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How to Write Citations

Writing citations can be a challenging experience. It's important to give credit to the authors and sources used in your paper and to avoid plagiarizing.

The links below can help you write citations. Contact the library or the Writing Center for more information.

MLA and APA are the two most common citation styles you will use and encounter in your research.

MLA Citation

A few basics about writing citations

Try the library's MLA 8 Citation Handout for help with a Works Cited page.

A more extensive list of examples

See Purdue OWL's MLA Formatting and Style Guide for examples.

Citing a legal source

See this LibGuide for help.

Quoting or paraphrasing another author's ideas

Those are called In-text Citations.

Help with layout or formatting questions

See a MLA Sample Paper or MLA Sample Works Cited Page.

An online tool that will help you write MLA citations

Try NoodleTools Express. You'll answer a series of questions about your sources and a citation will be automatically written. Verify it for accuracy and copy/paste it into your paper.

APA Citation

A few basics about writing citations

The library has 6th and 7th Edition APA Citation Handouts for help with a References page. Please be sure to use the edition specified by your instructor.

For a more extensive list of examples

See the APA Style and Grammar Guidelines References Examples page.

Citing a legal source

See this LibGuide for help.

To quote or paraphrase a source in your writing

See the APA Style and Grammar Guidelines In-Text Citations page.

For formatting and layout questions on a paper

See the APA Paper Format page and APA Sample Paper.

For help creating or generating an APA citation

Try NoodleTools Express. You'll answer a series of questions about your sources and a citation will be automatically written. Verify it for accuracy and copy/paste it into your paper.

Need a DOI Number (Digital Object Identifier)?

Go to Crossref's Free DOI Lookup to find it.