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Citation Quick Guide (APA, MLA, Chicago, AMA)

This guide will provide quick citation guidelines for common resource types in APA, MLA, Chicago-Style, and AMA..

Little Seagull Handbook Reference Pages

Journal Articles

Notes Basic Format:

Author First Last, "Article Title," Journal Title vol., no. (Month Year): specific page number(s), DOI/URL. 

Notes Example:

Adam Meehan, "Repetition, Race, and Desire in The Great Gatsby," Journal of Modern Literature 37, no. 2 (Winter 2014): 78, https://doi.org/10.2979/jmodelite.37.2.76.

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Author Last Name, "First Word of Article Title," specific page number(s).

Shortened Notes Example:

2. Meehan, "Repetition," 76-77.

Bibliographic Entry Basic Format: 

Author Last, First. "Article Title." Journal Title vol., no. (Month Year): page numbers. DOI/URL

Bibliographic Entry Example:

Meehan, Adam. "Repetition, Race, and Desire in The Great Gatsby." Journal of Modern Literature 37, no. 2 (Winter 2014): 76-91. https://doi.org/10.2979/jmodelite.37.2.76

Notes:

  • The Notes format should be used for the first in-text reference to a source and the shortened notes format should be used for every subsequent in-text reference. 
  • The notes and shortened notes formats are not indented. The Bibliography entry should be formatted with a hanging indent and the entries should be listed in alphabetical order. 

Basic Format:

Author A Last, First, Author B First Last, and Author C First Last. Date. "Title of Article." Journal Title vol, no. (Month): pages. DOI/URL

Reference List Example:

Burcaş, Sylvia, and Romeo Zeno Creţu. 2021. "Multidimensional Perfectionism and Test Anxiety: A Meta-Analytic Review of Two Decades of Research." Educational Psychology Review 33, no. 1 (March): 249-273. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-020-09531-3

In-Text Citation Example:

(Burcas and Cretu 2021, 250-251). 

Notes:

  • If there are four or more authors, list up to ten in the reference list followed by et al. for the others. In the in-text citation only list the first author followed by et al. [Example: (Bay et al. 2017, 466).]
  • In the reference list provide the page range for the entire article. In the in-text citation, only provide the page number(s) containing the cited material. 

News or Magazine Article

Notes Basic Format:

Author First Last, "Title of Article," Title of Newspaper/Magazine, Date, page number (if available), URL.

Notes Example:

Rebecca Santana and Jay Reeves, "Hurricane Ida Leaves Hundreds Trapped by Floodwater and 1 Million Without Power," Time, August 31, 2021, https://time.com/6093825/hurricane-ida-louisiana/. 

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Author Last, "Shortened Article Title," page number (if available). 

Shortened Notes Example:

Santana and Reeves, "Hurricane Ida." 

Bibliography Basic Format:

Author Last, First, and Second Author First Last. "Title of Article." Newspaper/Magazine Title, Date. URL/or Database 

Bibliography Example:

Santana, Rebecca, and Jay Reeves. "Hurricane Ida Leaves Hundreds Trapped by Floodwater and 1 Million Without Power." Time, August 31, 2021. https://time.com/6093825/hurricane-ida-louisiana/ 

Notes:

  • Page numbers (if any) are cited in the note, but excluded from the bibliography entry.
  • If you consulted the article in an online newspaper, news site, magazine, blog, etc., include the URL or name of the database in both the notes and the bibliography. 

Basic Format:

Author Last, First. "Title of Article." Newspaper/Magazine Title, Date. URL/Database

Reference List Example:

Goodman, Peter S. "Hurricane Ida Could Make the Supply Chain Disaster Even Worse." The New York Times, August 31, 2021. Nexis Uni. 

In-Text Citation Example:

(Goodman 2021)

Notes:

  • Page numbers can be cited in-text but are omitted from the reference list entry. 
  • If you consulted the article online, include the URL or database name. 

Website Content

Notes Basic Format:

"Web Page Title," Website Name, Publisher, date of publication/accessed date, URL.

Notes Example:

"Strategic Planning," Great Falls College Montana State University, accessed on August 31, 2021, https://www.gfcmsu.edu/about/Planning/.

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Publisher, "Web Page."

Shortened Notes Example:

Great Falls College, "Strategic."

Bibliography Entry Basic Format:

Publisher. "Title of Web Page." Publication or access date. URL. 

Bibliography Example:

Great Falls College Montana State University. "Strategic Planning." Accessed on August 31, 2021. https://www.gfcmsu.edu/about/Planning/. 

Notes:

  • Often times a description of the webpage in the text (as of August 31, 2021, Great Falls College's strategic planning page...). However, if a more formal citation is needed, use the above guidelines. 
  • For a source that does not list a date of publication or revision, include an access date. 

Reference List Basic Format:

Publisher or Author. "Title of Web Page." Publication or access date. URL. 

Reference List Example:

Great Falls College Montana State University. "Strategic Planning." Accessed on August 31, 2021. https://www.gfcmsu.edu/about/Planning/. 

In-Text Citation:

(Great Falls College, n.d.) 

Notes:

  • Often times a description of the webpage in the text (as of August 31, 2021, Great Falls College's strategic planning page...). However, if a more formal citation is needed, use the above guidelines. 
  • For a source that does not list a date of publication or revision, include an access date. 

Books

Notes Basic Format:

Author First Last, Title of Book (City: Publisher, Year), pages.

Notes Example:

Elizabeth Kolbert, Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change (New York: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2006), 45-46. 

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Author Last Name, Shortened Title, pages.

Shortened Notes Example:

Kolbert, Field Notes, 77. 

Bibliography Entry Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Year. 

Bibliography Entry Example:

Kolbert, Elizabeth. Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2006. 

Notes:

  • The Notes format should be used for the first in-text reference to a source and the shortened notes format should be used for every subsequent in-text reference. 
  • The notes and shortened notes formats are not indented. The Bibliography entry should be formatted with a hanging indent and the entries should be listed in alphabetical order. 

Reference List Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Year. Title of Book. City: Publisher. 

Reference List Example:

Kolbert, Elizabeth. 2006. Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. 

In-Text Citation Basic Format:

(Author Last Year, pages)

In-Text Citation Example:

(Kolbert 2006, 14)

E-Books

Notes Basic Format:

Author First Last, Title of Book (City: Publisher, Year), pages, URL/Database Name. 

Notes Example:

Jerri Bell, Tracy Crow, and Kayla Williams, It's My Country Too: Women's Military Stories from the American Revolution to Afghanistan (Lincoln: Potomac Books, 2017, 30-32, ProQuest Ebook Central. 

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Author Last, Shortened Title, pages/chapter.

Shortened Notes Example:

Bell, Crow, and Williams, It's My Country, chapter 4. 

Bibliography Entry Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Year. URL/Database Name. 

Bibliography Entry Example:

Bell, Jerri, Tracy Crow, and Kayla Williams. It's My Country Too: Women's Military Stories from the American Revolution to Afghanistan. Lincoln: Potomac Books, 2017. ProQuest Ebook Central. 

Notes:

  • For books consulted online, provide a URL or name of the database you retrieved the book from. 
  • If no fixed page numbers are available, cite a section title or chapter. 

Reference List Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Year. Title of Book. City: Publisher. URL/Database.

Reference List Example:

Bell, Jerri, Tracy Crow, and Kayla Williams. 2017. It's My Country Too: Women's Military Stories from the American Revolution to Afghanistan. Lincoln: Potomac Books. ProQuest Ebook Central. 

In-Text Citation Example:

(Bell, Crow, and Williams 2017, 104)

Notes:

  • For books consulted online, include a URL or database name in the reference list entry.
  • For other types of books, name the format (i.e. Kindle). 
  • If no fixed page numbers are available, cite a section title or chapter. 

Chapter or Other Part of an Edited Book

Notes Basic Format:

Author First Last, "Chapter Name," in Title of Book, ed. Editor Name First Last (City: Publisher, Year), pages. 

Notes Example:

Margaret Rose Torrell, "Negotiating Virtual Contact Zones: Revolutions in the Role of the Research Workshop," in Critical Library Instruction: Theories & Methods, eds. Maria T. Accardi, Emily Drabinski, and Alana Kumbier (Duluth: Library Juice Press, 2010), 92. 

Shortened Note Basic Format:

Author Last Name, "Shortened Chapter Title," cited page number. 

Shortened Note Example:

Torrell, "Negotiating Virtual," 99. 

Bibliography Entry Basic Format:

Author Last, First. "Chapter Title." In Title of Book, edited by Editors First Last Names, page range for chapter. City: Publisher, Year. 

Bibliography Entry Example:

Torrell, Margaret Rose. "Negotiating Virtual Contact Zones: Revolutions in the Role of the Research Workshop." In Critical Library Instruction: Theories & Methods, edited by Maria T. Accardi, Emily Drabinski, and Alana Kumbier, 89-103. Duluth: Library Juice Press, 2010. 

Notes:

  • In the note, cite specific pages that you referenced. In the bibliography, cite the page range for the entire chapter. 
  • Sometimes, it is better to cite the entire edited collection (if you are discussing it as a whole). See entry under Edited Books for guidance. 

Reference List Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Year. "Chapter Title." In Title of Book, edited by Editor(s) First Last Name, page range for chapter. City: Publisher. 

Reference List Example:

Peterson, Elizabeth. 2010. "Problem Based Learning as Teaching Strategy." In Critical Library Instruction: Theories & Methods, edited by Maria T. Accardi, Emily Drabinski, and Alana Kumbier, 71-80. Duluth: Library Juice Press. 

In-Text Citation Example:

(Peterson 2010, 75)

Notes:

  • In the in-text citation cite specific pages that you referenced. In the reference list entry, cite the page range for the entire chapter. 
  • Sometimes, it is better to cite the entire edited collection (if you are discussing it as a whole). See entry under Edited Books for guidance. 

 

Edited Books

Notes Basic Format:

Editor First Last, ed., Title of Edited Book (City: Publisher, Year), cited pages. 

Notes Example:

Maria T. Accardi, Emily Drabinski, and Alana Kumbier, eds. Critical Library Instruction: Theories & Methods (Duluth: Library Juice Press, 2010), 151.

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Editor(s) Last Name(s), Shortened Title of Edited Book, cited pages. 

Shortened Notes Example:

Accardi, Drabinski, and Kumbier, Critical Library, 64. 

Bibliography Entry Basic Format:

Editor(s) Last, First, ed. Title of Edited Book. City: Publisher, Year. 

Bibliography Entry Example: 

Accardi, Maria T., Emily Drabinski, and Alana Kumbier, eds. Critical Library Instruction: Theories & Methods. Duluth: Library Juice Press, 2010. 

Notes:

  • The Notes format should be used for the first in-text reference to a source and the shortened notes format should be used for every subsequent in-text reference. 
  • The notes and shortened notes formats are not indented. The Bibliography entry should be formatted with a hanging indent and the entries should be listed in alphabetical order. 
  • In the notes entry, list page numbers for specific pages cited in the text. Do not include page numbers in the bibliography entry. 

Reference List Entry Example:

Editor Last, First. Year. Title of Edited Book. City: Publisher. 

Reference List Example:

Accardi, Maria T., Emily Drabinski, and Alana Kumbier. 2010. Critical Library Instruction: Theories & Methods. Duluth: Library Juice Press. 

In-Text Citation Example:

(Accardi, Drabinski, and Kumbier 2010, 33)

Translated Book

Notes Basic Format:

Author First Last, Title of Book, trans. Translator First Last (City: Publisher, Year), cited pages. 

Notes Example:

Anne Frank, The Diary of A Young Girl The Definitive Edition, eds. Otto H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler, trans. Susan Massotty (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2010), 58-59. 

Shortened Notes Basic Format:

Author Last, Shortened Title of Book, cited pages. 

Shortened Notes Example: 

Frank, Diary, 88.

Bibliography Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Title of Book. Translated by First Last. City: Publisher, Year. 

Bibliography Example: 

Frank, Anne. The Diary of a Young Girl The Definitive Edition. Edited by Otto H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler. Translated by Susan Massotty. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2010. 

Notes:

  • When a book is both edited and translated, the editors will be listed before the translators in the citation (see above examples). 

Reference List Entry Basic Format:

Author Last, First. Year. Title of Book. Translated by First Last. City: Publisher.

Reference List Entry Example:

Frank, Anne. 2010. The Diary of a Girl The Definitive Edition. Edited by Otto H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler. Translated by Susan Massotty. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 

In-Text Citation Example:

(Frank 2010, 55)

Notes:

  • If the book was both edited and translated, list the editor(s) before the translator(s).
  • Only include page numbers for specifically referenced pages in the in-text citation.