B8. The Writing Process

James Sexton and Derek Soles

To achieve success, students must learn how to write effectively. Your teachers will assess your progress in most of the courses you take partially based on writing assignments they will require you to complete. In the future, your college instructors and even your employers will also assess the quality of your work based, in part, upon your ability to communicate in writing clearly and intelligently.

There is a process to follow to complete most school writing assignments successfully and effectively. You must access and acquire the knowledge you will need to give substance to your work; compose a thesis, which will provide readers the main or controlling idea you wish to express; shape the knowledge, the content you have accessed and acquired into an outline, to make certain your readers will follow your train of thought, as you develop your thesis; write a first draft; revise that draft, usually more than once; and edit the draft, carefully correcting errors in sentence grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, and spelling. If you have used information you took from books, articles, and internet sources in your assignment, you must check to make certain you have acknowledged those sources carefully and accurately.

The way in which the writing process is described above may make it seem straightforward and linear. Note carefully that it is usually not. You may refine your thesis after you have written a draft. You may acquire a new research source halfway through the process and refine the content of your essay as a result. You will revise and edit your work as you are writing, even if you apply the finishing touches to your work just before you hand it in. Writing is much more of a recursive than a linear process.

In this chapter, the components of the writing process are explained and illustrated in that linear order—from knowledge to thesis to plan to draft to revision to editing—but remember that good writers usually mix up that process.

Access and Acquire Knowledge

Research your Topic

Many of the writing assignments you undertake will require research. You will need to read and take notes on print and internet sources—books, articles, websites—that contain information that will help you develop the thesis of your essay. While you do so, keep in mind these guidelines for effective research:

1. Make certain your sources are valid and reliable. There is so much information readily available on any topic, and not all of it will be authentic. Some of it might even be so inaccurate it will undermine rather than support your thesis. Online encyclopedias are uneven: the content of some articles is excellent, but the content of others might be riddled with errors. Articles, online or in print, from academic journals are usually good sources, as are articles from established and respected magazines and newspapers. Internet sources with a URL ending in .edu (for education) or .gov (for government) are usually valid and reliable.1 Be wary of using information from blogs and Facebook posts. Internet sources with a URL ending in .org (for organization) might be biased if the organization represents a certain social or political cause or point of view.
2. Make certain your sources are directly relevant to your topic. In this information age, it is usually possible to find good print and, especially, internet sources that will provide you with just the information you need to complete an assignment successfully. Some topics require current information. If, for example, you were writing an essay about treating the flu or recombinant DNA or the progress of global warming, sources written even just a couple of years ago may be outdated.
3. Refine your search terms, which are those keywords that you enter into database search boxes. For example, “Global warming” as a Google search term (without quotation marks) could yield about 444 million results; “causes of global warming” about 364 million; “the effects of global warming on hurricane intensity” about 37,000; and “the effects of global warming on hurricane intensity in Florida in 2017” about 12,000. This last number is still a lot, but it would be possible now to skim through the first twenty or so results to find the best sources. Another good way to refine your search and to have confidence in the sources it yields is by using a digitized database, such as JSTOR, EBSCO, or ProQuest, if your school has a subscription.
4. Write down all of the bibliographical information about your source, so you won’t have to access it again online or, worse, find a book again that you have already returned to the library. Record the full names of all of the authors; the full title of the book or article; the exact date of publication: the year, and, for articles, the month and the day; the issue number and volume number for an article in an academic journal; the edition number, if it is other than the first edition or if it is a revised edition; the URL and, if available, the DOI (digital object identifier).
5. Consult your school librarian. Librarians can direct you to sources you might not otherwise have known about; help you identify the best, most reliable and valid sources; and help you refine your search terms so they yield the best results.

Exercise One

Select a topic of interest to you. Carefully following the guidelines presented above, find three articles that will be good sources of information for the topic you have selected.

In small groups, share and discuss the process you went through to find your sources and explain why you believe they are good sources. Share constructive advice on the source lists group members have put together.

Your teacher might ask you to hand in your articles.

Generate Ideas

All academic writing assignments require knowledge, but some do not require research. Both a narrative essay about a significant personal experience and an in-class or examination essay, which tests your knowledge of course content, do not require—in fact, preclude—the use of secondary sources. Even so, there are some techniques you can try to help you discover or access knowledge you can use to develop the ideas in a narrative or examination essay.

1. Focus in on your topic and then, for ten minutes or so, write out quickly and without regard to the rules of grammar and sentence structure ideas about your topic as they come randomly into your head. This is a technique known as freewriting, and it can be an effective way of generating ideas and content you can use.
2. Write out the keywords from your topic in the center of a blank sheet of paper. Circle the keywords. Then, around the keywords, write out other points as they occur to you, points that are relevant to and could develop the main idea the keywords express. Then circle these points and draw lines linking together related ideas. This technique, known as webbing, can not only reveal ways of developing your thesis, but also help you begin to establish the organizational structure of your writing assignment.
3. Write out the questions that you will need to answer as you work your way through the process of completing your assignment successfully. Try to answer these questions, to the best of your ability, with the knowledge you already possess. This is a technique journalists use to file a full story. They ask who is involved; what happened; where did it happen; when did it happen; why did it happen; how did it happen? It is sometimes referred to as the W5 method or the pentad, though the “how” question does add a sixth dimension.

Exercise Two

Select one of the following broad topics: hockey, hip-hop music, vacations, designer handbags, reality television programs, weddings, lipstick. Working quickly, use the methods for generating ideas explained above to generate ideas about the topic you selected.

Remember this is often a good method for refining a broad topic into a workable thesis. See if any potential thesis statements emerge from this exercise.

In small groups, share your experience using these methods for generating ideas, stressing the extent to which you found them useful or ineffective.

Find your Thesis

An essay’s thesis or thesis statement is its central or controlling idea, its essence, its main idea. It is the focal point for your topic. It is usually expressed as an opinion or an assertion, usually in a single sentence, which the rest of the essay supports and augments. It is typically the last sentence of the opening paragraph (when you are using paragraphs in a longer essay), though it can also be effectively placed elsewhere.

If, for example, your topic is on the search for life on other planets, your thesis, among the many possibilities, might be:

• Recent research into the topography of Mars increases the odds that Earth is not the only planet in our solar system that harbors life.
• While the search for extraterrestrial intelligence is an important function of the SETI Institute, the Institute also provides resources for students and educators in all aspects of astronomy and keeps the public informed about current issues in the field.
• Among the scores of movies about extraterrestrial intelligence, Arrival and Close Encounters of the Third Kind are the most thought-provoking.
• The Drake Equation provides no hard evidence of the existence of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, but it does suggest that the odds are in its favor.
• No official government investigation or serious scientific study has confirmed the existence of UFOs.

A good essay will develop the thesis in a series of paragraphs that provide some combination of examples, details, definitions, anecdotes, comparisons, contrasts, causes, and effects so that readers feel satisfied that the writer has established the validity of the thesis.

Keep in mind that your thesis might evolve and change as you work your way through the process of composing your essay. While revising your first or second draft, you may realize that some of the content of your essay does not quite relate to your thesis, which you may then have to refine.

A Blueprint Thesis

A blueprint thesis provides readers with not only the essay’s controlling idea, but also the reasons and arguments in phrase or even word form in support of the controlling idea. A simple blueprint thesis for a short essay about the popularity of jeans might be:

Jeans are so popular because they are comfortable, durable, and stylish.

For a longer essay, the thesis would add more supporting points:

Jeans are so popular because they are an icon of our culture, cleverly marketed, comfortable, stylish, and durable.

The advantage of the blueprint thesis is that it alerts the reader to the essay’s organizational pattern and so enhances the overall clarity of the text.  One disadvantage is that it could reduce readers’ interest in the rest of the essay since it gives much away. Another disadvantage is that the more complex the reasons in support of the thesis are, the more difficult the essay becomes to construct.

A General Thesis

A general thesis presents little else than the essay’s controlling idea:

• There are several reasons why jeans are so ubiquitous an article of clothing.
• It is not difficult to explain the universal appeal of jeans.

The advantage of the general thesis is that it is concise and to the point. The disadvantage is that it can seem too much a statement of the obvious.

A Question Thesis

A question thesis poses a question to which the rest of the essay responds.

Why are denim jeans so popular?

An Implied Thesis

The implied thesis is not in a single sentence in an opening paragraph. Rather, it floats between the sentences, an authoritative but invisible presence. Here is an example:

Wander around a shopping mall, an airport, or a college campus, observe what the people are wearing, and you will learn, if you did not know already, that denim jeans are among the most popular items of clothing that people choose to wear. Today, in my college English class, 14 of the 26 students—and my professor—are wearing jeans. The average North American college student owns seven pairs of jeans (Ellison 14).  Once acceptable only in casual venues, jeans are common now in the workplace—my bank manager wears jeans on casual Fridays!—and in restaurants that once had jacket-and-tie dress codes.

We love jeans because…

There is no single sentence that spells out the thesis, but its presence is there, confirmed by the opening phrase of the second paragraph.

The implied thesis is common in the writing of professional journalists and academics. In a good essay or article, readers know what the thesis is by the time they have come to the end of the introduction, but there may not be a single sentence they can underline and write beside in the margin “thesis.” For students, the implied thesis is a bit of a risk: many teachers want a clear thesis, as an obvious sign that the student, whose essay they are evaluating, has learned and can apply this essential feature of academic writing.

An Argumentative Thesis

The thesis for an argument essay needs to be especially forthright. It must signal clearly to your readers your position on the issue under consideration.

An oil pipeline, spanning two provinces, would threaten the environment, fail to create enough jobs to justify the government’s investment, and delay the crucial search for renewable sources of energy.

Exercise Three

Using the topic from Exercise One or Two, compose a general thesis, a blueprint thesis, and a thesis in the form of a question.

In small groups, share your thesis statements and share constructive advice about the scope, interest level, and clarity of the thesis statements group members have composed.

Your teacher might also want to check your thesis statements.

Make a Plan

Clarity is essential in academic writing, and a sound organizational structure enhances clarity. After you have composed your thesis, consider how you will arrange the knowledge you have collected in support of your thesis into a well-organized series of paragraphs.

Your plan or outline might consist of a sophisticated system of headings and subheadings. Your teacher might expect you to turn in a formal outline of this nature. If not, the least you should do is jot down the points you know you will need to cover as you support and develop your thesis. If, for example, your thesis is “It is hardly surprising that McDonald’s is such a successful fast food franchise,” the points you jot down in support might include:

• Taste

• food appeals to the taste buds of many consumers
• burgers and fries are a staple of the North American diet
• special sauce
• toppings and condiments

• Cost

• inexpensive
• a family of four can eat out for under $30
• examples of cost of select menu items compared to cost of same or similar items at other restaurants

• Efficiency

• assembly-line food preparation
• wait is rarely more than ten minutes
• drive-through

Note that different genres or rhetorical modes presuppose certain organizational structures or templates. These are included in the next chapter.

Exercise Four

Using one of the thesis statements you have composed while completing the exercises in this chapter, construct an essay outline using a simple point-form structure or a numbered system of headings and subheadings.

In small groups, share your outline and offer constructive suggestions for improving the outlines of other group members.

Your teacher might ask you to hand in your outline.

Write your First Draft

After you have formulated your outline, you are ready to write the first draft of your assignment. Remember you might want to refine your outline, even after you have written parts of your first draft.

Your task now is to transform your outline into paragraphs.

Introductory Paragraph(s)

The opening of an academic writing assignment will vary in length, proportionate to the length of the entire assignment, from one paragraph for a shorter essay, to several for a longer one. A good opening typically serves two purposes: it provides context related to the assignment topic, and it presents the main or controlling idea, the thesis.

The context will make clear the genre of the essay: argument, compare/contrast, cause/effect, process. It will usually establish the topic’s broader parameters, and it might include essential background information related to the topic. The thesis, discussed above, presents the assignment’s central focus.

In the example below, the context is presented in the first two sentences and the thesis in the third.

Shin hanga means “new prints” in Japanese, and it designates an art movement by a group of gifted Japanese woodblock artists at work in the first two decades of the twentieth century. These exquisite works of art capture the human eye and command its attention until it examines carefully each square inch of the woodblock. The subjects—especially the quietly beautiful Japanese landscapes and seascapes—the clear and bold shapes and forms, and the glorious colors, in every shade and every hue, account for the excitement and enthusiasm shin hanga generates among discriminating art lovers.

Exercise Five

Write an introductory paragraph, based upon the outline you made for Exercise Four. Consider carefully the model introductory paragraph and the instructions for writing an effective introduction.

In small groups, share your introductory paragraphs and share constructive advice about the paragraphs’ strengths and weaknesses.

Your teacher might ask you to hand in your introductory paragraph.

Revise and edit your introductory paragraph, in light of your group members’ and teacher’s advice.

Body Paragraphs

The body paragraphs of an academic writing assignment elucidate, augment, support, and develop the essay’s thesis. The body consists of at least three, and up to about a dozen or more, paragraphs, depending upon the requirements of the assignment. A minor 500-word writing assignment will typically call for three body paragraphs; a major 5000-word assignment, approximately twelve. Good body paragraphs in an academic writing assignment have three qualities: unity, coherence, and substance.

Unity refers to the relationship of the content of a paragraph to its topic sentence. The topic sentence presents the main point of the paragraph. It is to a paragraph what the thesis is to the essay as a whole. For a paragraph to have unity, its content should develop its topic sentence. It may be stated explicitly—often, though by no means always, as the first sentence in the paragraph—or implied.

Coherence, or cohesion, is that property of written discourse that binds sentences and paragraphs together in the interest of clarity, logic, rhythm, and flow. The repetition of a keyword can establish coherence within a paragraph. A transitional word or phrase, such as “for example,” “on the other hand,” “in addition,” “however,” or “moreover,” can also establish coherence within a paragraph.

Substance, or adequate development, is a property a body paragraph possesses when that paragraph contains enough sentences to develop its topic sentence to the readers’ satisfaction. Body paragraphs need examples, details, definitions, comparisons, contrasts, anecdotes, causes, and effects that support the thesis in order to be adequately developed.  One or any combination of these methods or patterns of development will typically be used to develop a topic sentence.

Here is the first body paragraph from an essay, the thesis of which is, “The chow chow is a great choice for a pet owner who wants a distinctive-looking dog; a dog who is fiercely loyal, if a bit aloof with strangers; and one who is intelligent and easy to train.”

1 In its homeland in northern China, the chow chow is songshi quan, “puffy lion-dog.” 2 The name suits the dog’s physical appearance. 3 The chow chow has deep-set eyes; a large head; a beautiful, if squashed face; a pug nose; a bushy tail, which lies curled upon its back; and an impressive mane of hair, features which, together, do indeed make this breed resemble a stuffed toy lion. 4 Chow chows are short and stocky, usually ranging from 43 to 51 cm tall. 5 They have thick fur, usually reddish-brown, though, in some, black- or fawn-coloured. 6 This is not an affectionate breed, but if one does lick your hand, you may notice that its tongue has a bluish tinge. 7 Legend has it that when the god of creation was painting the sky blue, a chow chow licked the drops that fell from the divine brush. 8 The chow chow’s straight hind legs are another distinctive feature unusual among dogs, who usually have curved hind legs. 9 The straight legs give the breed a distinctive stiff gait, especially noticeable when chow chows try to run.

This is a solid body paragraph, exemplifying the unity, coherence, and development a good body paragraph needs. It has a topic sentence and sentences, including the first, that develop the topic. Each sentence relates to the topic sentence, establishing paragraph unity. Sentence 7, about the chow chow licking the blue paint, almost veers away from the topic sentence, but the writer does link the sentence to the dog’s blue-tinged tongue, one of its distinctive features.

Coherence is established by the repetition of the keyword “chow chow,” words like “breed” and “dog,” which echo the keyword, and pronouns, like “they” at the beginning of sentence 5 and “This” at the beginning of sentence 6. The transitional phrase “another distinctive feature” in sentence 8 also helps the paragraph cohere.

The paragraph is well-developed, hitting all of the right notes. It references the dog’s size, its color, its facial features, its distinct physical characteristics. At nine sentences and about 180 words, it is the appropriate length for a school assignment body paragraph.

Exercise Six

Write a body paragraph (or more than one, according to your teacher’s instructions) based on the outline you made for Exercise Four. Consider carefully the model body paragraph and the instructions for writing an effective body paragraph.

In small groups, share your body paragraphs and share constructive advice about the paragraphs’ strengths and weaknesses.

Your teacher might ask you to hand in your body paragraph(s).

Revise and edit your body paragraph(s), in light of your group members’ and teacher’s advice.

Concluding Paragraph

The purpose of a concluding paragraph is to establish a sense of closure for your readers, to assure them that you have provided them with the information promised in your introduction and/or presented your argument in a forceful way that urges readers to consider your opinions carefully. This process may include a reaffirmation of your thesis and a summary of the essay’s body.

Here is a concluding paragraph for an essay, the thesis of which questions the use of wind power as a viable source of renewable energy.

While there is no doubt that wind can be harnessed to produce a source of renewable energy, evidence cited here suggests that environmentalists have reason to curb their enthusiasm for wind power. Wind farms are a blight upon the landscape, a source of noise pollution, and a danger to birds. And when the wind dies down for a day or two, the TV turns off, the freezer thaws, and the lights go out.

Note that this concluding paragraph reaffirms the essay’s thesis in the first sentence; then it recapitulates the points the writer made in the body; then, especially in that phrase “the lights go out,” it establishes a sense of closure.

There is an old adage of communication theory: tell them what you are going to tell them; then tell them; then tell them what you have told them. It’s too simplistic, of course, for the complex challenge of writing a school essay, but useful insofar as it reminds us of the function of introductory, body, and concluding paragraphs.

Exercise Seven

Write a concluding paragraph, based upon the outline you made for Exercise Four. Consider carefully the model concluding paragraph and the instructions for writing an effective conclusion.

In small groups, share your concluding paragraphs and share constructive advice about the paragraphs’ strengths and weaknesses.

Your teacher might ask you to hand in your concluding paragraph.

Revise and edit your concluding paragraph, in light of your group members’ and teacher’s advice.

Revise and Edit

Revise your Work

Revision is an essential component of the writing process. It is distinct from editing (discussed next), which involves a reassessment of your work at the sentence level to correct any errors in sentence grammar, sentence structure, spelling, and punctuation. Revision is a second (or third or fourth) look at your assignment’s “big picture,” the time when you re-read your drafts to make certain your organizational structure is sound, your content is robust, and your transitions from one paragraph to the next bind the essay together and establish its sense of coherence.

Revise your work, keeping in mind these guidelines for revision. A well-written essay needs:

• a sound organizational structure; a beginning, a middle, and an end; an introduction, a body, and a conclusion
• sufficient content so readers feel the writer has delivered on the promise implicit in the thesis statement and the paragraph topic sentences
• cohesion; a repetition of keywords and use of transitional words and phrases which link paragraphs together

Edit your Work

Editing is the process of reviewing each sentence in your writing assignment, identifying and correcting errors in sentence grammar, sentence structure, spelling, and punctuation. If you turn in a draft of your assignment, your teacher might flag and identify editing errors, but leave it to you to make the corrections. Certainly, editing errors will be identified when your teacher returns a graded assignment to you. You want to review those errors to make you avoid them in your next assignment.

Common Editing Errors

Here is a list of common editing errors, preceded by the abbreviation your teacher might use to identify them in the margins of your writing assignment. If you need instruction on identifying, avoiding, and correcting these errors, see: Glossary of English Rhetoric, Grammar, and Usage.

ad: adjective used incorrectly.

agr: usually refers to an error in pronoun agreement; could refer to an error in subject-verb agreement, though that may be abbreviated as sv. agr.

awk: awkward sentence structure.

cap: error in use of capitalization.

case: error in pronoun case.

co: error in use of coordinate conjunction.

coh: coherence weak.

com: faulty comparison.

concl: weak concluding paragraph.

cs: comma splice.

d: diction; poor word choice.

def: term used should be defined.

dm: dangling modifier.

doc: documentation; source needs to be cited or error in citation.

ex: example needed or would be useful.

for: formatting error.

frag: sentence fragment.

fs: fused sentence.

hyph: hyphen needed or not needed.

^: insert.

intro: first paragraph weak; should be revised.

it: italics needed or used incorrectly.

jarg: jargon.

lc: lowercase needed; usually indicates a capital letter (uppercase) used incorrectly.

mix: mixed construction; similar to awk (awkward).

mm: misplaced modifier.

no ,: comma not needed.

np: begin new paragraph.

//: parallelism needs improving.

pass: switch from passive voice to active voice.

ref: pronoun reference (not to be confused with pronoun case) not clear.

run-on: run-on sentence.

shift: an abrupt change (often in tone) within a sentence.

sp: spelling.

sub: subordination; usually means that sentence structure and variety would be improved with subordination.

sum: better to summarize this; usually in reference to a quote from a secondary source.

trans: transition; need to connect this sentence with previous one or this paragraph withthe next.

vague: sentence or passage needs to be revised in the interest of clarity.

vt: verb tense.

wrdy: wordy; revise for concision.

ww: wrong word.

## [Provide link to editing exercises with answers]

Cite your Sources

Many of your writing assignments, not just in your English class but in other classes as well, require research. Your teachers will expect you to acknowledge your research sources and will provide instruction in how to do this, using a recognized academic citation method.

It is essential that you acknowledge your sources thoroughly and accurately. If you do not, you may face an accusation of plagiarism. Plagiarism is the failure—deliberately, unknowingly, or carelessly—to signal to your readers that the content of any part of your written work—direct quotes, paraphrases, or summaries—comes from a research source, including an essay purchased online. Plagiarism is a serious form of academic misconduct, usually punished at the minimum by a failing grade.

There are a variety of reputable and widely used citation methods, the method chosen usually dependent upon the academic discipline within which the writer is working. The Modern Language Association of scholars in literature and language designed the MLA method for citing sources.  History and philosophy may also use the MLA method. The American Psychological Association developed the APA method for citing sources, widely used in the social sciences, including education.  The University of Chicago publishes The Chicago Manual of Style, which provides another citation system widely used in academia.

This chapter provides instruction in the use of the MLA method. It then provides links to instructions in the use of the APA and CMS methods.

The MLA Method

If you are required to use the MLA citation method, you must cite all of your sources twice: first in MLA shorthand in parentheses within the text, and second at the end of the paper in a list called works cited. The in-text parenthetical citation is brief, typically an author’s last name and a page number only.

The works cited list contains the complete bibliographical information for each source, which is all the information readers who want to access the source would require. It is organized alphabetically, by author’s last name, so the parenthetical citation directs readers efficiently to the corresponding entry in the works cited list.

Rules for In-Text Parenthetical Citation

To indicate a direct quote from a secondary source, place quotation marks around the words you are quoting and then put the author’s last name and the page number from the secondary source in which the information can be found. Short direct quotes are integrated into the text of the essay and placed between quotation marks, “so a short direct quote properly acknowledged would look like this” (Author 34). Note the quotation marks around our imagined quote from a secondary source and note that there is not a comma between the author’s last name (“Author,” in our example) and the page number.

If the author’s name is already mentioned in the text, only the page number is placed in parentheses: As Author notes, “only the page number is required” (34).

Long quotes are indented and blocked off from the text of the essay. The distinction between short quotes and long ones is somewhat arbitrary, but quotes of more than about three lines should be set off from the rest of the essay in the manner illustrated here.

Note that the quotation marks have been eliminated. The indentation indicates that the material is quoted directly from a secondary source. Quotation marks are used only if the original uses quotation marks. Note also that after a short quote comes the parenthetical citation followed by a period, but in the long, indented quote, like this one, the period precedes the parenthetical citation. (Author 39)

Most instructors do not appreciate too many long direct quotes in student essays, especially if the quotes create the impression that students are turning in a “cut and paste” assignment.

In addition to direct quotes, you must cite other information taken from a secondary source. The general rule is that if you possessed the information before you began the essay (as in, it’s general knowledge), you do not need to cite it, but if you acquired the information in the course of writing the essay, you do need to cite it. Again, put in parentheses the author’s last name and the page number where the information can be found. You need to include the page number even if you have paraphrased the information.

If you have used two or more works by the same author, you need to provide a shorthand version of the title of the source to distinguish it from other titles by the same author (Author, Short 34). Note the use of the comma after the author’s name but not between the title and the page number. If the author’s name is mentioned, his or her name is not included in the citation: As Author has shown, “citing sources can be frustrating” (Short 34).

If your source is written by four or more people, you need only name the first author followed by the Latin words et al. (meaning “and others”) and, of course, the page number (First et al. 145). Note the period after “al.” Again, note that no commas are used. Et al. is also used in place of all but the first author’s name if you mention the author’s name in the text of the essay: Smith et al. have conducted research that suggests that “students enjoy writing academic essays” (145).

If your source is written by a corporate author, treat the corporate author as you would a single author: According to government sources, ten-year-olds watch an average of four hours of television per day (Royal Commission on Elementary Education 234).

If the author of your source is anonymous, name the title or a shortened version in the parenthetical citation. Italicize a book title; put quotation marks around an article title. If you use a shortened version, include the first word in the title since it will be alphabetized by title in the works cited list. If, for example, the title of your source is “Rating the Quality of the Undergraduate Programs of British Universities,” your citation could be as short as the word “Rating” (“Rating” 86).

If you quote from a novel, follow the procedure for a single author. You may also include the chapter number to help your readers find the passage in a different edition of the novel from the one you used. If you include the chapter number, put a semicolon between the page number and the chapter number (Austen 79; ch. 6). Usually you do not have to include the author’s name because the context of your discussion will make clear who the author is.

If you quote from a poem, give the line numbers you are quoting instead of the page number on which the quote appears (Wordsworth 34–40). Provide a shortened version of the title if you quote from more than one poem by the same author and if the context has not made clear the author and the title (Wordsworth, “Tintern” 34–40). Note the punctuation.

If you quote from a Shakespearean play or from another play in verse, list the act, scene, and line numbers, separated by periods, so that a quote taken from Act IV, Scene 2, lines nine to eleven would be (4.2.9–11).

If you quote from the Bible, list the chapter and the verse or verses, separated by a period. Include an abbreviated title of the book, if the context does not make it obvious. For example, a quote from “Leviticus,” Chapter 12, verses two to four would be (Lev. 12.2–4).

If you quote from a work from an anthology, remember it is the author’s name and not the name of the anthology editor that appears in parentheses.

If you quote from an indirect source—a source quoted in one of your sources—include the abbreviation for “quoted in” in your parenthetical citation: Smith notes that “indirect sources must be cited appropriately” (qtd. in Robins 257). Note carefully the way the citation is punctuated.

If you got the same information from more than one source or if you want to underscore the authority of a point by citing more than one source, do so by separating the sources from each other with semicolons: Experts agree that the semicolon can be used between sources (Wilson 34; Martens 68; Pelies 124).

If your source has no page numbers (as many electronic sources do not), you may omit the page numbers or include the paragraph number if the paragraphs are numbered (as they sometimes are in electronic sources): If necessary, “you should cite the paragraph number in place of the page number” (Smith, par. 12). Note the way this citation is punctuated.

Rules for List of Works Cited

The works cited list contains the complete bibliographical information for each source used in an academic writing assignment. Each item in a works cited list must contain enough information so that readers could access the source themselves, online or at the library, if they chose to do so.

You should follow a model, in order to use MLA format correctly. Determine the type of source you are using in your list of works cited; then find an example of the same type of source, properly cited; then mimic the format of the properly cited source as you prepare your own. A variety of such models are presented below. If the model you need is not represented in the list below, consult the most recent edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.

The Modern Language Association recognizes the complexity of citing sources at a time when we get our information from such a wide array of print, digital, and online media. They allow for some leeway in the information included.

Sample Citations

For a book in print, the core elements are author, italicized title, publisher, and date of publication. The place of publication is no longer a core element. Here is an example:

Smitherman, Geneva. Word from the Mother: Language and African Americans. Routledge, 2006.

A book, of course, might have more than one author; it might be in an edition subsequent to the first; it might have an editor or a translator. Note the form of the MLA Works Cited for the books listed below. Note, especially:

If a book has two authors, the second author’s name follows, first name first.

Adler-Kassner, Linda and Elizabeth Wardle. Naming What We Know: Threshold Concepts of Writing Studies. Utah State UP, 2015.

If a book is in an edition other than the first, the edition number follows the title. Note the punctuation.

Ferris, Dana. Treatment of Error in Second Language Student Writing, 2nd. Ed. U of Michigan Press, 2011.

If there are two books by the same author a line replaces the author’s name for the second (and subsequent, if there are any) source. This rule applies to all types of sources.

Gee, James P. The Anti-Education Era: Creating Smarter Students Through Digital Learning. Palgrave Macmillan, 2013

—. What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy. Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.

Smitherman, Geneva. Word from the Mother: Language and African Americans. Routledge, 2006.

If the book does not have a named author, the title takes the place of the author and is alphabetized in the Works Cited list, accordingly.

Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing. American Educational Research Association, 2014.

If the book is a translation, the name of the translator follows the title.

Voloshinov, V.N. Marxism and the Philosophy of Language. Translated by Ladislav Matejka and I.R. Titunik, Harvard UP, 1986.

If a book has three or more authors, the Latin phrase et al. (meaning “and others”) follows the first author’s name.

White, Edward, et al. Very Like a Whale: The Assessment of Writing Programs. Utah State UP, 2015.

For an article or a story or a poem from a book, typically an anthology of readings or literary works, start with the name of the author and the title of the shorter work, followed by the title of the book and the names of its editor(s), in the manner illustrated below.

Larkin, Philip. “Talking in Bed.” Poems. Poets. Poetry: An Introduction and Anthology. 3rd. ed., edited by Helen Vendler, Bedford St. Martin’s, 2010, p. 114.

For an article from a periodical (journal, magazine, newspaper) in print, the core elements are author(s), title of article, title of periodical, number(s), date, page numbers. If the article is suspended, meaning it is to be continued towards the end of the newspaper or magazine, a plus sign follows the page numbers. Study these examples:

Burrough, Bryan. “Field of Nightmares.” Vanity Fair, Nov. 2016, pp. 164–169+.

Gabriel, Trip. “50 Years Into the War on Poverty, Hardship Hits Back.” New York Times, 20 April 2014, p. A1.

Greer, Jane. “Expanding Working-Class Rhetorical Traditions: The Moonlight Schools and Alternative Solidarities among Appalachian Women, 1911-1920.” College English, vol. 17, no. 1, 2015, pp. 216-35.

For sources accessed online, state the author; the title; the name of the journal, newspaper, or magazine; the volume and issue number, if available; the information service (ProQuest, Academic Search Premier…), and the URL or, better, the DOI.  If you use a DOI, the date of access is not necessary; it is recommended if you use the source’s URL. The MLA allows some latitude in citing internet sources, in recognition of the vast array of choices and the inconsistency in information available about authors, dates, titles. Study the following examples of online sources, cited in MLA format.

Council of Writing Program Administrators (CWPA), The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), and The National Writing Project (NWP), “Framework for Success in Post-Secondary Writing,” January 2001, wpacouncil.org/framework.

Lovett, Richard A. and Scott Hoffman. “Ark of the Covenant: Many Legends, No Evidence.” National Geographic. (n.d.), http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/archaeology/ark-covenant/. Accessed 3 Jan. 2017.

“Oral Presentation – Classroom Workshop.” YouTube, uploaded by tamuwritingcenter, 1 Feb. 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJvUcd963LM.

Robertson, Liane, et al. “Notes Toward a Theory of Prior Knowledge and Its Role in Composers’ Transfer of Knowledge and Practice.” Composition Forum, no. 26, Fall 2012, compositionforum.com/issue/26/prior-knowledge-transfer.php.

Takayoshi, Pamela. “The Shape of Electronic Writing: Evaluating and Assessing Computer-assisted Writing Processes and Products.” Computers and Composition, vol. 13, no. 2, December 1996, pp. 245-57. JSTOR, doi: 10.1016/S8755-4615(96)90013-4.

Additional Notes

1. The title “Works Cited” is centered and appears in roman type. Do not use italics, boldface, or large lettering. One line is left between the title and the first entry.
2. The works cited list is arranged alphabetically by the author’s last name. If the author of the source is anonymous, the source is placed in the list alphabetically by its title. The sources are not numbered.
3. The list uses hanging indentation. The first line of each source is not indented but all subsequent lines are.
4. Book, journal, newspaper, and magazine titles are italicized, but article titles are placed in quotation marks.
5. Page numbers are included for articles in journals, newspapers, and magazines and for articles or essays included in an edited anthology or collection of essays.
6. Academic journals are identified by the year in which they were published, a volume number, and, if there is one, an issue number.
7. Citations for online sources include the date the source appeared online and may include the date the user of the source accessed the source.
8. Citations for online sources include the source’s Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or, preferred if available, the Digital Object Identifier (DOI).
9. Like the rest of the essay, the works cited list is double-spaced.
10. If one author has written two (or more) different sources cited in an academic text, a straight line replaces the author’s name in the subsequent citations.
11. You might wish to use an online citation generator, such as Citation Machine, EasyBib, or Cite This For Me to help you cite your sources correctly. You should still double-check the accuracy of your citation against a textbook model. And you need to make certain the citation generator uses the most recent version of the citation system.

The APA Method

The American Psychological Association method for citing sources is also widely used, especially in college courses. If you take a psychology or an education course, you will be required to use the APA method to cite sources in your writing assignments. Other disciplines which may use APA include business, sociology, international relations, political science, and criminology.

Here, courtesy of University of Northern Iowa's Rod Library, is a link with resources about the rules and regulations for citing books, articles, web resources, and multimedia resources using the APA method: APA Resources.

End Notes

1. Note that these domains are American.