Garnett, S., Latch, P., Lindenmayer, D., & Woinarski, J. (Eds.). (2018). Recovering threatened species: A book of hope . CSIRO Publishing.

Pappas, G., & Guajardo, M. (Eds.). (1993). Colorado Hispanics: A report of selected social concerns .    Latin American Research and Service Agency.

125th anniversary anthology, 1839-1964: A sampling of reading tastes from the lists of an American publisher with a brief historical commentary. (1964). Dodd, Mead & Co.

Garnett, R., Valle'e, L., & Brandl, A. (Eds.). (1902). The universal anthology: A collection of the best literature, ancient, medieval and modern, with biographical and explanatory notes (Westminster Ed., Vol. 33). Merrill & Baker.

Gates, H. L., Jr., & Smith, V. (Eds.). (2014). The Norton anthology of African American literature (3rd ed., Vol. 2). W. W. Norton & Company.

Book Edition

Finkelnburg, W. (1964). Structure of matter (W. Finkenburg & O. Matossi-Riechmeier, Trans., 9th/10th ed.). Springer.

Reid, A., Tu, S., Port, K. L. (2018). Fundamentals of United States intellectual property law: Copyright, patent, and trademark (6th ed.). Kluwer Law International.

Turekian, K. K. (2010). Marine chemistry and geochemistry: A derivative of encyclopedia of ocean sciences (2nd ed.). Academic Press.

eBook with DOI

Goldman, M. B., Troisi, R., & Rexrode, K. M. (2013). Women and health (2nd ed.). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2009-0-01962-X

Jones, P., Miles, D., & Gopalkrishnan, N. (2019). Intercultural learning: Critical preparation for international student travel. UTS ePRESS. https://doi.org/10.5130/978-0-9945039-9-2

Kersten, F. (1997). Galileo and the 'invention' of opera: A study in the phenomenology of consciousness . Springer: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8931-4

eBook from Library Database

Other eBooks (no DOI, not from a library database)

Curnow, K. (2018). The bright continent: African art history . MSL Academic Endeavors.  https://pressbooks.ulib.csuohio.edu/bright-continent/

Doyle, G. R., & McCuthcheon, J. A. (2015). Clinical procedures for safer patient care . British Columbia Institute of Technology.  https://opentextbc.ca/clinicalskills/

Vatsyayana. (2009). The kama sutra of Vatsyayana: Translated from the Sanscrit in seven parts with preface, introduction and concluding remarks (S. P. Bhide, R. F. Burton, & B. Indrajit, Trans.). Project Gutenberg.  (Original work published in 1883)  https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/27827

Book Chapter ♦ Reference Work Entry

Book Chapter • Handbook Section/Chapter  •  Dictionary Entry   • Encyclopedia Entry  • Wikipedia Entry

Generally, only cite book chapters when the book has editors and chapters are by different authors or groups of authors. When citing a book with authors but no editors, cite the whole book in the reference list and, if appropriate, give the chapter number in the text citation.

  • Chapter author(s) 
  • Title of chapter, section, or author
  • Book editor(s)
  • Page numbers of chapter, section, or author

For information of when to use a DOI, URL, or neither, see the Book section.

Edited Book Chapter

Fasina, A. (2015). Case 3: Altered mental status. In Y. Okuda & B. P. Nelson (Eds.), Emergency medicine oral board review illustrated (2nd ed., pp. 47-50). Cambridge University Press. https://amzn.to/2yFID2P

In-Text Citation Examples

Pegoraro, A., Scott, O., & Burch, L. M. (2017). Strategic use of Facebook to build brand awareness: A case study of two national sport organizations. In Information Resources Management Association (Ed.), Sports, media, marketing, and management: Breakthroughs in research and practice (pp. 97-118). IGI Global. 

Handbook Section/Chapter

Lin, W. (2020). Participatory geographic information systems in visual research. In L. Pauwels & D. Mannay (Eds)., The SAGE handbook of visual research methods (2nd ed., pp. 173-185). SAGE Publications. 

For online reference works that are continuously updated , such as the online version of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the publication date should be recorded as n.d. (no date) and the date you looked at the online article is placed before the URL in the citation.

  • Dictionary entry examples: #1 and #2
  • Encyclopedia entry examples: #1 and #3

Even some more 'official' dictionaries and encyclopedias are updated in an on-going basis and should follow the rule above. For instance, the first example under Encyclopedias is called a 'living edition' even though it has a DOI, ISBN, and publisher. Therefore, the citation requires that 'no date' be indicated in the publication date and retrieval information is included before the URL.

Because Wikipedia keeps copies of each version of each article, do not use 'no date' in place of the publication date, nor include retrieval date information. 

Dictionary Entry

Encyclopedia Entry

Reynolds, C. R., Vannest, K. J., & Fletcher-Janzen, E. (2014). Visual-motor and visual-perceptual problems.  In Encyclopedia of special education, Vol. 4: A reference for the education of children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities and other exceptional individuals (4th ed., pp. 2727-2728). Wiley. 

Wikipedia Entry

To find the date of the article you wish to cite, click on " View History " in the top, right-hand corner of the Wikipedia page, and select the most current version of the article by clicking on the most current date. The URL will now have a series of numbers at the end, indicating an archived version of the Wikipedia article that gives reference to the exact version of the article you accessed.

Wikipedia View History Example

  • Title of systematic review

Foxcroft, D. R., Moreira, M. T., Almeida Santimano, N. M. L., & Smith, L. A. (2015). Social norms information for alcohol misuse in university and college students. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD006748.pub4

Molyneaux, E., Howard, L. M., McGeown, H. R., Karia, A. M., & Trevillion, K. (2014). Antidepressant treatment for postnatal depression. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD002018.pub2

Pellicori, P., Doolub, G., Wong, C. M., Lee, K. S., Mangion, K., Ahmad, M., Berry, C., Squire, I., Lambiase, P. D., Lyon, A., McConnachie, A., Taylor, R. S., & Cleland, J. G. F. (2021). COVID-19 and its cardiovascular effects: A systematic review of prevalence studies. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD013879

If citing a canceled presentation or a conference that was planned for in-person attendance but changed to virtual, see the APA Blog article How to Create an APA Style Reference for a Canceled Conference Presentation . 

  • Presenter(s)
  • Dates of conference (generally Year, Month Day-Day)
  • Title of session
  • Type of session (Conference session, Paper presentation, Poster presentation, Plenary session, Keynote, Workshop, etc.)
  • Name of conference
  • Generally City, State, Nation or equivalent
  • If a completely virtual conference, do not include a location
  • URL (if available)

Conference Session - In-Person or Hybrid Conference

Blackman, C., Fore, I., & Skinner, K. (2016, May 16-19). A new dimension for team science – individual and system elements in collaboration [Workshop]. Science of Team Science (SciTS) 2016 Conference. https://bit.ly/3Il0gmn

Gustetic, J. (2019, September 21-24). Opening session [Keynote]. 2019 ASTC Annual Conference. Toronto, Ontario, Canada. https://www.astc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/2019ASTCAnnualConferenceProgram.pdf

Radford, M. L., Kitzie, V., Mikitish, S., Floegel, D., & Silipigni Connaway, L. (2019, April 10-13). Trending now: Recasting services to support scholarly identity work [Paper presentation]. ACRL 2019. Cleveland, OH, United States. https://www.ala.org/acrl/sites/ala.org.acrl/files/content/conferences/confsandpreconfs/2019/acrl2019_program.pdf

Sablan, J., Edwards, K., Wiles, L. J., Guillen, C., & Bai, Z. (2018, March 3-7). Collaboration across units: Lessons shared in support of undergraduate and graduate student transitional experiences [Poster presentation]. 2018 NASPA Annual Conference. Philadelphia, PA, United States. https://conference.naspa.org/images/uploads/2018-NASPA-book-web.pdf

Smith, K. (2016, June 6-7). Libraries & copyright: The past and present [Conference session]. Kraemer Copyright Conference. Colorado Springs, CO, United States. https://copyright.uccs.edu/kraemerconference/archives/sessions2016

Conference Session - Virtual Only Conference

Chow, K. (2022, January 31-February). Propelling Java at Alibaba scale [Plenary session]. CMG IMPACT 2022. https://cmgimpact.com/schedule2022/

Hacker, D. (2022, February 24-25). Deprived at both ends: Women under secular and religious family law [Keynote]. Fifth International Conference on the Future of Women. https://futurewomenconference.com/#

Many, A., Parks, J., Zaback, K., & Zinth, J. (2021, October 18-19). Building OER capacity in the Midwest: Supporting grassroots efforts and statewide collaboration [Conference session]. Open Education Conference. https://opened21.sched.com/

Ybarra, J., Anderson, J., & Karr, S. (2021, April 18). The mediating role of self-efficacy on the math anxiety-performance relationship [Poster presentation]. University of Northern Colorado Research Day 2021. https://www.unco.edu/honors-scholars-leadership/aew/researchdayposters.aspx

  • Year of publication/year of posting/year of release
  • Title of data set
  • Version number, if given
  • DOI or URL, if an online data set

Bywater-Reyes, S., Diehl, R. M., & Wilcox, A. C. (2018). T he influence of a vegetated bar on channel-bend flow dynamics (no. 5) [Data set]. University of Northern Colorado, Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/esd_data_2018/16/

Doornwaard, S. M., ter Bogt, T. F. M., Reitz, E., & van den Eijnden, R. J. J. M. (2016). Sex-related online behaviors, perceived peer norms and adolescents’ experience with sexual behavior: Testing an integrative model [Data set]. Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.96bc0

National Center for State Courts. (1984). Criminal case processing in metropolitan courts, 1976 [Data set]. University of Michigan, Institute for Social Research.

National Oceanographic Data Center. (1988). Environmental buoy data [Data set]. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Pastor, D., Patterson, C., & Goldberg, A. (2021). Anticipated future political participation: A college student sample (Version 1) [Data set, code book, and instrument]. ICPSR. https://www.openicpsr.org/openicpsr/project/134261

DOI Example

A digital object identifier (DOI) is an alphanumeric code that is assigned to content to provide a persistent identifier (like a social security number for articles and chapters and other content). A DOI acts as a locator - helping individuals find articles and chapters cited in bibliographies. DOIs are preferable to URLs because even if the URL for an article breaks in the future, the DOI will remain constant.

DOIs and APA Style

In APA-style reference citations, always express the DOI as a URL ( see below ). This may sound confusing (after all, DOIs different than URLS), but expressing a DOI as a URL allows readers to more easily access the document you cited. DOIs are commonly seen on born-digital content, but may also be included in the print version of content. DOIs always begin with 10; however, a DOI can be expressed as a URL, where https://doi.org/ appears in front of the DOI. If you find a DOI on a source you are citing that does not include https://doi.org/ as a prefix, add it to the DOI for the APA citation. It is best to copy and paste the DOI from digital content to your bibliography so that there are no transcription errors - but don't forget to change the font and font size to match the rest of your paper!  

DOI without URL prefix 10.1111/j.1471-8847.2007.00193.x

same DOI with URL prefix added https://doi.org/ 10.1111/j.1471-8847.2007.00193.x

1. The DOI should be listed on the first page of a journal article . It is sometimes more difficult to find a DOI on a book or book chapter – check the title page verso .  The DOI may or may not be prefaced with the letters DOI.

DOI on the Article First Page - Example 1    DOI on the Article First Page - Example 2   

2. DOIs are often included in database records .  Thus, when searching a library database like Academic Search Premier, SpringerLink, or Summon, if a DOI is assigned to an article, book, or book chapter, the DOI will be included in the database record.

DOI in a Database Record - Example 1 DOI in a Database Record - Example 2

3. DOIs may also be found in the bibliography of an article – as authors are now using DOIs as a citation tool. If you find a DOI in a bibliography and want to find the actual article, book, or book chapter (or at least further citation information), you need to use a DOI resolver ( see http://dx.doi.org/ ).

Film, Television & Video

Feature Film • Documentary Film   • Educational Film   • Television Series   • Television Episode   • TED Talks   • YouTube   • Vimeo  • Webinar

Feature Film

  • Director(s)
  • Year of release
  • Film title - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)
  • Format type - it is not incorrect to include the format type always; but it is necessary to include the format type if the format provides additional content, such as a DVD with commentary or extras.
  • Production company/companies

Anders, A., Rockwell, A., Rodriguez, R., & Tarantino, Q. (Directors). (1995). Four rooms [Film]. A Band Apart.

Capra, F. (Director). (1946). It’s a wonderful life [Film]. Liberty Films.

Fleming, V. (Director). (1939). Gone with the wind [Film]. Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Gilliam, T. (Director). (1998). Fear and loathing in Las Vegas (Criterion Collection ed.) [Film; Blu-ray disc]. Rhino Films; Summit Entertainment.

Kurosawa, A. (Director). (1954). Shichinin no samurai [Seven samurai] [Film]. Toho.

Renoir, J. (Director). (1950). La règle du jeu [The rules of the game] [Film]. Nouvelle Éditions Française.

Documentary Film

  • Film title - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)

Flaherty, R. J. (Director). (1922). Nanook of the north [Film; documentary]. Pathé Exchange.

Morris, E. (Director). (1988). The thin blue line [Film; documentary]. Miramax Films.

Neville, M. (Director). (2018). Won’t you be my neighbor [Film; documentary]. Tremolo Productions; Impact Partners; Independent Lens.

Peck, R. (Director). (2016). I am not your Negro [Film; documentary DVD]. Velvet Film; Artemis Productions; Close Up Films.

Zhangke, J. (Director). (2020). Yí zhi yóu dào hǎi shuǐ biàn Ián [Swimming out till the sea turns blue] [Film; documentary]. Xstream Pictures.

Educational Film

  • Name of database or collection if film is only available through a specific database or collection

Newman, R. D., & Nightingale, J. (Producers). (2012). Videofluoroscopic review of swallowing: Biomechanics, physiology, pathology [Film; educational DVD]. Vision Four Video; Plural Publishing.

McIlwain, C., Fisherkeller, J., Dietrich, E., & Benson, R. (Speakers). (2006). Qualitative research: Methods in the social sciences [Film; educational video]. SAGE Research Methods Video.

Prince, K. (Director). (2019). Some like it hip hop [Theatrical production recording]. ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company. Retrieved from Digital Theatre Plus.

Sartore, J. (Speaker). (2013). The art of travel photography: Six expert lessons [Film; educational DVD]. Teaching Company.

Television Series

  • Executive producer(s)
  • Years of production - if the series in ongoing, use the word "present" for the latter date
  • Title of television series - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)

Cho, H.-j., & Kim, S.-h. (Executive Producers). (2018-2019). Alhambeura goongjeonui chooeok [Memories of the Alhambra] [TV series]. Chorokbaem Media; Studio Dragon.

Kohan, J., Friedman, L, Hess, S., Herrmann, T., Vinnecour, L, Tannenbaum, N. K., & Burley, M. A. (Executive Producers). Orange is the new black [Netflix TV series]. Titled Productions; Lionsgate Television.

Maher, B. (Creator & Presenter). (2003-present). Real time with Bill Maher [TV series]. Bill Maher Productions; Grad Grey Television; Home Box Office.

Sheldon, L. (Executive Producer). (1961-1966). The Dick Van Dyke show [TV series]. Calvada Productions.

Television Episode

  • Writer(s) and Director(s)
  • Original air date
  • Episode Title 
  • Season number, episode number
  • Title of television series  - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)

Dueñas, M. (Writer), Grondona, A. (Writer), Rubio, S. L. (Writer), & Peñafiel, I. (Director). (2013, November 18). El sol siempre vuelve a salir (Season 1, Episode 5) [TV series episode]. In E. Pina & R. Baltanás (Executive Producers), El tiempo entre costuras [The time in between]. Boomerang TV; Atresmedia.

Parker, T. (Writer), Stone, M. (Writer), Goodman, D. R. (Writer), & Stough, E. (Director). (2001, July 11). Scott Tenorman must die [TV series episode]. In T. Parker, M. Stone, B. Graden, D. Liebling, F. C. Agnone, II, B. Howell, & A. Garefino (Executive Producers) South Park . Celluloid Studios; MTV Entertainment Studios; Comedy Parnters.

Williams, R. (Writer), & Bucksey, C. (Director). (2016, December 16). The road less traveled (Season 2, Episode 2) [Amazon Prime TV episode]. In R. Scott, F. Spotnitz, C. Baute, I. D. Hackett, S. Mackinnon, & C. Tricarico (Executive Producers), The man in the high castle . Amazon Studios; Scott Free Productions; Electric Shepherd Productions; Headline Pictures; Bight Light Productions; Picrow; Reunion Pictures.

If the TED Talk recording is found on YouTube, cite as a YouTube video (see examples below).

  • Speaker - or the entity posting the video if found on YouTube
  • Date - year and month if found on TED website or year, month, and day if found on YouTube
  • Title of talk - include the speaker's name if found on YouTube

Robinson, K. (2006, February). Do schools kill creativity? [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/sir_ken_robinson_do_schools_kill_creativity ?

TED. (2015, March 20). Monica Lewinski: The price of shame [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/H_8y0WLm78U

TED. (2015, April 3). Bill Gates: The next outbreak? We’re not read y [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/6Af6b_wyiwI

Urban, T. (2016, February). Inside the mind of a master procrastinator [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_urban_inside_the_mind_of_a_master_procrastinator

  • Name of person or entity posting the video (if known)
  • Screenname or username of entity posting the video
  • Date video was posted (year, month, day)
  • Title of video

Drost, H. [Drost Video]. (2017, July 3). How to find your most watched YouTube videos [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/H_HrNWPThiA

Ghate, J. (2020, April 16). How to paint big dot mandala step by step tutorial [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/sSCPMuOoHJo

Kjellberg, F. A. U. [PewDiePie]. (2021, November 5). People break their legs on purpose. Why? [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/H_HrNWPThiA

Pinkfong Baby Shark – Kids’ Songs & Stories. (2016, June 17). Baby shark dance [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/XqZsoesa55w

University of Northern Colorado, University Libraries [UNCLibraries]. (2020, June 12]. APA style 7 th edition: Formatting an APA style paper – student paper in Microsoft Word [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/wBQz_FHhbRg

Art Gallery of Western Australia. (n.d.). Hannah Gadsby at AGWA: E Phillips Fox [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/243261903

Brass, M. (2011, August 12). Rocky Mountain National Park [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/27620090

Montana Office of Tourism. (n.d.). Indian nations: Cippewa Cree [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/74474155

Wolf, M. (2020, August 31). Another hayride [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/453421514

If the Webinar recording is found on YouTube, cite as a YouTube video (see example below).

  • Speaker(s) - or the entity posting the video if found on YouTube
  • Date - year, month, day
  • Title of webinar
  • Name of entity responsible for recording/posting the webinar if not found on YouTube

Association of Clinicians for the Underserved. (2021, June 30). Managing in the time of COVID-19 & beyond – diversity, equity, & inclusion [Webinar]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/x5lg_BD-hDA

Hess, D., Hunter, J., Ascher, A., & Bishop, T. (2021, September 1). Understanding the Initial Preventive Physical Examination (IPPE), the Annual Well Visit (AWV) and cognitive assessments and care plan services [Webinar]. Novitas Solutions. https://bit.ly/3CLc5Bg

McCartin, L. (2020, March 18). Prioritizing curriculum during emergency remote teaching [Webinar]. University of Northern Colorado, Center for the Enhancement of Teaching & Learning, Teaching, Learning & Assessment. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/tla/37/

Pudewa, A. (2018, July 2). Strategies for winning the college writing game [Webinar]. Institute for Excellence in Writing. https://excellenceinwriting.adobeconnect.com/_a946750274/pfkfwvkpj194/

  • An single person,
  • Multiple people,
  • A group author (an institution or organization), or
  • Multiple group authors.
  • Look for whomever takes credit or responsibility for the information. 
  • If there is no individual or group author associated with the information, move the title into the place of author (before the date).
  • the copyright date or
  • the date of last update.
  • Do not use a copyright date from a website footer as this does not give any indication of when the information was written; if no other date is available, us the rules of no date.
  • For journal articles that have been accepted by a journal but not yet published, use the notation (In press). 
  • Use circa (abbreviated ca.) for approximate dates, as in (ca. 1930). 
  • If there is no date associated with the information, use the notation of n.d., for no date, as in (n.d.).
  • entire standalone works (e.g., books, journals, albums, etc.) and
  • works that a part of a greater whole (e.g., book chapters, journal articles, songs, etc.).
  • For works that are not books, journal/journal articles, magazine/magazine articles, or newspaper/newspaper articles include a description of the type of work directly after the title and before ending punctuation inside square brackets.
  • Source information varies by type, format, and retrieval method of source. For example, a print newspaper article has different source information than an online book. See examples on this page and the Publication Manual (pp.293-301).
  • Generally a group author, but may be a mix of group and individual authors
  • Date of publication
  • Title of report
  • Report number or designation (sometimes an alphanumeric code)
  • Publisher name or organization (if different than the author)
  • URL - if an online report

Government Report Online

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, April). HIV infection, risk, prevention, and testing behaviors among transgender women (HIV Surveillance Report No. 27). https://bit.ly/3N2xWZJ

Department of Regulatory Agencies & Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. (2019, November 15). Final report for Colorado’s public opinion. State of Colorado. https://bit.ly/37umoOm

Internet Crime Complaint Center. (n.d.). 2020 internet crime report. Federal Bureau of Investigation. https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2020_IC3Report.pdf

United States International Trade Commission. (2019, April). U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement: Likely impact on the U.S. economy and specific industry sectors (Report 4889 TPA 105-003). https://www.usitc.gov/publications/332/pub4889.pdf

Government Report Print

Colorado Department of Human Services. (1999, March 1). Assessment of community consolidated child care pilot program: Technical report submitted to the Colorado General Assembly .

Harmon, K. R. (1986, February). Telecommunications study for Colorado libraries: Executive summary report. Colorado Department of Education.

United States General Accounting Office. (1991, June). Professional military education at the four intermediate service schools: Report to the Chairman, Panel on Military Education, Committee on the Armed Services, House of Representatives (GAO/NSAID-91-182). Department of Defense.

Visher, M. G., & Hudis, P. M. (1999, October). Aiming high: Strategies to promote high standards in high schools – interim report. New American High Schools; U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education.

  • Principal investigator
  • Year grant begins
  • Year grant ends
  • Title of grant
  • Grant number (if there is one)
  • Granting agency
  • URL - if grant abstract is online

Berg, M. (Principal Investigator). (2021-2022). Graduate content literacy for diverse learners, EDRD 515 [Grant]. University of Northern Colorado OER Committee. https://bit.ly/3JpO05w

Burns, P. (Principal Investigator). (2021-2025). Influence of fish oil on corpus luteum function (Grant No. 2021-67016-33839) [Grant]. United States Department of Agriculture. https://portal.nifa.usda.gov/web/crisprojectpages/1024909-influence-of-fish-oil-on-corpus-luteum-function.html

Cheung, P. W. (Principal Investigator). (2018-2021). Characterization of novel signaling pathways involved in water balance disorders (Project No. 3K08DK115901-03S1) [Grant]. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10165964

Mayer, J. (Principal Investigator). (2018-2019). OER awareness and infrastructure building at the University of Northern Colorado [Grant]. Colorado Department of Higher Education. https://highered.colorado.gov/Publications/Reports/Legislative/OER/OER_Report_2019_Final.pdf

Grey literature basically refers to the wealth of information sources that are not published through traditional publishing houses. This basically includes any information source that is not a book, journal, magazine, or newspaper.

Grey Literature includes materials that are generally

  • not published commercially and/or
  • not generally accessible and
  • can include ephemera

According to the Twelfth International Conference on Grey Literature, the definition is as follows:

"Grey literature stands for  manifold document types produced on all levels of government, academics, business and industry in print and electronic formats  that are protected by intellectual property rights, of sufficient quality to be collected and preserved by libraries and institutional repositories, but not controlled by commercial publishers; i.e., where publishing is not the primary activity of the producing body" (for more information see  Towards a Prague Definition of Grey Literature - PDF ).

...paint ings, pamphlets,  patents, patient care sheets, plans,  podcas ts, post cards, posters,  practice guidelines, policies,  PowerPoints , preprints, press release,  Prezis , proceedings...

Determining How to Cite Grey Literature

  • Check the Reference Citations on this Guide.
  • Consult the Publication Manual 7th Edition .
  • Consult the APA Style Blog .
  • Investing for life [Brochure] .
  • How to create online continuing education classes [Webinar] .
  • Anatomical model
  • Annual report
  • Apparatus and data file
  • Blog comment
  • Blu-ray disc
  • Book review
  • CD recording
  • Conference presentation
  • Committee report
  • Computer software
  • Database record
  • Demographic map
  • Electronic mailing list comment
  • Facebook page
  • Facebook post
  • Lecture notes
  • Letter to the editor
  • Measurement instrument
  • Mission statement
  • Mobile application software
  • Motion picture
  • Online forum comment
  • Organizational standards
  • Physiological specimens
  • Podcast transcript
  • Policy documents
  • Policy statements
  • PowerPoint presentation
  • PowerPoint slides
  • Practice guidelines
  • Press release
  • Prezi presentation
  • Product catalog
  • Questionnaire
  • Research notes
  • Research proposal
  • Scientific protocol
  • Tape recording
  • Television series episode
  • Television series webisode
  • Topographic map
  • Twitter update

Journal Article

with DOI • Print Version  • with URL  • in Library Databases  • with Article Number  • with Page Numbers  • Advance Online Publication  • In Press

  • Year of Publication
  • Title of Article
  • Title of Journal
  • Volume Number
  • Issue Number
  • Page Numbers or Article Number

Journal Articles with DOI

Freeze, J. G., Kelly, H. R., & Batista, V. S. (2019). Search for catalysts by inverse design: Artificial intelligence, mountain climbers, and alchemists. Chemical Reviews, 119 (11), 6595-6612.  https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00759

Katada, S. N. (2013). Financial crisis fatigue? Politics behind Japan’s post-global financial crisis economic contractions. Japanese Journal of Political Science, 14 (2), 223-242. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1468109913000042

Parsons, S. (2009). Sontag’s lament: Emotions, ethics, and photography. Photography and Culture, 2 (3), 289-302. https://doi.org/10.2752/175145109X12532077132356

Journal Articles Print Version

Meeker, M. (2001). Behind the mask of respectability: Reconsidering the Mattachine Society and male homophile practice, 1950s and 1960s. Journal of the History of Sexuality, 10 (1), 78-116.

Wechsler, H., Lee, J. E., Kuo, M., & Lee, H. (2000). College binge drinking in the 1990s: A continuing problem – results of the Harvard School of Public Health 1999 college alcohol study. College Health, 48 (5), 199-2010.

Wester, F. R. (1953). A technique for the measurement of race attitudes. American Sociological Review, 18 (1), 73-78.

Journal Articles with URL

Hopsicker, P. M. (2014). Racing to death: The not-so-ordinary happenings of the 1932 Lake Placid Olympic bobsled events. Journal of Sport History, 41 (1), 73-93. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/544501/pdf

Moskalik ,  T.,  Borz , S. A.,  Dvořák , J.,  Ferencik , M.,  Glushkov , S.,  Muiste , P.,  Lazdiņš , A., &  Styranivsky , O.  (2017). Timber harvesting methods in Eastern European countries: A review.  Croatian Journal of Forest Engineering, 38 (2), 231-241. https://bit.ly/376dRgA  

Rashidi, Z., Azadbakht, M., Amini, A., & Karimi, I. (2014). Timber harvesting methods in Eastern European countries: A Review. Cell Journal, 15 (4), 282-293. https://celljournal.org/journal/article/abstract/591

Journal Articles in Library Databases

Journal Articles with Article Number

Cucuzzella, C., Chupin, J.-P., & Hammond, C. (2020). Eco-didacticism in art and architecture: Design as means for raising awareness. Cities, 102 , Article 102728.   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2020.102728

Rothan, H. A., & Byrareddy, S. N. (2020). The epidemiology and pathogenesis of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. Journal of Autoimmunity, 109 , Article 102433. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaut.2020.102433

Urada, L. A., Rusakova, M., Odinokova, V., Tsuyuki, K., Raj, A., & Silverman, J. G. (2019). Sexual exploitation as a minor, violence, and HIV/STI risk among women trading sex in St. Petersburg and Orenburg, Russia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16 (22), Article 4343. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16224343

Journal Articles with Page Numbers

Meadwell, J., Paxman-Clarke, L., Terris, D., & Ford, P. (2019). In search of a performing seal: Rethinking the design of tight-fitting respiratory protective equipment facepieces for users with facial hair. Safety and Health at Work, 10 (3), 275-304. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shaw.2019.05.001

Taddei, C., Zhou, B., Bixby, H., Carrillo-Larco, R. M., Danaei, G., Jackson, R. T., Farzadfar, F., Sophiea, M. K., Di Cesaire, M., Caminia lurilli, M. L., Rodriguez Martinez, A., Ashgari, G., Dhana, K., Gulayin, P., Kakarmath, S., Santero, M., Voortman, Riley, L. M., Cowan, M. J.,…Ezzati, M. (2020). Repositioning of the global epicentre of non-optimal cholesterol. Nature, 582 (7810), 73-77.  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2338-1

Zhong, Y.-P., Shen, X.-T., Ying, Y., Wu, H.-T., Li, J., Qi, Q., Zhou, C.-Q., & Zhuang, G.-L. (2012). Impact of transitory hyperprolactinemia on clinical outcome of in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. Journal of Medical Biochemistry, 31 (1), 27-33. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10011-011-0039-x

Journal Articles, Advance Online Publication

Esposito, E., Li, W., Mandeville, E. T., Park, J.-H., Şencan, I., Guo, S., Shi, J., Lan, J., Hayakawa, K., Sakadžić, S., Ji, X., & Lo, E. H. (2020). Potential circadian effects on translational failure for neuroprotection. Nature. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2348-z

Jose, K., MacDonald, F., Vandenberg, M., Williams, J., Abbott-Chapman, J., Venn, A., & Smith, K. J. (2020). School breakfast club programs in Australian primary schools, not just addressing food insecurity: A qualitative study. Health Education & Behavior. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.unco.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/1090198120920193

Rűber, I. E., & Janmaat, J. G. (2020). Does participation in adult education increase volunteering? An analysis of British longitudinal data. Adult Education Quarterly. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.unco.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/0741713620927348

Journal Articles in Press

In press articles are also called Journal Pre-Proofs.

In press articles are articles are manuscripts that have been submitted to and accepted by a journal, but are still in the process of final production; therefore, it is possible mistakes are included in this version of the article that will be caught and corrected before the final version. It is important to note in citation when working with an in press article, so that the reader knows the version of the article any information came from. Not all journals put in press articles online for others to see. It is generally journals in the sciences that offer access to articles before the final version is completed. In general, in press articles will not have a volume, issue, or page numbers; they may or may not be assigned a DOI.

cite author biography

Magazine Articles

Magazine Article Print Version • Magazine Article from Library Database   • Magazine Article on Open Web

  • If no author is listed, move the magazine article title into the place of the author
  • Date of publication
  • Title of article
  • Title of magazine
  • Volume, issue, and page numbers are often not available for online magazine articles; if they are not available omit the numbers
  • Magazine articles are not always on sequential page numbers; if an article appears non-sequentially give the first page or page range followed by a comma followed by the second page or page range, and so on
  • URL - for online magazine articles

Magazine Article Print Version

Malcolm, J. (2018, October 29). Six glimpses of the past: Photography and memory. The New Yorker, 94 (34), 18-26.

Shah, S., & El-Sayed, A. (2022, January). Medical algorithms need better regulations. Scientific American, 326 (1), 10-11.

Spradley, N. (2016, December). Strokes of genius. Essence, 47 (8), 45-46, 48, 50.

What you should know about AirPods. (2022, March). Consumer Reports, 87 (3), 14-15.

Magazine Article in Library Database

Magazine Article on Open Web

Berinato, S. (2022, January-February). When people listen to happy songs, the market outperforms. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/01/when-people-listen-to-happy-songs-the-market-outperforms

Boyes, A., Esposito, L., Gillihan, S., & Leyba, E. (2021, May 4). The high cost of calm. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/articles/202105/the-high-cost-calm

Faber, T. (Author), Lai, A. (Photographer), & Tao, K. (Stylist). (2022, March 15). David Erritzoe: On the mind-bending potential of psychedelics. Kinfold, 43 . https://www.kinfolk.com/david-erritzoe/

Howley, E. K. (2021, June 4). COVID-19 vaccines for children: Timing, side effects and more. U.S. News & World Report. https://health.usnews.com/conditions/coronavirus-and-your-health/articles/covid-19-vaccines-for-children-timing-side-effects-and-more

If citing a new source from a newspaper , magazine , blog , or video site like YouTube , see examples under these types of sources. For news sources on websites such as ABC News, CBS News, CNN, HuffPost, MSNBC, NBC News, NPR, Reuters, Salon, Vox, etc., site as examples given below.

  • If there is no author, move the title of the news article before the date element.
  • News site name

News Site - Article with Author(s)

Fulcher, M. P. (2022, March 20). Boulder prepares to mark a painful milestone – a year since the King Soopers Shooting . CPR News. https://www.cpr.org/2022/03/20/boulder-prepares-to-mark-a-painful-milestone-a-year-since-the-king-soopers-shooting/

Karanth, S. (2022, March 16). 1 year after Atlanta spa shootings, Asian American women still face hate and violence. HuffPost. https://bit.ly/3qmU8nq

Sneed, T., & de Vogue, A. (2022, March 21). What Ketanji Brown Jackson might be grilled about her Supreme Court confirmation hearings . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/21/politics/what-to-expect-ketanji-brown-jackson-confirmation-hearings/index.html

Thrash, R. (2022, March 21). 2 Pennsylvania troopers hit by a car and killed as they helped man on interstate, police say. CBSNews. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/two-pennsylvania-troopers-three-hit-car-killed-95-rcna20820

Website, Author and Publisher Are Same

Chinese Boeing jet crashes in mountains with 132 on board, no sign of survivors . (2022, March 21). Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-eastern-airlines-passenger-jet-has-accident-guangxi-state-media-says-2022-03-21/

Marine pilot killed in Osprey crash in Norway was a native on Leominster. (2022, March 21). WCVB Boston. https://www.wcvb.com/article/marines-pilot-capt-ross-reynolds-killed-in-norway-osprey-crash-was-a-native-of-leominster/39485562

Newspaper Articles

Newspaper Article Print Version • Newspaper Article from Library Database   • Newspaper Article on Open Web

  • Author(s) - if no author is listed, move the newspaper article title into the place of the author
  • If citing something without a title (such as an advertisement), write a description of the piece inside square brackets.
  • If the title of newspaper lends itself to ambiguity (such as a common title such as The Daily Sentinel) place the city and state of the newspaper in square brackets after the title of the newspaper.
  • Page numbers are often not available for online newspaper articles; if they are not available omit them
  • Newspaper articles are not always on sequential pages; if an article appears non-sequentially give the first page or page range followed by a comma followed by the second page or page range, and so on
  • URL - for online newspaper articles

Newspaper Article Print Version

Coyotes around Nunn numerous and bold. (1916, May 10). Greeley Daily Tribune , 6.

Hindi, S. (2018, May 3). Defense lawyer releases video from body camera. Fort Collins Coloradoan , A1, A3.

Klomhaus, S. (2022, February 10). Assessment finds Mesa County is lacking in available child care. The Daily Sentinel [Grand Junction, Colorado], A3.

[Advertisement for Saks & Company women’s wraps, capes, and coat sale with prices]. (1920, May 11). The New York Times , 5.

Newspaper Article in Library Database

Newspaper Article on Open Web

Carlson, M. (2022, January 2). Betty White obituary. The Guardian . https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/jan/02/betty-white-obituary

Casanova, S., & Sweeney, A. (2021, July 28). Violence spike of 2020 widened familiar safety gap between city neighborhoods, University of Chicago Crime Lab analysis shows. Chicago Tribune . https://bit.ly/3JmCeso

Dickerson, B. (2022, March 16). Opinion: Zelenskyy is the leader of the free world now. Detroit Free Press . https://bit.ly/3qdVnW1

Kafer, K. (2021, November 17). Denver talk show host is in hot water for false election fraud claims. The Denver Post . https://www.denverpost.com/2021/11/17/randy-corporon-talk-show-host-defamation-lawsuit-dominion-election-fraud/

Personal Communications

Emails • Text Messages   • Private Letters   • Online Chats   • Direct Messages   • Memos   • Telephone Conversations   • Unrecorded Classroom Lectures   • Personal Conference Notes   • Live Speeches  

Personal communications are only cited with an In-Text Citation. Do not give a Reference Citation.

Personal Communications are  unpublished information sources  that are not recoverable by the greater population (readers). For published communications, use the corresponding published format for citation examples ( i.e. , for letters published in a book, cite a book; personal communications may be published in journal articles, books, book chapters, blogs, websites,  et cetera ).

  • Name of the person the information came from
  • Date of the communication - Month, Day and Year
  • If possible, give context within your writing as to the type of source you are citing (compare the Letter example - where context is given - with the Memo Letter, in which no context is given)
  • Parenthetical In-Text Citation: (R. J. Rymill, personal communication, January 12, 1936)
  • Narrative In-Text  Citation: R. J. Rymill (personal communication, January 12, 1936)

In a letter written by Wyoming State Senator  Robert J. Rymill  ( personal communication, January 12, 1936)  to his brother W. L. Rymill, the senator stated, “Serving on city and county school boards is the most successful avenue to changing education."

  • Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (C. Okafor, personal communication, July 7, 2017)
  • Narrative In-Text  Citation: C. Okafor (personal communication, July 7, 2017)

Chief Operating Officer  Cecelia Okafor   ( personal communication, July 7, 2017 )  advised the Board of Trustees of the necessity of managing human capital costs and cross-training efforts .

Conversation (Personal)

  • Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (C. Myers, personal communication, June 10, 2017)
  • Narrative In-Text  Citation: C. Myers (personal communication, June 10, 2017)

One presenter, at a recent copyright conference, stated, “My best advice regarding the amount used is to consider the amount needed to serve the purpose in relation to the work being used” ( C. Myers, personal communication, June 10, 2017 ).

Text Message

The following example is for a text message from an unknown source. Generally, the author of a text message is known and both Parenthetical and Narrative In-Text Citations will include the author's name.

  • Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (personal communication, May 27, 2020)

A text message sent from an unknown source ( personal communication, May 27, 2020 ) stated, "Some who came into contact with you tested positive or has shown symptoms for COVID-19 & recommends you self-isolate/get tested." Cable News Network (CNN, 2020) later reported that individuals across the United States received the same or similar text messages that including a link that - if activated - downloaded malware onto the recipient's computer.

  • Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (G. Hampson, personal communication, April 20, 2020)
  • Narrative In-Text  Citation: G. Hampson (personal communication, April 20, 2020)

In an email, G. Hampson  ( personal communication, April 20,2020 ) expressed his opinion on commercial (for-profit) entities' involvement in open access as follows:

I think we can build a very effective future on this common ground instead of continuing along the path where we divide our community into those whose motives are “pure,” and those who also look to do this work in a sustainable business manner.

Classroom Lecture (Unrecorded)

  • Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: ( S. P. Mackessy , personal communication, January 21, 2020)
  • Narrative In-Text  Citation: S. P. Mackessy (personal communication, January 21 , 2020 )

During a session of a human anatomy course at the University of Northern Colorado, Professor S. P. Mackessy  ( personal communication, January 21,2020 ) referenced a forensic investigation in which snake venom was used as a poison in the death of a two-year-old.

A note on keeping a personal Dark Archive for Personal Communications used in research.

The Society of American Archivists defines a Dark Archive as " a repository that stores archival resources for future use but is accessible only to its custodian" or a " collection of materials preserved for future use but with no current access."

Generally, a Dark Archive is not necessary or advisable for student papers; however, for theses, dissertations, and formally published works, a Dark Archive of Personal Communications is recommended. Thus, if you cite an email in a journal article, keep that email so that if anyone asks you about the information in the email or questions the veracity of the information, you still have that information accessible.

Podcast Series

  • Years of Podcast Activity - this will generally be a range of years; the beginning year is the year in which the first episode was produced and the last year is the year in which the last year of the podcast was produced; if the podcast is still producing episodes, the latter part of the date range is noted as 'present'
  • Title of Podcast
  • Type of Podcast - audio or video
  • Production Company

DJ Envy, Yee, A., & Charlamagne tha God (Hosts). (2010-present). The breakfast club [Audio podcast]. iHeartRadio. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-breakfast-club-24992238/

Rogan, J. (Hosts). (2009-present). The Joe Rogan experience [Video podcast]. Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/show/4rOoJ6Egrf8K2IrywzwOMk

Shepard, D., & Padman, M. (Hosts). (2018-present). Armchair expert with Dax Shepard [Audio podcast]. Simplecast. https://armchairexpertpod.com/

Podcast Episode

  • Date of Episode (Year, Month Day)
  • Title of Episode
  • Type of Podcast
  • URL - if the episode is accessed through an app, the URL can be omitted)

Abumrad, J. (Host). (2019, November 19). The only one for me, Jolene [Audio podcast episode]. In Dolly Parton’s America . WNYC Studios. https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/dolly-partons-america/episodes

Eagan, D. (Host). (2021, April 2). Elevators: Terror and death in a 6 by 6 foot box (No. 3) [Audio podcast episode]. In Strange and unexplained . Obsessed Network. https://www.strangeandunexplainedpod.com/post/episode-3-elevator-stories

Ko, C., & Miller, N. (Hosts). (2021, December 9). Matt Damon ruins your Saturday (No. 217) [Video podcast episode]. In Tiny meat game podcast . TMG Studios. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_aUaq1mYds

  • If no author is given, move the title of the slide deck to the first element position in the citation.
  • If no date is given, use n.d. in place of a date to indicate "no date"
  • For various online slide software, it may be necessary to to figure out where this information is located (for example, for Google Slides select File>>Document Details which gives the creation date for the Google slide deck)
  • Title of slide deck
  • Publisher or host website
  • If the slide deck is behind a firewall (e.g., Canvas, Blackboard, a company intranet) and the main audience of the slide deck is within the organization that has access to materials behind the firewall, provide the name of the platform and the URL of the platform sign-on page.
  • If the slide deck is behind a firewall and the main audience does NOT have access to materials behind the firewall, cite the slide deck as a personal communication.

Davenport, B. (2015, May 17). 20 stress-free ways to declutter your home [Slides]. SlideShare. https://www.slideshare.net/bbdavenport/20-stressfree-ways-to-declutter-your-home

Denny, M. (2021, April 20). Setting writing goals & staying motivated [Google slides]. Google. https://bit.ly/37Lg05v

Mayer, J., & Webber, N. (2017, November 9). Showcase your impact as an author/creator and tell your research story [PowerPoint slides]. University of Northern Colorado Scholarship & Creative works @ Digital UNC. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/workshops/1/

Wei, L. (n.d.). Multilingualism, social cognition, and creativity [PowerPoint slides]. Stony Brook University. https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/mic/_pdf/LiWeiSlides.ppt

Wiegand, S. (2018, Fall). Asking an answerable question, part III [Slides]. University of Northern Colorado Canvas Learning Management System. https://www.unco.edu/canvas/

Yohe, E. (2021, February 25). What you need to know about paid leave law [Slides]. Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. https://cdle.colorado.gov/sites/cdle/files/documents/CLDE_DLSS_Webinar_PresenationDeck_Web.pdf

Research instruments are sometimes referred to as tests. They are scales, inventories, questionnaires, and measurement tools used to collect data.

  • Individual(s) and/or Group(s)
  • If no year is associated with the instrument, give the notation for no date (n.d.)
  • If no title is associated with the instrument, give a description of the instrument in square brackets
  • Publisher, if available
  • Database name, if citing at database record
  • DOI or URL, if available

Manual for Research Instrument

Kerby, M. L. (1980). Kerby learning modality test: Manual (Rev. Ed.). Western Psychological Services.

Messer, B., & Harter, S. (2012). The self-perception profile for adults: Manual and questionnaires. University of Denver, Department of Psychology. https://portfolio.du.edu/downloadItem/225566

Sanders, C. M., Mauger, P. A., & Strong, P. N., Jr. (1984). Grief experience inventory: Manual. Consulting Psychologists Press.

Research Instrument - Test, Scale, Questionnaire

Alliance for the Study of School Climate. (n.d.). School climate assessment instrument (SCAI): Elementary teacher version (Version 2016 7.2.3). California State University-Los Angeles. https://web.calstatela.edu/centers/schoolclimate/pdf/assessment/ASSC-SCAI-E-G.pdf

American Chronic Pain Association. (n.d.). Quality of life scale: A measure of function for people with pain. https://health.gov/hcq/trainings/pathways/assets/pdfs/QOL_scale.pdf

Cohen, S. (n.d.). Perceived stress scale: 10 item . https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/psychology/stress-immunity-disease-lab/scales/html/pss.html

Mart, E. G. (2011). The practical assessment of testamentary capacity and undue influence in the elderly . Professional Resource Express.

Database Record for Research Instrument

Mind Garden. (1977). Ways of coping questionnaire [Database record]. CINAHL Plus with Full Text. https://www.ebsco.com/products/research-databases/cinahl-plus-full-text

Peterson, J. C. (2016). Stress management questionnaire (Rev. Ed.) [Database record]. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print. https://www.ebsco.com/products/research-databases/mental-measurements-yearbook-tests-print

Zeitlin, S, Williamson, G. G., & Szczepanski, M. (n.d.). Early coping inventories: A measure of adaptive behavior, observation and self-rated forms [Database record]. PsycTESTS. https://doi.org/10.1037/t12063-000

Social Media

Facebook   • DeviantArt   •  Instagram • LinkedIn   •  Twitter   • and many more...

Social Media defined by Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary : F orms of electronic communication (such as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos).

Social Media defined by Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary : F orms of electronic communication (such as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos).

Cite social media information only when it is original information. For example, if a Facebook post links you to an article on the UNICEF website, site only the UNICEF site and not the Facebook post; however, if the Facebook post offers original information, such as a Facebook post by a parent expressing the need for face mask exemptions for students in primary school, this is original information and you cite the Facebook post.

  • Author - Real name, screenname, username
  • Date - Day, month, and year
  • Regular title
  • Content of the post up to the first 20 words
  • If audiovisuals, give the type of audiovisual in square brackets 
  • Site or platform title
  • URL - if the content is changing and updating (such as on a wiki) give the retrieval date

For examples of citing YouTube and TikTok videos, see .

Text Citation Examples

Butko, B. [lincoln_highway]. (2020, August 20). A derecho storm with winds up to 140 mph has devastated Iowa, damaging or destroying 13 million acres of crops [Photograph]. Instagram.  https://www.instagram.com/p/CEHq1J_lcCc/

National Portrait Gallery [nationalportraitgallery]. (2022, February 16). Today's #portraitoftheday is none other than Oscar Wilde [Photograph]. Instagram.  https://www.instagram.com/p/CaCn4yjMoPJ/

University of Northern Colorado [unc_colorado]. (2022, February 10). Great careers start in bear country. Yours can too! Network with alumni working in careers you want to pursue [Video].  https://www.instagram.com/p/CZziObQBFy8/

Feinstein, A. (n.d.). Home [LinkedIn page]. Retrieved March 7, 2022, from  https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfeinstein/

Morse, A. (2022, March 5). It was great having Sara Frederic of Mississippi State University join us in our University of Northern Colorado of sport [Image attached] [Post]. LinkedIn.  https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6905657650567032832/

University of Northern Colorado. (2021, May 7). UNC track and field student-athlete and new grad Armanni Portee '21 connected with alumnus and former football player Jonathan Martin [Video attached] [Post]. LinkedIn.  https://www.linkedin.com/posts/university-of-northern-colorado_uncbears-alumni-connections-activity-6800803462264303616-QoEh 

Obama, B. [@BarackObama]. (2022, March 3). The Ukrainian people need our help. If you're looking for a way to make a difference, here are some organizations [Thumbnail with link attached] [Tweet]. Twitter.  https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1499505056126808068

Musk, E. [@elonmusk]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. Retrieved March 8, 2022,  https://twitter.com/elonmusk

Rocky Mountain National Park [@RockyNPS]. (2015, November 17). The next time someone tells you to take a hike, head to #RMNP! #TakeAHikeDay [Image attached] [Tweet].  https://twitter.com/RockyNPS/status/666668053522960384

Woodson, J. [@JackieWoodson]. (2022, March 4). This happened tonight. #HansChristianAndersenMedal 'for the most distinguished contribution to international children's literature' #IBBY2022 [Image attached] [Tweet]. Twitter.  https://twitter.com/JackieWoodson/status/1499994495760449540

Student Work

Action Research Projects  • Capstones • Dissertations   • Master's Theses  • Undergraduate Honors  Theses

Published student work refers to students works that are available online through a commercial database (such as ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global , through an institutional repository (such as Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC ), on a personal website, or other source. Unpublished student work refers to student works that are kept by a university but are only available in print.

  • Title of work
  • Type of work
  • Name of institution awarding an associated degree
  • If published: name of database, institutional repository, archive, or website
  • If published, but not in a commercial database: URL

Action Research Project

Felder, A. (2020). The impact of research workbooks on assessment [Action research project, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/arp/25/

Fiumara, D. A. (2016). The effects of motivational strategies to increase teachers' commitment and enthusiasm [Action research project, St. Catherine University]. Sophia, the St. Catherine University Repository.   https://sophia.stkate.edu/maed/136/

Mousel, S. (2006). Bad medicine: Homework or headache? Responsibility and accountability for middle level mathematics students [Action research project, University of Nebraska Lincoln]. DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/mathmidactionresearch/51/

Senn, K. (2018). Evidence-based tuberculosis screening and testing clinical protocol for public health and primary care providers [Doctoral capstone, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/capstones/38/

Wu, T. (2019). Give me a good reason: Exploring tightness-looseness as a framework for norms-nudges [Master's capstone, University of Pennsylvania]. ScholarlyCommons.  https://repository.upenn.edu/mbds/15/

Doctoral  Dissertation

Beaumont, E. (2004). An empirical study of family group visitors to a millennium art gallery in the UK (Publication No. 2561899289) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Salford]. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

Becker, D. (2021). From babysitting to teaching - Latina childcare providers acquiring effective teaching strategies: A grounded theory of transformative professional development [Doctoral dissertation, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/dissertations/789/

DeFries Gallagher, A. (2021). A qualitative analysis of the recommended implementation and replication of the cure violence model according to New York City and Chicago program staff interviews [Doctoral dissertation, Johns Hopkins University]. JScholarship.  http://jhir.library.jhu.edu/handle/1774.2/66850

Lebsack, R. R. (1976). Identifying facilitative characteristics of major advisers by normative judgment analysis [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University of Northern Colorado.

Williams, K. J. (2018). The structure of models of second-order set theories [Doctoral dissertation, City University of New York]. Kameryn J. Williams.  http://kamerynjw.net/research/pubs/diss/kwilliams-diss.pdf

Master's Thesis

Baretta, M. (2021). Exploring communication strategies used by speech-language pathologists and nursing professionals prior to and during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic [Master's thesis, University of Northern Colorado].  Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/theses/213/

Gallagher, W. J. (1990). The effect of altitude induced hypoxia on visual evoked potentials [Unpublished master's thesis]. University of Northern Colorado.

Han, M. N. (1994). State succession by Ukraine: Territories and armed forces from the former USSR [Master's thesis, Central Michigan University].  ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Ardovino, A. (2013). Heroes of rock: A design post mortem exploring the video game design process as it relates to player satisfaction [Undergraduate honors thesis, University of Utah]. USpace Institutional Repository.  https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6611f5q

Brown, S. A. (2021). Understanding how high levels of noise affect the equine auditory system [Undergraduate honors thesis, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/honors/48/

Chuor, B. N. (2018). Asian-American political participation: The consequences of social invisibility and political alienation [Senior honors thesis, University of Houston]. University of Houston Institutional Repository.  https://uh-ir.tdl.org/handle/10657/4308

  • Title of UpToDate article
  • Retrieval date
  • change  https:/ /www-uptodate-com .unco.idm.oclc.org /contents/homesickness ?search=homesickness&source=search_result&selectedTitle=1~1&usage_type=default&display_rank=1  
  • to  https://www.uptodate.com/contents/homesickness

Chou, R. (2022). Subacute and chronic low back pain: Nonsurgical interventional treatment. UpToDate . Retrieved February 1, 2022, from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/subacute-and-chronic-low-back-pain-nonsurgical-interventional-treatment

Cohen, P. (2022). COVID-19: Outpatient evaluation and management of acute illness in adults. UpToDate . Retrieved March 5, 2022, from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/covid-19-outpatient-evaluation-and-management-of-acute-illness-in-adults

Thurber, C. A., & Walton, E. (2022). Homesickness. UpToDate . Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/homesickness

Visual Works

Artwork in Museum  • Artwork on Museum Website • Clip Art, Illustration, Stock Image, & Vector Image   • Exhibition  • in Library Databases  • Infographic   • Installation   • Map   • Mixed Media  •   Painting  • Photograph  • Sculpture   • Slides

  • If no author is listed, move the title of the work of art into the place of the author (before the date).
  • Date of creation, installation, publication
  • If citing a work of art without a title, write a description of the piece inside square brackets in place of the title element.
  • Type of art/format
  • Include building if appropriate
  • Generally includes city, state, nation
  • If visual work is found in a database, give the database name instead
  • If the visual work was viewed in place, do not give a URL
  • If the visual work was viewed online (such as through a museum website or through a database) give the URL
  • If the visual work was viewed through a proprietary database, give the homepage of the database instead of a direct URL to the work within the database

Artwork in Museum

Birritjama, D. (n.d.). Cat and crow legend [Painting]. Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

Escher, M. C. (1935). Hand with reflecting sphere [Lithograph]. Detroit Institute of Arts Museum, Detroit, MI, United States.

Savage, E. (1796). The Washington family [Painting]. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, United States.

Kestrel, S. (1989). Spectre of ancient pathways [Sculpture]. Benson Sculpture Garden, Loveland, CO, United States.

Russin, R. (1959). Abraham Lincoln memorial monument [Sculpture]. Summit Rest Area, Interstate 80, WY, United States.

Weimer, D. (2004). Northern vision [Sculpture]. University of Northern Colorado University Center, Greeley, CO, United States.

Artwork on Museum Website

Ducrollay, J. (1744). Snuff box [Object]. The Wallace Collection, London, United Kingdom. https://bit.ly/3iHcxr7

Macalister, M. (1966). Victim [Sculpture]. Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Auckland, New Zealand. https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/3360/victim

Meucci, A. (ca. 1825). Mrs. Pierre Toussaint [Painting]. New York Historical Society Museum & Library, New York, NY, United States. https://bit.ly/3wq9efG

Vigée Le Brun, L.-É . (1780). La paix ramenant l’abondance [Peace bringing abundance] [Painting]. The Louvre, Paris, France. https://collections.louvre.fr/en/ark:/53355/cl010061985

Artwork in Library Database

Bourke-White, M. (1936). Wind tunnel construction, Fort Peck Dam, Montana [Photograph]. ArtStor. https://www.artstor.org/

Donald Trump – make America hate again . [Political sticker]. (2015-2016). ArtStor. https://www.artstor.org/

Murakami, T., & Louis Vuitton Design House. (2003). Bag (iid-bfl-141508) [Purse]. Bloomsbury Fashion Central. https://www.bloomsburyfashioncentral.com/

Oscar de la Renta. (ca. 1984). Dress (iid-bfl-141595) [Clothing]. Bloomsbury Fashion Central. https://www.bloomsburyfashioncentral.com/

Clip Art, Illustration, Stock Image, & Vector Image

bniique. (2021, June 2]. [Photograph of close-up of eye with reflection of window]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/eyes-look-face-eye-cat-girl-5248678/

Boulart, G. (1877). Exocoetus volitans [Illustration]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Exocoetus_volitans.jpg

grmarcstock. (n.d.). Diversity skins of black women and men cartoons [Vector image]. Vecteezy. https://www.vecteezy.com/vector-art/1760631-diversity-skins-of-black-women-and-man-cartoons

Prado, L. (2019, October 24). Dancer [Clip art]. The Noun Project. https://thenounproject.com/icon/dancer-3462518/

Crooks, J. (Curator). (2021, September 1-2022, February 21). Fragments of epic memory [Exhibition; Photographs]. Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. https://ago.ca/exhibitions/fragments-epic-memory

Mangat, T. H. (Artist). (2021, October 8-2022, April 23). Capturing the moment: Works by Terrie Mangat [Exhibition; Quilts]. International Quilt Museum at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, United States.

Oliver, V. C. (Curator). (2021, November 5-2022, February 6). The dirty south: Contemporary art, material culture, and the sonic impulse [Exhibition; Mixed media]. Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, TX, United States.

Infographic

Bernander, P. (n.d.). Social capital and global health: What trusting relationships tell us about the global burden of disease [Infographic]. https://bit.ly/36etoP6

Cash, I. (n.d.). Infographic of infographics [Infographic]. http://www.ivan.cash/infographic-of-infographics/

León, W., Martinez, J. D., Ramos, C., Saab, Z., & Pacific Rubiales Energy. (2013). History of life as we know it [Infographic]. Bēhance. https://www.behance.net/gallery/10901127/History-of-Life

Installation

Beuys, J. (1983-1985). The end of the Twentieth Century [Installation]. Tate Modern, Bankside London, United Kingdom. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/beuys-the-end-of-the-twentieth-century-t05855

Christo. (2021, September 18-October 3). L’Arc de Triomphe, wrapped [Installation]. L’Arc de Triomphe, Paris, France. https://christojeanneclaude.net/artworks/arc-de-triomphe-wrapped/

Cummins, P., & Piper, T. (2014, July-November). Blood swept lands and seas of red [Installation]. Tower of London, London, United Kingdom.

Kusama, Y. (2013). Infinity mirrored room – the souls of millions of light years [Installation]. The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Clark, W., & Lewis, S. (1814). A map of Lewis and Clark’s track, across the western portion of North America from the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean by order of the executive on the United States [Map]. Wikipedia. https://bit.ly/3iyHwW5

Google Maps. (n.d.). [Terrain map of Pawnee Buttes Trailhead in Colorado]. Retrieved March 24, 2022, https://bit.ly/3Jz1jk2

Humphreys, A. A., & Egloffstein, F. W. (1858). Rio Colorado of the West (No.2) [Map]. Library of Congress Geography and Map Division, Washington, DC, United States.

International Gay & Lesbian Aquatics. (2020, December). Sexual orientation laws in the world: From criminalisation of consensual same-sex sexual acts between adults to protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation [Map]. Retrieved from https://ilga.org/sites/default/files/downloads/ENG_ILGA_World_map_sexual_orientation_laws_dec2020.png

National Geospatial Technical Operations Center. (2022, March 14). US topo 7.5-minute map for Clarkville SE, CO [Map]. United States Geological Survey. https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/623a7c15d34e915b67cdf824

United States Forest Service. (2020). Winter motor vehicle use map: White River National Forest, Dillon Ranger District, Colorado, effective dates Nov. 23-May 20 [Map]. University of Northern Colorado James A. Michener Library, Greeley, CO, United States.

Mixed Media

Anatsui, E. (2005). Fading cloth [Mixed media artwork]. Saint Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, MO, United States. https://www.slam.org/collection/objects/48425/

Bradford, M. (2007). Helter skelter I [Mixed media artwork]. The Broad, Los Angeles, CA, United States.

Kokin, L. (2003). Approximation #3 [Mixed media artwork]. Boise Art Museum, Boise, ID, United States. http://www.boiseartmuseum.org/exhibition/bam-unpacked-for-kids/

Pindell, H. (1990). Autobiography: Scapegoat [Mixed media artwork]. Garth Greenan Gallery, New York, NY, United States.

Dali, S. (1972). Mae West lips sofa [Furniture]. Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands. https://www.boijmans.nl/en/collection/artworks/122647/mae-west-lips-sofa

Oscar Heyman Brothers. (1929). Marjorie Merriweather post brooch [Jewelry]. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA, United States. https://bit.ly/3wtwaLe

Tiffany, L. C. (ca. 1910-1920). Hibiscus and parrots [Stained glass window]. The Met, New York, NY, United States.

United States Army. (1912-1923). 115 th cavalry WWI corporal garrison uniform [Clothing]. Military Memorial Museum, Cheyenne, WY, United States.

Boardman, S. A. (2011). President Obama, Denver State Commission [Painting; Portrait]. Colorado State Capitol, Denver, CO, United States.

Duesberry, J. (n.d.). Still life with chintz and books [Painting]. University of Northern Colorado Archives & Special Collections @ Digital UNC, Greeley, CO, United States. https://digarch.unco.edu/islandora/object/cogru:119851

Green, W. O. (n.d.). The search for knowledge [Painting; Triptych]. University of Northern Colorado James A. Michener Library, Greeley, CO, United States. https://www.unco.edu/library/about_us/art.aspx

Silva, A., & Kiess, Z. (2020). In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity  [Painting; Mural]. 9 th Avenue and 7 th Street, Greeley, CO, United States.

Bell, C. M. (ca. 1849-1893). American Indian man with headdress and bear claw necklace and ornaments [Photograph]. Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, United States. https://www.si.edu/object/archives/components/sova-naa-photolot-80-ref540

McClure, L. C. (1927). [Photograph of the view of Voorhies Memorial with Christmas decorations, Civic Center, Denver, Colorado]. Western History Collection, Denver Public Library, Denver, CO, United States.

Vavra, R. (n.d.). Portrait of James A. Michener [Photograph]. University of Northern Colorado Archives & Special Collections @ Digital UNC, Greeley, CO, United States. https://digarch.unco.edu/islandora/object/cogru:125648

Woodman, F. (ca. 1975-1978). [Self-portrait in cemetery with camera in front of face] [Photograph]. Museum of Contemporary Art, Denver, CO, United States. https://mcadenver.org/exhibitions/francesca-woodman

Černý, D. (2007). Metalmorphosis [Sculpture]. Whitehall Corporate Center, Charlotte, NC, United States. https://www.whitehallcorporatecenter.com/metalmorphosis

Kim, M. C. (1998). Sugar Land quan âm [Sculpture]. Vietnamese Buddhist Center, Sugar Land, TX, United States.

Lundeen, G. (1993). The promise of the prairie [Sculpture]. Lincoln Park, Greeley, CO, United States.

Shippen, G. (2016). Sentinel of the Plains [Sculpture]. Brinton Museum, Big Horn, WY, United States. https://thebrintonmuseum.org/collections/sculptures/

When Websites Are NOT Websites When citing the digital version of another type of source, cite it not as a website but as the specific type of source. For example, a digital journal article should be cited as journal article, not a website; a YouTube video should be cited as a video, not a website. This is true for books, book chapters, newspaper articles, magazine articles, dissertations, theses, capstones, grants, podcast, government reports, etc. For more information, refer to the Publication Manual , p. 282, 9.2. 

  • Author(s) (group(s), individual(s), or a combination)
  • Make sure that the date for the citation refers to the date of the specific content.
  • Do not use a copyright date from a website footer as is does not reflect the date the information was created/published. If the copyright date in the website footer is the only data on the website, use n.d. in place of a date to indicate 'no date.'
  • Title 
  • Include a retrieval date only if the website has information that is designed to change over time

Website, Author and Publisher Are Different

Central Intelligence Agency. (2022, March 3). Bolivia . The World Factbook. https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bolivia

Mullis, K. (n.d.). Altermune: Chemically programmable immunity . Dr. Kary Banks Mullis 1944-2019. http://www.karymullis.com/altermune.shtml  

National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine. (2022, January 15). Famotidine . MedlinePlus. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a687011.html

Murray, J. (2021, July 29). What are goji berries? The Spruce Eats. https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-are-goji-berries-3376443

American Red Cross. (n.d.). Building safer communities: Preparing families for disasters around the globe . https://www.redcross.org/about-us/our-work/international-services/building-safer-communities.html

Life Is Good. (n.d.). One van two brothers three simple words: Life is good . https://www.lifeisgood.com/company/about.html

The King Center. (n.d.). The King philosophy – Nonviolence365 . https://thekingcenter.org/about-tkc/the-king-philosophy/

University of Northern Colorado. (2022, January 20). Office of the president: About President Feinstein. https://www.unco.edu/president/about.aspx

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  • How to Cite a Book | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

How to Cite a Book | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

Published on February 26, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on January 17, 2024.

To cite a book, you need a brief in-text citation and a corresponding reference listing the author’s name, the title, the year of publication, and the publisher. The order and format of information depends on the citation style you’re using. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago style .

Use the interactive example generator to explore the format of book citations in MLA and APA.

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Table of contents

Citing a book in mla style, citing a book in apa style, citing a book in chicago style, where to find source information in a book, frequently asked questions about citations.

An MLA book citation includes the author’s name , the book title (in italics, capitalized headline-style), the edition (if specified), the publisher, and the year of publication. If it’s an e-book , write “e-book” (or a more specific description, e.g. “Kindle ed.”) before the publisher name.

The corresponding in-text citation lists the author’s last name and the page number of the passage cited.

MLA format Author last name, First name. : Subtitle. Edition, Publisher, Year.
Donaldson, Bruce. . 3rd ed., Routledge, 2017.
(Donaldson 73)

You can also use our free MLA Citation Generator to create your book citations.

Generate accurate MLA citations with Scribbr

Citing a book chapter in mla.

To cite a book chapter , first give the author and title (in quotation marks) of the chapter cited, then information about the book as a whole and the page range of the specific chapter.

The in-text citation lists the author of the chapter and the page number of the relevant passage.

MLA format Author last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” : Subtitle, edited by Editor name, Publisher, Year, pp. Page range.
Nussbaum, Martha C. “Legal Reasoning.” , edited by John Tasioulas, Cambridge University Press, 2020, pp. 59–77.
(Nussbaum 65)

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An APA Style book citation lists the author’s last name and initials, the year of publication, the title and any subtitle (in italics, capitalizing only the first word), the edition (if specified), and the publisher. Add a DOI or URL to the end of the entry if available (e.g. for e-books or books accessed online ).

In an in-text citation, state the author’s last name and the publication year, and a page number if you need to show the location of a specific quote or paraphrase .

APA format Author last name, Initials. (Year). : Subtitle (Edition). Publisher. DOI or URL
Donaldson, B. (2017). (3rd ed.). Routledge.
(Donaldson, 2017, p. 73)

You can also use our free APA Citation Generator to automatically generate your book citations. Search for a title, DOI, or ISBN to retrieve the details.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Citing a book chapter in apa.

To cite a book chapter , list information about the chapter first, followed by information about the book, including the book’s editor(s) and the chapter’s page range within the book.

The author of the chapter, not the editor of the book, is listed in the in-text citation.

APA format Author last name, Initials. (Year). Title of chapter. In Editor initials. Last name (Ed. or Eds.), : Subtitle (pp. Page range). Publisher.
Nussbaum, M. C. (2020). Legal reasoning. In Tasioulas, J. (Ed.), (pp. 59–77). Cambridge University Press.
(Nussbaum, 2020, p. 65)

Chicago notes and bibliography style uses footnotes to cite sources instead of parenthetical citations. These notes refer to a bibliography at the end giving full source details.

A Chicago bibliography entry for a book includes the author’s name, the book title and subtitle, the edition (if stated), the location and name of the publisher, and the year of publication. For an e-book , add the e-book format (e.g. “Kindle”) at the end.

Chicago format Author last name, First name. : Subtitle. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher, Year. E-book format.
Donaldson, Bruce. . 3rd ed. Abingdon-on-Thames: Routledge, 2017.
1. Bruce Donaldson,  , 3rd ed. (Abingdon-on-Thames: Routledge, 2017), 35.

2. Donaldson, , 73.

Chicago also has an alternative style, Chicago author-date . You can see examples of book citations in this style here .

Citing a book chapter in Chicago

To cite a book chapter , start with the author and the title of the chapter (in quotation marks), then give the title (in italics) and editor of the book, the page range of the chapter, the location and name of the publisher, and the year of publication.

Chicago format Author last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In : Subtitle, edited by Editor first name Last name, Page range. Place of publication: Publisher, Year.
Nussbaum, Martha C. “Legal Reasoning.” In , edited by John Tasioulas, 59–77. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
1. Martha C. Nussbaum, “Legal Reasoning,” in  , ed. John Tasioulas (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), 60.

2. Nussbaum, “Legal Reasoning,” 65.

All the information you need for a book citation can usually be found on the book’s title page and copyright page. The main things you’re looking for are:

  • the title (and subtitle if present)
  • name(s) of the author(s)
  • year of publication
  • place of publication

You should also check if the book specifies an edition (e.g. 2nd edition, revised edition) and if any other contributors are named (e.g. editor, translator).

The image below shows where to find the relevant information on the title and copyright pages of a typical book.

APA book source info

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The main elements included in all book citations across APA , MLA , and Chicago style are the author, the title, the year of publication, and the name of the publisher. A page number is also included in in-text citations to highlight the specific passage cited.

In Chicago style and in the 6th edition of APA Style , the location of the publisher is also included, e.g. London: Penguin.

When a book’s chapters are written by different authors, you should cite the specific chapter you are referring to.

When all the chapters are written by the same author (or group of authors), you should usually cite the entire book, but some styles include exceptions to this.

  • In APA Style , single-author books should always be cited as a whole, even if you only quote or paraphrase from one chapter.
  • In MLA Style , if a single-author book is a collection of stand-alone works (e.g. short stories ), you should cite the individual work.
  • In Chicago Style , you may choose to cite a single chapter of a single-author book if you feel it is more appropriate than citing the whole book.

Check if your university or course guidelines specify which citation style to use. If the choice is left up to you, consider which style is most commonly used in your field.

  • APA Style is the most popular citation style, widely used in the social and behavioral sciences.
  • MLA style is the second most popular, used mainly in the humanities.
  • Chicago notes and bibliography style is also popular in the humanities, especially history.
  • Chicago author-date style tends to be used in the sciences.

Other more specialized styles exist for certain fields, such as Bluebook and OSCOLA for law.

The most important thing is to choose one style and use it consistently throughout your text.

The abbreviation “ et al. ” (Latin for “and others”) is used to shorten citations of sources with multiple authors.

“Et al.” is used in APA in-text citations of sources with 3+ authors, e.g. (Smith et al., 2019). It is not used in APA reference entries .

Use “et al.” for 3+ authors in MLA in-text citations and Works Cited entries.

Use “et al.” for 4+ authors in a Chicago in-text citation , and for 10+ authors in a Chicago bibliography entry.

When you want to cite a specific passage in a source without page numbers (e.g. an e-book or website ), all the main citation styles recommend using an alternate locator in your in-text citation . You might use a heading or chapter number, e.g. (Smith, 2016, ch. 1)

In APA Style , you can count the paragraph numbers in a text to identify a location by paragraph number. MLA and Chicago recommend that you only use paragraph numbers if they’re explicitly marked in the text.

For audiovisual sources (e.g. videos ), all styles recommend using a timestamp to show a specific point in the video when relevant.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2024, January 17). How to Cite a Book | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved July 16, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/citing-sources/cite-a-book/

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How to Write a Biography and Cite Sources

Whether you're writing your first research paper or your tenth, the prospect of starting a long essay can be intimidating. In order to write a biography, you must break the writing process into steps that include outlining the paper, compiling relevant information, and beginning to write. Properly citing sources is key to a professional and complete biographical essay. Specific rules, such as those found in the Modern Language Association, American Psychological Association and Chicago style guides, will govern your reference formatting and writing style.

List three to five important discoveries, works, or time periods in the life of person whose biography you are writing. These facts will become the body or core of your biography. You may use print or web sources to help you research and gain information. If the paper is short -- five pages or less -- or you get to choose your own essay length, aim for a list of three to four key facts. If your essay must be longer than five pages, try to think of four to five key facts.

Research the facts you listed more deeply. Use reputable print or web sources, such as books, journals, or the websites of government and professional organizations. Do not use blogs, forums, or self-published material as sources.

Write down the the key information and citation data for each source you use on an index card. Cite the reference according to the format specified by your instructor.

Write an introduction that gives a broad overview of the person's life. Mention your key points, but do not go into great detail. Your first sentence should be very broad. Subsequent sentences can contain more specific information, but the introduction should remain a general overview of the text.

Write the body of your essay. Write one paragraph or more for each key fact that you originally identified. When you use information from your print or web sources, use in-text citations to give credit to the authors. In-text citations come at the middle or end of sentences and may be formatted using superscripted footnotes, endnotes, or parentheses that contain information about author, page number or year. The format of the citations depends on the writing style you've been instructed to use.

Write a conclusion that sums up the key points of your paper without repeating sentences from the body of the text. State the most important information that you want your readers to learn from your essay, but do not introduce any new information in your conclusion.

Compile a works cited page that lists all of the sources that you directly cited in your paper. If you looked at a source, but did not list it in a parenthetical citation, do not include it in your works cited page. Type "Works Cited" at the top of a new sheet of paper, center the text, and then list your sources alphabetically by the authors' last names.

  • Finish all your research before you start your paper. This will help you have a better sense of how your essay will be structured than if you began writing without obtaining complete background information.
  • Do not start your biography with "(author's name) was born on this day and died on this day." This opening is common in high school writing but adds no interest to the paper, does not introduce the topic, and is out of chronological order.

Things You'll Need

Need help with a citation? Try our citation generator .

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Claire Jameson began writing in 2007 and received her first breakthrough when she had a narrative published in "Oxygen for the Swimmer." Her articles have been featured on eHow, where she specializes in topics concerned with health and science. Jameson holds Bachelors of Science in mathematics and biology from the University of Pittsburgh and is currently pursuing a nutritionist certification.

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  • Literature Resource Center This link opens in a new window Critical essays and reviews, biographies of authors; overviews of frequently studied works; full-text poems, short stories and plays; Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature ; and more. How To Use

Using Literature Resource Center

 Literature Resource Center is a resource you can use to search many sources of literary criticism and biography. It includes journal articles, essays, work overviews, and more. When using  Literature Resource Center from off campus, you will need your My Chemeketa user name and password.

For best results, use the Advanced Search. Notice that the advanced search page has spaces for Person where you can put an author's name. Optionally, you can include the name of the work.

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The results show literary criticism. You can switch to another source type, e.g., biography, by clicking the facet under Content Types.

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Click on an article title to read it.  The toolbar on the article page has options for print, download, and e-mail. There is also a Citation Tools link that will help you write an MLA style citation. For more help, see the  Literature Resource Center handout, below.

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

MLA Formatting and Style Guide

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Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

The following overview should help you better understand how to cite sources using MLA  9 th edition, including how to format the Works Cited page and in-text citations.

Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in MLA. See also our MLA vidcast series on the Purdue OWL YouTube Channel .

Creating a Works Cited list using the ninth edition

MLA is a style of documentation that may be applied to many different types of writing. Since texts have become increasingly digital, and the same document may often be found in several different sources, following a set of rigid rules no longer suffices.

Thus, the current system is based on a few guiding principles, rather than an extensive list of specific rules. While the handbook still describes how to cite sources, it is organized according to the process of documentation, rather than by the sources themselves. This gives writers a flexible method that is near-universally applicable.

Once you are familiar with the method, you can use it to document any type of source, for any type of paper, in any field.

Here is an overview of the process:

When deciding how to cite your source, start by consulting the list of core elements. These are the general pieces of information that MLA suggests including in each Works Cited entry. In your citation, the elements should be listed in the following order:

  • Title of source.
  • Title of container,
  • Other contributors,
  • Publication date,

Each element should be followed by the corresponding punctuation mark shown above. Earlier editions of the handbook included the place of publication and required different punctuation (such as journal editions in parentheses and colons after issue numbers) depending on the type of source. In the current version, punctuation is simpler (only commas and periods separate the elements), and information about the source is kept to the basics.

Begin the entry with the author’s last name, followed by a comma and the rest of the name, as presented in the work. End this element with a period.

Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. Routledge, 1994.

Title of source

The title of the source should follow the author’s name. Depending upon the type of source, it should be listed in italics or quotation marks.

A book should be in italics:

Henley, Patricia. The Hummingbird House . MacMurray, 1999.

An individual webpage should be in quotation marks. The name of the parent website, which MLA treats as a "container," should follow in italics:

Lundman, Susan. "How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow, www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html.*

A periodical (journal, magazine, newspaper) article should be in quotation marks:

Bagchi, Alaknanda. "Conflicting Nationalisms: The Voice of the Subaltern in Mahasweta Devi's Bashai Tudu." Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature , vol. 15, no. 1, 1996, pp. 41-50.

A song or piece of music on an album should be in quotation marks. The name of the album should then follow in italics:

Beyoncé. "Pray You Catch Me." Lemonade, Parkwood Entertainment, 2016, www.beyonce.com/album/lemonade-visual-album/.

*The MLA handbook recommends including URLs when citing online sources. For more information, see the “Optional Elements” section below.

Title of container

The eighth edition of the MLA handbook introduced what are referred to as "containers," which are the larger wholes in which the source is located. For example, if you want to cite a poem that is listed in a collection of poems, the individual poem is the source, while the larger collection is the container. The title of the container is usually italicized and followed by a comma, since the information that follows next describes the container.

Kincaid, Jamaica. "Girl." The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories, edited by Tobias Wolff, Vintage, 1994, pp. 306-07.

The container may also be a television series, which is made up of episodes.

“94 Meetings.” Parks and Recreation, created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur, performance by Amy Poehler, season 2, episode 21, Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, 2010.

The container may also be a website, which contains articles, postings, and other works.

Wise, DeWanda. “Why TV Shows Make Me Feel Less Alone.”  NAMI,  31 May 2019,  www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone . Accessed 3 June 2019.

In some cases, a container might be within a larger container. You might have read a book of short stories on Google Books , or watched a television series on Netflix . You might have found the electronic version of a journal on JSTOR. It is important to cite these containers within containers so that your readers can find the exact source that you used.

“94 Meetings.” Parks and Recreation , season 2, episode 21, NBC , 29 Apr. 2010. Netflix, www.netflix.com/watch/70152031?trackId=200256157&tctx=0%2C20%2C0974d361-27cd-44de-9c2a-2d9d868b9f64-12120962.

Langhamer, Claire. “Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England.” Historical Journal , vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-96. ProQuest, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966. Accessed 27 May 2009.

Other contributors

In addition to the author, there may be other contributors to the source who should be credited, such as editors, illustrators, translators, etc. If their contributions are relevant to your research, or necessary to identify the source, include their names in your documentation.

Foucault, Michel. Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason. Translated by Richard Howard , Vintage-Random House, 1988.

Woolf, Virginia. Jacob’s Room . Annotated and with an introduction by Vara Neverow, Harcourt, Inc., 2008.

If a source is listed as an edition or version of a work, include it in your citation.

The Bible . Authorized King James Version, Oxford UP, 1998.

Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee. Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students. 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.

If a source is part of a numbered sequence, such as a multi-volume book or journal with both volume and issue numbers, those numbers must be listed in your citation.

Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current Conditions and Future Directions.” Social Work and Society: The International Online-Only Journal, vol. 6, no. 2, 2008, www.socwork.net/sws/article/view/60/362. Accessed 20 May 2009.

Quintilian. Institutio Oratoria. Translated by H. E. Butler, vol. 2, Loeb-Harvard UP, 1980.

The publisher produces or distributes the source to the public. If there is more than one publisher, and they are all are relevant to your research, list them in your citation, separated by a forward slash (/).

Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive, www.artchive.com/artchive/K/klee/twittering_machine.jpg.html. Accessed May 2006.

Women's Health: Problems of the Digestive System . American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2006.

Daniels, Greg and Michael Schur, creators. Parks and Recreation . Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, 2015.

Note : The publisher’s name need not be included in the following sources: periodicals, works published by their author or editor, websites whose titles are the same name as their publisher, websites that make works available but do not actually publish them (such as  YouTube ,  WordPress , or  JSTOR ).

Publication date

The same source may have been published on more than one date, such as an online version of an original source. For example, a television series might have aired on a broadcast network on one date, but released on  Netflix  on a different date. When the source has more than one date, it is sufficient to use the date that is most relevant to your writing. If you’re unsure about which date to use, go with the date of the source’s original publication.

In the following example, Mutant Enemy is the primary production company, and “Hush” was released in 1999. Below is a general citation for this television episode:

“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer , created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, Mutant Enemy, 1999 .

However, if you are discussing, for example, the historical context in which the episode originally aired, you should cite the full date. Because you are specifying the date of airing, you would then use WB Television Network (rather than Mutant Enemy), because it was the network (rather than the production company) that aired the episode on the date you’re citing.

“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, episode 10, WB Television Network, 14 Dec. 1999 .

You should be as specific as possible in identifying a work’s location.

An essay in a book or an article in a journal should include page numbers.

Adiche, Chimamanda Ngozi. “On Monday of Last Week.” The Thing around Your Neck, Alfred A. Knopf, 2009, pp. 74-94 .

The location of an online work should include a URL.  Remove any "http://" or "https://" tag from the beginning of the URL.

Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases , vol. 6, no. 6, 2000, pp. 595-600, wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/6/00-0607_article. Accessed 8 Feb. 2009.

When citing a physical object that you experienced firsthand, identify the place of location.

Matisse, Henri. The Swimming Pool. 1952, Museum of Modern Art, New York .

Optional elements

The ninth edition is designed to be as streamlined as possible. The author should include any information that helps readers easily identify the source, without including unnecessary information that may be distracting. The following is a list of optional elements that can be included in a documented source at the writer’s discretion.

Date of original publication:

If a source has been published on more than one date, the writer may want to include both dates if it will provide the reader with necessary or helpful information.

Erdrich, Louise. Love Medicine. 1984. Perennial-Harper, 1993.

City of publication:

The seventh edition handbook required the city in which a publisher is located, but the eighth edition states that this is only necessary in particular instances, such as in a work published before 1900. Since pre-1900 works were usually associated with the city in which they were published, your documentation may substitute the city name for the publisher’s name.

Thoreau, Henry David. Excursions . Boston, 1863.

Date of access:

When you cite an online source, the MLA Handbook recommends including a date of access on which you accessed the material, since an online work may change or move at any time.

Bernstein, Mark. "10 Tips on Writing the Living Web." A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites, 16 Aug. 2002, alistapart.com/article/writeliving. Accessed 4 May 2009.

As mentioned above, while the MLA handbook recommends including URLs when you cite online sources, you should always check with your instructor or editor and include URLs at their discretion.

A DOI, or digital object identifier, is a series of digits and letters that leads to the location of an online source. Articles in journals are often assigned DOIs to ensure that the source is locatable, even if the URL changes. If your source is listed with a DOI, use that instead of a URL.

Alonso, Alvaro, and Julio A. Camargo. "Toxicity of Nitrite to Three Species of Freshwater Invertebrates." Environmental Toxicology , vol. 21, no. 1, 3 Feb. 2006, pp. 90-94. Wiley Online Library, doi: 10.1002/tox.20155.

Creating in-text citations using the previous (eighth) edition

Although the MLA handbook is currently in its ninth edition, some information about citing in the text using the older (eighth) edition is being retained. The in-text citation is a brief reference within your text that indicates the source you consulted. It should properly attribute any ideas, paraphrases, or direct quotations to your source, and should direct readers to the entry in the Works Cited list. For the most part, an in-text citation is the  author’s name and the page number (or just the page number, if the author is named in the sentence) in parentheses :

When creating in-text citations for media that has a runtime, such as a movie or podcast, include the range of hours, minutes and seconds you plan to reference. For example: (00:02:15-00:02:35).

Again, your goal is to attribute your source and provide a reference without interrupting your text. Your readers should be able to follow the flow of your argument without becoming distracted by extra information.

How to Cite the Purdue OWL in MLA

Entire Website

The Purdue OWL . Purdue U Writing Lab, 2019.

Individual Resources

Contributors' names. "Title of Resource." The Purdue OWL , Purdue U Writing Lab, Last edited date.

The new OWL no longer lists most pages' authors or publication dates. Thus, in most cases, citations will begin with the title of the resource, rather than the developer's name.

"MLA Formatting and Style Guide." The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab. Accessed 18 Jun. 2018.

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😕 What is an MLA Citation Generator?

An MLA citation generator is a software tool designed to automatically create academic citations in the Modern Language Association (MLA) citation format. The generator will take information such as document titles, author, and URLs as in input, and output fully formatted citations that can be inserted into the Works Cited page of an MLA-compliant academic paper.

The citations on a Works Cited page show the external sources that were used to write the main body of the academic paper, either directly as references and quotes, or indirectly as ideas.

👩‍🎓 Who uses an MLA Citation Generator?

MLA style is most often used by middle school and high school students in preparation for transition to college and further education. Ironically, MLA style is not actually used all that often beyond middle and high school, with APA (American Psychological Association) style being the favored style at colleges across the country.

It is also important at this level to learn why it's critical to cite sources, not just how to cite them.

🙌 Why should I use a Citation Generator?

Writing citations manually is time consuming and error prone. Automating this process with a citation generator is easy, straightforward, and gives accurate results. It's also easier to keep citations organized and in the correct order.

The Works Cited page contributes to the overall grade of a paper, so it is important to produce accurately formatted citations that follow the guidelines in the official MLA Handbook .

⚙️ How do I use MyBib's MLA Citation Generator?

It's super easy to create MLA style citations with our MLA Citation Generator. Scroll back up to the generator at the top of the page and select the type of source you're citing. Books, journal articles, and webpages are all examples of the types of sources our generator can cite automatically. Then either search for the source, or enter the details manually in the citation form.

The generator will produce a formatted MLA citation that can be copied and pasted directly into your document, or saved to MyBib as part of your overall Works Cited page (which can be downloaded fully later!).

MyBib supports the following for MLA style:

⚙️ StylesMLA 8 & MLA 9
📚 SourcesWebsites, books, journals, newspapers
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Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.

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  1. APA Annotated Bibliography Format

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  2. APA Reference Page Examples and Format Guide

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  3. How to Put MLA Works Cited in Alphabetical Order

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  4. Mla Bibliography Multiple Authors

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  5. How to Cite Books with Multiple Authors: APA, MLA, & Chicago

    cite author biography

  6. How to Write a Great Author Bio with Free Template

    cite author biography

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  1. Why an author biography in a literary essay

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  3. Top 20 Tacitus Quotes (Author of The Annals of Imperial Rome)

  4. How do you cite APA 7th edition with no author and date?

  5. How do you cite a source with no author and no date in APA 7?

  6. موقع لكتابة المقالات العلمية وإعادة الصياغة الداعم لللغة العربية writingsparrow

COMMENTS

  1. How do I cite a biographical note?

    To cite a biographical note, mention it in your prose and then include the work in your works-cited list: According to a biographical note in Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence, the author "was born . . . into such wealth and privilege that her family inspired the phrase 'keeping up with the Joneses.'" Work Cited

  2. MLA Citations

    MLA identifies nine core elements that make up a citation: Author: The author or creator of the book, article, chapter, etc. ; Title of the source: The title of the specific article, chapter, part, etc. ; Title of the container: The title of the larger work in which the source is contained, such as a book, journal, website, database, etc.; Other contributors: People other than the authors who ...

  3. How to Cite a Wikipedia Article

    How to cite Wikipedia in APA Style. In APA Style ( 7th edition ), only the first word of the title is capitalized, and there is no period after the URL. The in-text citation includes the title of the article (with title-case capitalization, and shortened if necessary) and the year.

  4. Book/ebook references

    When citing the foreword or introduction, include the name of the author of that part in the in-text citation: Parenthetical citation of foreword: Workers in the medical community should "listen to the people who need our help and respond with all the knowledge and skill we can bring to bear" (Kübler-Ross, 1969/2014, foreword by Byock, p. xv).

  5. Wikipedia:Citing Wikipedia

    The following are examples of how to cite Wikipedia articles according to A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th edition, by Kate L. Turabian ... In BibTeX syntax, author = "Wikipedia contributors" indicates an author with the first name Wikipedia and the last name contributors, and may then be formatted as, e.g., ...

  6. PDF MLA Citation Biography in Context

    MLA Citation Biography in Context MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 8th edition Example: Newspaper Article Shelton, Gary. "Can Tebow Win: We May Never Know?" Tampa Bay Times, 30 Apr. 2013, 1C. Biography ... Author(s). Publication "Title of

  7. How to Cite a Biography

    Chicago Manual of Style. Number your footnote. 1. Give the first name and last name of the biographer, the title of the biography in italics, the place of publication and publisher separated by a colon and the year of publication (all contained in parentheses) and the page number you are taking your information from to complete your footnote.

  8. Research Guides: APA Style 7th Edition: Reference Citations

    When citing a book with authors but no editors, cite the whole book in the reference list and, if appropriate, give the chapter number in the text citation. Information Needed. ... Wikipedia Entry. To find the date of the article you wish to cite, click on "View History" in the top, right-hand corner of the Wikipedia page, and select the most ...

  9. How to Cite a Book

    If it's an e-book, write "e-book" (or a more specific description, e.g. "Kindle ed.") before the publisher name. The corresponding in-text citation lists the author's last name and the page number of the passage cited. MLA format. Author last name, First name. Book Title: Subtitle. Edition, Publisher, Year.

  10. Wikipedia:Citing sources

    Wikipedia's verifiability policy requires inline citations for any material challenged or likely to be challenged, and for all quotations, anywhere in article space.. A citation or reference in an article usually has two parts. In the first part, each section of text that is either based on, or quoted from, an outside source is marked as such with an inline citation.

  11. How to Write a Biography and Cite Sources

    Step 1. List three to five important discoveries, works, or time periods in the life of person whose biography you are writing. These facts will become the body or core of your biography. You may use print or web sources to help you research and gain information. If the paper is short -- five pages or less -- or you get to choose your own essay ...

  12. How to cite a Wikipedia article in APA format

    A Wikipedia article is essentially just a webpage, so you should cite it in the same way you would usually cite a webpage. For APA format this is as follows: First, locate these details for the article: article title, published date, access date, article URL (web address). The article title can be found at the top of the article, and the ...

  13. Author Biographies

    For best results, use the Advanced Search. Notice that the advanced search page has spaces for Person where you can put an author's name. Optionally, you can include the name of the work. The results show literary criticism. You can switch to another source type, e.g., biography, by clicking the facet under Content Types.

  14. Wikipedia entry references

    Use this format to cite any wiki page, including pages for Wikipedia entries.; If you are a student, ask your professor whether Wikipedia is an appropriate source for you to use in your paper.Wikipedia reports information from other sources, making it a secondary source.Many professors prefer that students cite primary sources.

  15. How to Cite a Wikipedia Page in 4 Easy Ways

    For citing Wikipedia in MLA, you are going to use the rules for citing a web source without an author. Step 1: Find the title and put it in quotes. Step 2: List the name of the publisher in italics. In this case, it's Wikipedia. Step 3: Include the date of the page, typically found at the bottom.

  16. MLA Formatting and Style Guide

    The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab. Accessed 18 Jun. 2018. MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook (9th ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations ...

  17. Free APA Citation Generator [Updated for 2024]

    An APA citation generator is a software tool that will automatically format academic citations in the American Psychological Association (APA) style. It will usually request vital details about a source -- like the authors, title, and publish date -- and will output these details with the correct punctuation and layout required by the official ...

  18. EasyBib®: Free Bibliography Generator

    This is the total package when it comes to MLA format. Our easy to read guides come complete with examples and step-by-step instructions to format your full and in-text citations, paper, and works cited in MLA style. There's even information on annotated bibliographies.

  19. Free MLA Citation Generator [Updated for 2024]

    Scroll back up to the generator at the top of the page and select the type of source you're citing. Books, journal articles, and webpages are all examples of the types of sources our generator can cite automatically. Then either search for the source, or enter the details manually in the citation form. The generator will produce a formatted MLA ...