how to mention a title in an essay apa

Western Libraries
Ask Us! Answer Service

Q. How do I refer to a book by title in-text in APA format?

Research & Writing Studio
21 Accounts
14 Acquisitions
4 Anthropology
71 APA citations and formatting
35 Archives
31 Archives & Special Collections
36 Articles
14 Business resources
11 Center for Pacific Northwest Studies
3 Chemistry
8 Chicago citations and formatting
85 Circulation Services (check out/return/renew items)
42 Citations and style guides
43 Collections
50 Community services
1 Computer science
38 Computers
47 Copyright
79 Databases
22 Digital collections
86 Directions
7 Education (studies)
3 Engineering
2 English literature
7 Environmental studies/sciences
23 Equipment
42 Faculty services
3 Fairhaven
9 Fines and fees
39 First-year students
12 Fun facts
21 Government information
5 Graduate students
2 Grant writing
1 Guest services
5 Human Services
50 Inter-library loan
17 Journals
29 Learning Commons
8 Library instruction
78 Library services
13 MLA citations and formatting
29 Multimedia
5 Newspapers
55 OneSearch
4 Online Learning
64 Outreach and Continuing Education
29 Policies
2 Political science
29 Primary sources
30 Printing related
3 Psychology
2 Rehabilitation Counseling
86 Research
17 Research & Writing Studio
37 Reserves
6 Scholarly communication
3 Sociology
10 Special Collections
1 Streaming video
44 Student services
28 Student Technology Center
1 Teaching and Learning Academy
16 Technology
3 Troubleshooting
5 Tutoring Center
5 Undergraduate Research Award
5 Undergraduate Students
18 Video tutorial
11 Western CEDAR
1 Women's Studies
37 Writing related
93 WWU general info

Answered By: Gabe Gossett Last Updated: Jun 22, 2023 Views: 663008

The basic format for an in-text citation is: Title of the Book (Author Last Name, year).

One author: Where the Wild Things Are (Sendak, 1963) is a depiction of a child coping with his anger towards his mom.

Two authors (cite both names every time): Brabant and Mooney (1986) have used the comic strip to examine evidence of sex role stereotyping. OR The comic strip has been used to examine evidence of sex role stereotyping (Brabant & Mooney, 1986).

Three or more authors (cite the first author plus et al.): Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy (Clare et al., 2016) depicts a young man's experience at the Shadowhunter Academy, a place where being a former vampire is looked down upon.OR Clare et al. (2016) have crafted a unique story about a young man's journey to find himself.

No author: Cite the first few words of the reference entry (usually the title) and the year. Use double quotation marks around the title of an article or chapter, and italicize the title of a periodical, book, brochure, or report. Examples: From the book Study Guide (2000) ... or ("Reading," 1999).

Note: Titles of periodicals, books, brochures, or reports should be in italics and use normal title capitalization rules.

If you are citing multiple sources by multiple authors in-text, you can list all of them by the author's last name and year of publication within the same set of parentheses, separated by semicolons.

Example: (Adams, 1999; Jones & James, 2000; Miller, 1999)

For more information on how to cite books in-text and as a reference entry, see the APA Publication Manual (7th edition) Section 10.2 on pages 321-325 .

Links & Files

APA Workshop
Citation Quick Guides and Style Manuals
Share on Facebook

Was this helpful? Yes 112 No 88

Comments (13)

This was very useful for me! I was having a really hard time finding information on how to mention an article title AND the author in text in APA so this was very helpful!!! by Ryan Waddell on Jun 27, 2019
If I just mention that I used a book to teach a topic do I have to include it in the reference list? by Franw on Oct 17, 2019
@Franw, if it is a source that informs your paper in any way, or if your reader would have reason to look it up, then you should include a full reference list entry for the book. by Gabe [Research & Writing Studio] on Oct 18, 2019
Maybe I'm misunderstanding the question, but I think the OP is asking how to refer to a book title, not how to cite one. I believe APA uses quotation marks around book titles and MLA uses italics. by AB on Dec 12, 2019
@AB: The first sentence has been tweaked to clarify title of book usage, reflecting the examples given. For APA style you should use italics for book titles. It would be quotation marks. by Gabe [Research & Writing Studio] on Dec 12, 2019
Hi, can any one help me with in-text-citation of this, how can i cite it in the text Panel, I. L. (2002). Digital transformation: A framework for ICT literacy. Educational Testing Service, 1-53. by Milad on Aug 20, 2021
@Milad: In that case it would be (Panel, 2002). If you are quoting, or otherwise choosing to include page numbers, put a comma after the year, then p. and the page number(s). by Gabe Gossett on Aug 20, 2021
Hey, I'm a little bit curious, what if I'm mentioning a book and paraphrasing it but still want to give credit. Would I put the information into parenthesis instead? Like: Paraphrased info. ("Title in Italics" Author, year) by Kai on Sep 14, 2023
@Kai: Apologies for not seeing your question sooner! (Our academic year has not started yet). If I am understanding your question correctly, what I suggest is referring to the book title in the narrative of your writing, rather than in the in-text citation. I do not see an examples of using a book title in an in-text citation except for rare circumstances including citing a classic religious text or using the title when there is no author information because it is the start of your reference list entry. Basically, APA's in-text convention is supposed to make it easy for your reader to locate the source being cited in the reference list. So the first part of the in-text citation, usually authors, comes first to locate it alphabetically. Putting the book title first when you have an author name can throw that off. by Gabe Gossett on Sep 21, 2023
Perhaps this is along the lines of the response to Kai - Can you reference a book title as a common point of social understanding to demonstrate a common concept? Is official citing required if you use widely known titles such as "Where's Waldo" and "Who Moved My Cheese?" to make a point of illustration? by Chez Renee on Sep 30, 2023
@Chez: Aside from some classical religious texts, if it is a published book, I'd try to make sure that it is appropriately cited for APA style. That said, I think I understand where it gets tricky with things like Where's Waldo, since that is a series of books and stating "Where's Waldo" is a cultural reference many people would understand, though you can't reasonably cite the entire series. I don't believe that APA gives guidance for this particular issue. If it is being referred to in order to back up a claim, it would help to cite a particular book. If not, then it might work to use a statement such as, "Hanford's Where's Waldo series . . ." by Gabe Gossett on Oct 02, 2023
How to cite a dissertation thesis in apa form? by Elizabeth on Feb 05, 2024
@Elizabeth: For citing a dissertation or thesis you can check out our page answering that here https://askus.library.wwu.edu/faq/153308 by Gabe Gossett on Feb 05, 2024

Find the librarian for your subject area

Library Locations at the Kent Campus

Architecture Library
Fashion Library
Map Library
Performing Arts Library
Special Collections and Archives

Regional Campus Libraries

East Liverpool
College of Podiatric Medicine

Kent State University
APA Style - 7th edition
Specific Rules for Authors & Titles

APA Style - 7th edition: Specific Rules for Authors & Titles

Basic Information

Rules for Writing Author and Editor Information

Rules for writing titles.

Media Sources
Internet Sources
In-text Citations
Reference Lists

There are certain things to keep in mind when writing the author's name according to APA style. Authors may be individual people, multiple people, groups (institutions or organizations), or a combination of people and groups.

You must include all the authors up to 20 for individual items. For example, if you are using an article that has 19 authors you must list them all out on your reference page.
Use initials for the first and middle names of authors. Use one space between initials.
All names are inverted (last name, first initial).
Do not hyphenate a name unless it is hyphenated on the item.
Separate the author's names with a comma and use the ampersand symbol "&" before the last author listed.
Spell out the name of any organization that is listed as an author.
If there is no author listed, the item title moves in front of the publication date and is used.

An item that you use may have an editor instead of an author or in the case of audiovisual materials a writer or director.

For editors follow the same rules above and put the abbreviation (Ed.) or (Eds.) behind the name(s).
For audiovisual materials follow the same rules as above and put the specialized role (Writer) (Director) behind the name.

Zhang, Y. H. (one author)

Arnec, A., & Lavbic, D. (two authors)

Kent State University (organization as author)

Barr, M. J. (Ed.). (1 editor)

Powell, R. R., & Westbrook, L. (Eds.). (2 editors)

here are certain things to keep in mind when writing a title according to APA style.

Book titles are italicized and written using sentence case (only the first word of a title, subtitle, or proper noun are capitalized).
Book chapter titles are written using sentence case and are not italicized.
Journal titles are italicized and written using title case (all the important words are capitalized).
Article titles are written using sentence case and are not italicized.
Webpages and websites are italicized and written using sentence case.

Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (book title, American Psychological Association is a proper noun so it is capitalized)

Student perspective of plagiarism (book chapter title)

Internet plagiarism in higher education: Tendencies, trigging factors and reasons among teacher candidates (article title, Tendencies is the first word of a sub-title so it is capitalized)

Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education (journal title)

<< Previous: Basic Information
Next: Books >>
Last Updated: Jul 14, 2023 4:23 PM
URL: https://libguides.library.kent.edu/apa7

Street Address

Mailing address, quick links.

How Are We Doing?
Student Jobs

Information

Accessibility
Emergency Information
For Our Alumni
For the Media
Jobs & Employment
Life at KSU
Privacy Statement
Technology Support
Website Feedback

APA In-Text Citations and Sample Essay 7th Edition

This handout focuses on how to format in-text citations in APA.

Proper citation of sources is a two-part process . You must first cite each source in the body of your essay; these citations within the essay are called in-text citations . You MUST cite all quoted, paraphrased, or summarized words, ideas, and facts from sources. Without in-text citations, you are technically in danger of plagiarism, even if you have listed your sources at the end of the essay.

In-text citations point the reader to the sources’ information on the references page. The in-text citation typically includes the author's last name and the year of publication. If you use a direct quote, the page number is also provided.

More information can be found on p. 253 of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.

Citation Rules

Direct quotation with the author named in the text.

Heinze and Lu (2017) stated, “The NFL shifted its responses to institutional change around concussions significantly as the field itself evolved” (p. 509).

Note: The year of publication is listed in parenthesis after the names of the authors, and the page number is listed in parenthesis at the end of the quote.

Direct Quotation without the Author Named in the Text

As the NFL developed as an organization, it “shifted its responses to institutional change around concussions significantly” (Heinze & Lu, 2017, p. 509).

Note: At the end of the quote, the names of the authors, year of publication, and page number are listed in parenthesis.

Paraphrase with 1-2 Authors

As the NFL developed as an organization, its reactions toward concussions also transformed (Heinze & Lu, 2017).

Note: For paraphrases, page numbers are encouraged but not required.

Paraphrase with 3 or More Authors

To work toward solving the issue of violence in prisons begins with determining aspects that might connect with prisoners' violent conduct (Thomson et al., 2019).

Direct Quotation without an Author

The findings were astonishing "in a recent study of parent and adult child relationships" ("Parents and Their Children," 2007, p. 2).

Note: Since the author of the text is not stated, a shortened version of the title is used instead.

Secondary Sources

When using secondary sources, use the phrase "as cited in" and cite the secondary source on the References page.

In 1936, Keynes said, “governments should run deficits when the economy is slow to avoid unemployment” (as cited in Richardson, 2008, p. 257).

Long (Block) Quotations

When using direct quotations of 40 or more words, indent five spaces from the left margin without using quotation marks. The final period should come before the parenthetical citation.

At Meramec, an English department policy states:

To honor and protect their own work and that of others, all students must give credit to proprietary sources that are used for course work. It is assumed that any information that is not documented is either common knowledge in that field or the original work of that student. (St. Louis Community College, 2001, p. 1)

Website Citations

If citing a specific web document without a page number, include the name of the author, date, title of the section, and paragraph number in parentheses:

In America, “Two out of five deaths among U.S. teens are the result of a motor vehicle crash” (National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2004, Overview section, para. 1).

Here is a print-friendly version of this content.

Learn more about the APA References page by reviewing this handout .

For information on STLCC's academic integrity policy, check out this webpage .

For additional information on APA, check out STLCC's LibGuide on APA .

Sample Essay

A sample APA essay is available at this link .

How to Add an Article Title Into the Text Using APA Format

Catherine bowers.

Including an article title in the text of your writing serves a different purpose than including it in the Works Cited section of a paper. You may want to include the title of an article in your paper when it is the main subject you’re writing about, a subject you’re discussing that you’re referring to simply as an example, or if the research for your writing isn’t extensive enough to require a citation page. The American Psychological Association (APA) has specific guidelines on how to include an article title in the text of your writing.

Consider section 4.21 of the APA Publication Manual "Use of Italics;" according to it, italics should be used for titles of books, periodicals, films, videos, television shows, and microfilm. Make an exception if words in the title are usually italicized and set them in normal type instead; this is called reverse italicization.

Consider section 4.07 of the APA Publication Manual, “Quotation Marks;” according to it, quotes should be used to set off the title of books, articles, and chapters when you are including it in the text.

Check your writing to make sure you’re following the previous two guidelines; the article you mention in your text should be formatted as follows:

Ms. Bond published her controversial piece, “Housebreaking the Habit” in (italics)Dogfancy(/italics) magazine in June of 2010.

1 “Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th ed.”; American Psychological Association; 2010

About the Author

In 1998 Catherine Bowers began writing articles for newspapers, including "The Daily Collegian" at Pennsylvania State University. She also edited a Spanish-language journal and wrote product and patent descriptions for inventors. Bowers assists with the Gutenberg Project and graduated from Pennsylvania State with a Bachelor of Arts in English.

How to Reference an Appendix Using the APA Format

APA Style For Quoting More Than 40 Words

How to Insert Dialogue Into an MLA Paper

How Do I Cite Previous Work Written by Myself & Reference...

How to Write Book Titles in an Essay

How to: Heading for a College Admissions Essay

How Do I Check My Paper for Plagiarism?

How to Write the Title of a News Article in a Paper

Miss Manners' Etiquette for Addressing Envelopes

How to Format a Research Paper's Appendix in ASA

How to Write a Textual Analysis

How to Write a Summary Paper in MLA Format

How to Insert an Image on an APA-Style Paper

How to Choose a Title for Your Research Paper

What Fonts to Use for APA

How to Make Italics on Tumblr

How to Properly Write Book Titles in a Report

Different Types of Plagiarism

How to Write a Title Page for a Report

How to Develop an Outline About Plagiarism

Regardless of how old we are, we never stop learning. Classroom is the educational resource for people of all ages. Whether you’re studying times tables or applying to college, Classroom has the answers.

Accessibility
Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Copyright Policy
Manage Preferences

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / How to Cite Sources / How to Cite a Book Title in APA, MLA or Chicago

How to Cite a Book Title in APA, MLA or Chicago

When writing a book title in the text, not the references, most academic style manuals require title-style capitalization and italics. For example, they would all format the book title Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in the same way. However, each style manual follows slightly different rules for handling hyphenated terms and subtitles. For details, read the guide below.

Below are the guidelines on how to style a book title following MLA , APA , or Chicago.

Use title-style capitalization when writing book titles in the text: capitalize the first and last words in the title and any other major words.
Italicize book titles.
For example, Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary styles the word “rewrite” without a hyphen. So, in the book title Live Free: Re-write Your Story , lowercase “write” after the prefix “re.”
Though you don’t typically capitalize articles in titles, do capitalize an article that starts a subtitle. In the above example, capitalize “The” since it starts the subtitle.
The first word of the title
The first word of a subtitle
The first word after a colon, em dash, or other end punctuation in a heading
Major words
Any words of four letters or more
Capitalize the second word in a compound hyphenated term in a title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince .
For subtitles, capitalize the first word of a subtitle, even if it is a short, minor word. For example, Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart .
The first and last words in titles and subtitles
Prepositions, even if they are four letters or more
to (even as part of an infinitive verb)
Coordinating conjunctions
For example, in the book title Live Free: Re-write Your Story , lowercase “write” after the prefix “re.”
If the title includes a hyphenated spelled-out number or fraction, capitalize the second element (e.g., Catch Twenty-Two ).

If a book title appears in an article title, you style it the same way as described above. So for example, if the article you are citing is called: “Why Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is the best book in the Harry Potter series,” you would instead style this as: “Why Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is the best book in the Harry Potter series.”

For more info on formatting rules for citation styles, visit our guides listed below:

Chicago guide

Citation Guides

Annotated Bibliography
Block Quotes
Citation Examples
et al Usage
In-text Citations
Page Numbers
Reference Page
Sample Paper
APA 7 Updates
View APA Guide
Bibliography
Works Cited
MLA 8 Updates
View MLA Guide

How useful was this post?

Click on a star to rate it!

We are sorry that this post was not useful for you!

Let us improve this post!

Tell us how we can improve this post?

Citation Basics

Harvard Referencing

Plagiarism Basics

Plagiarism Checker

Upload a paper to check for plagiarism against billions of sources and get advanced writing suggestions for clarity and style.

Get Started

Formatting Titles

by Purdue Global Academic Success Center and Writing Center · Published October 2, 2020 · Updated November 5, 2020

Let’s face it: For whatever reason, formatting titles can be confusing, especially if you think about all the titles that need proper formatting–the title placed on the title page of a paper, the title of a journal article mentioned in the body of a paper, the title of a newspaper or a website on the list of references. There are titles of books and titles of chapters in those books; titles of blogs and titles of blog entries. Some titles are italicized and some are put in quotation marks. Titles on the list of references require formatting–some titles use title case, some sentence case; some titles are italicized and some are not. And then there are those situations where titles are used in in-text citations–some titles are truncated and italicized; some are put in quotation marks–you get the idea.

First off, I am not going to address how to format titles when citing in the paper or listing on the list of references—those are formatting guidelines for another time. I am going to focus on titles on the title page, the first page of the paper, and within a paper. Here is what you need to keep straight:

Titles require special capitalization called title case. Title case requires one to

capitalize the first letter of the first and last words of a title;
capitalize the first letter of all verbs;
capitalize all words of four or more letters;
capitalize the first letter of all other words except a, an, the, short conjunctions such as “for, and, but,” and prepositions of fewer than four letters (words like “up, in, off”);
capitalize the first letter of a word following a colon or dash;
capitalize the first letter of a subtitle.

When a title appears on the title page of an APA Style 7th edition student paper, that title should be centered, bolded, and in title case—no need to use all caps, no need to italicize or underline, and no need to use quotation marks or place a period at the end.

Simply type out the title using title case and bold it–that’s it.

On the first page of the essay, center and repeat the title, bold it, and use title case. Again, do not use any special formatting. Do not use a bigger font size or style. Do not underline or italicize and so forth. Just use title case, bold, and center the title on the first page of the essay.

Easy enough, right?

Titles that appear within an essay require special formatting in addition to title case. If the title is for an article—content that is part of a greater whole—then the title should have quotation marks around it. If the title is for a book, journal, newspaper, or some other whole work, then the title is italicized.

Let’s say you have an article titled “The New Coffee Culture” that appears in the journal Studies in Popular Culture . Let’s also say that for whatever reason, you name both titles in the body of your paper. The article “The New Coffee Culture” appears in the journal Studies in Popular Culture , so the article is content that appears in a greater whole, right?

Both titles would be in title case. The article “The New Coffee Culture” would have quotation marks around it, and the title of the journal, Studies in Popular Culture , would be italicized.

I hope this blogcast clarifies exactly what you need to do when formatting titles in typical usage situations in APA style.

Until next week–

Kurtis Clements

APA 7th Edition Style Guide

In-Text Citations
About APA Style
Format Your Paper
Reference List
Practice Your APA Style Skills!

Video: The Basics of APA In-text Citations

About In-Text Citations

When writing your papers, it essential to recognize other authors who contributed to your work and avoid plagiarism.

Use in-text citations when:

paraphrasing
directly quoting
referring to another person’s writing
referring to data from prior studies
reusing tables, figures, images, or passages

These should always include the author’s last name and year. When using a direct quote, also include the page number.

Types of In-Text Citation

Paraphrasing or Summarizing
Missing Information

When paraphrasing or summarizing information, in-text citations must include the author's last name and year of publication. This will be in parenthesis at the end of a sentence, with a space between the name and year, and a comma after the name.

Example 1: single author

Falsely balanced news coverage can distort the public’s perception of expert consensus on an issue (Koehler, 2016).

Example 2: more than one author

Two authors: (Koehler & Smith, 2016)

Three or more authors: (Koehler et al., 2016)

As an alternative to parenthetical citations, you can cite the source in your narrative, which allows you to incorporate the authors more closely into your discussion:

Example 3: narrative citation

Koehler (2016) noted the dangers of falsely balanced news coverage.

When using direct quotations in your paper, your in-text citation should also include a page number when available. The page number will come after the year, with a comma after the year. Longer quotations are to be formatted as a block quotation, meaning the entire quotation starts on a separate line and is indented 0.5 inches. Quotations can also be in narrative format.

Example 1: short quotation (less than 40 words)

Effective teams can be difficult to describe because “high performance along one domain does not translate to high performance along another” (Ervin et al., 2018, p. 470).

Example 2: block quotation (40 or more words)

Researchers have studied how people talk to themselves:

Inner speech is a paradoxical phenomenon. It is an experience that is central to many people’s everyday lives, and yet it presents considerable challenges to any effort to study it scientifically. Nevertheless, a wide range of methodologies and approaches have combined to shed light on the subjective experience of inner speech and its cognitive and neural underpinnings (Alderson-Day & Fernyhough, 2015, p. 957).

Example 3: block quotation in narrative form

Flores et al. (2018) described how they addressed potential researcher bias when working with an intersectional community of transgender people of color:

Everyone on the research team belonged to a stigmatized group but also held privileged identities. Throughout the research process, we attended to the ways in which our privileged and oppressed identities may have influenced the research process, findings, and presentation of results. (p. 311)

Use the chart below to determine what to do if you are missing information for in-text citation.

Missing Element	Solution	In-Text Citation
Author	Provide the title and year	(Title, year) Title (year)
Date	Provide the author, write “n.d.” for “no date”	(Author, n.d.) Author (n.d.)
Author and date	Provide the title, write “n.d.” for “no date”	(Title, n.d.) Title (n.d.)

Missing Element

Solution

In-Text Citation

Author

Provide the title and year

(Title, year)

Title (year)

Date

Provide the author, write “n.d.” for “no date”

(Author, n.d.)

Author (n.d.)

Author and
date

Provide the title, write “n.d.” for “no date”

(Title, n.d.)

Title (n.d.)

Online Resource

APA.org: In-Text Citations View elements to utilizing in-text citations, including paraphrasing, parenthetical vs. narrative in-text citations, secondary sources, and more.
<< Previous: Headings
Next: Reference List >>
Last Updated: Sep 9, 2024 10:51 AM
URL: https://library.csustan.edu/APA7_StyleGuide

Bipolar Disorder
Therapy Center
When To See a Therapist
Types of Therapy
Best Online Therapy
Best Couples Therapy
Managing Stress
Sleep and Dreaming
Understanding Emotions
Self-Improvement
Healthy Relationships
Student Resources
Personality Types
Sweepstakes
Guided Meditations
Verywell Mind Insights
2024 Verywell Mind 25
Mental Health in the Classroom
Editorial Process
Meet Our Review Board
Crisis Support

How to Write an Essay in APA Format

What is apa format, apa essay format basics.

Steps to Follow

Frequently Asked Questions

If your instructor has asked you to write an APA format essay, it might at first seem like a daunting task, especially if you are accustomed to using another style such as MLA or Chicago. But you can master the rules of APA essay format, too.

An essay is one type of paper that can be written in APA format; others include lab reports, experimental reports, and case studies. Before you begin, familiarize yourself with some of the basic guidelines for writing a paper in APA format. Of course, it will also be important to follow any other formatting instructions that are part of your assignment.

How do you write an essay in APA format? The basic elements you need to include are:

A title page
An abstract
An introduction, main body, and conclusion
A reference section
Proper APA formatting with regard to margins, layout, spacing, titles, and indentations

This article discusses how to write an essay in APA format, including the basic steps you should follow and tips for how to get started.

Whether you’re taking an introductory or graduate-level psychology class, chances are strong that you will have to write at least one paper during the course of the semester. In almost every case, you will need to write your paper in APA format, the official publication style of the American Psychological Association . It is also used for academic journals.

Such rules are generally the same whether you are writing a high school essay, college essay, or professional essay for publication.

APA format is used in a range of disciplines including psychology , education, and other social sciences. The format dictates presentation elements of your paper including spacing, margins, and how the content is structured.

Most instructors and publication editors have strict guidelines when it comes to how your format your writing. Not only does adhering to APA format allow readers to know what to expect from your paper, but it also means that your work will not lose critical points over minor formatting errors.

While the formatting requirements for your paper might vary depending on your instructor's directions, writing APA essay format means you will most likely need to include a title page, abstract, introduction, body, conclusion, and reference sections.

Your APA format essay should have a title page . This title page should include the title of your paper, your name, and your school affiliation. In some instances, your teacher might require additional information such as the course title, instructor name, and the date.

The title of your paper should be concise and clearly describe what your paper is about.
Your title can extend to two lines, but it should be no longer than 12 words.

An abstract is a brief summary of your paper that immediately follows the title page. It is not required for student papers, according to APA style. However, your instructor may request one.

If you include an abstract , it should be no more than 100 to 200 words, although this may vary depending upon the instructor requirements.

Your essay should also include a reference list with all of the sources that were cited in your essay,

The reference section is located at the end of your paper.
References should be listed alphabetically by the last name of the author.
References should be double-spaced.
Any source that is cited in your paper should be included in your reference section.

When writing in APA essay format, the text will include the actual essay itself: The introduction, body, and conclusion.

There should be uniform margins of at least one inch at the top, bottom, left, and right sides of your essay.
The text should be in Times New Roman size 12 font or another serif typeface that is easily readable.
Your paper should be double-spaced.
Every page should include a page number in the top right corner.
The first word of each paragraph in your paper should be indented one-half inch.

For professional papers (usually not student papers), every page of the essay also includes a running head at the top left. The running head is a shortened form of the title, often the first few words, and should be no more than 50 characters (including spaces).

Steps to a Successful APA Format Essay

In addition to ensuring that you cite your sources properly and present information according to the rules of APA style, there are a number of things you can do to make the writing process a little bit easier.

Choose a Topic

Start by choosing a good topic to write about. Ideally, you want to select a subject that is specific enough to let you fully research and explore the topic, but not so specific that you have a hard time finding sources of information.

If you choose something too specific, you may find yourself with not enough to write about. If you choose something too general, you might find yourself overwhelmed with information.

Research Your Topic

Start doing research as early as possible. Begin by looking at some basic books and articles on your topic to help develop it further. What is the question you are going to answer with your essay? What approach will you take to the topic?

Once you are more familiar with the subject, create a preliminary source list of potential books, articles, essays, and studies that you may end up using in your essay.

Remember, any source used in your essay must be included in your reference section. Conversely, any source listed in your references must be cited somewhere in the body of your paper.

Write Your Rough Draft

With research in hand, you are ready to begin. Some people like to create an outline to organize their argument prior to drafting. You may want to start with a very rough outline, and then add details.

Once you have a detailed outline, the next step is to translate it from notes to complete sentences and paragraphs. Remember, this is a first draft. It doesn't have to be perfect.

As you write your paper in APA essay format, be sure to keep careful track of the sources that you cite.

How do you start an APA paper? Your paper should begin with an introduction that includes a thesis statement that presents your main ideas, points, or arguments. Your introduction should start on the third page of your paper (after the title page and abstract). The title of your paper should be centered, bolded, and typed in title case at the top of the page.

Review and Revise

After you have prepared a rough draft of your essay, it's time to revise, review, and prepare your final draft. In addition to making sure that your writing is cohesive and supported by your sources, you should also check carefully for typos, grammar errors, and possible formatting mistakes.

When citing information or quotations taken from an interview, APA format requires that you cite the source, how the information was collected, and the date of the interview. They should not be included in the reference section, however, because they are not something that can be located by a reader in any published source or searchable database.

Instead, the information should be cited parenthetically in the main body of the text. For example: “There was an increase in the number of college students who screened positive for depression/anxiety” (R. Heathfield, personal communication, May 9, 2021).

If the essay is in a chapter of a book, edited collection, or anthology, APA format states that you should cite the last name, first name, title of essay, title of collection, publisher, year, and page range. For example: Smith, John, "The Light House," A Book of Poems , editing by Peter Roberts, Allworth Press, 2005, pp. 20-25.

According to APA format, a two-part essay is formatted the same as an essay, however, you'll need to create two title pages.

If you're including a short direct quote in your APA-format essay, you will need to cite the author, year of publication, and page number (p.) or page number span (pp.). Quotations longer than 40 words should omit the quotation marks and be put in the text using block quotation formatting, on its own line and indented 1/2 inch from the left margin.

The cover page or "title page" in APA essay format should always include the title of your paper, your name, and school affiliation as well as the course title, instructor name, and date, if requested by your teacher.

Nagda S. How to write a scientific abstract. J Indian Prosthodont Soc. 2013;13(3):382-383. doi:10.1007/s13191-013-0299-x

American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). Washington DC: The American Psychological Association; 2019.

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

APA Sample Paper

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.

Note: This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style can be found here .

Media Files: APA Sample Student Paper , APA Sample Professional Paper

This resource is enhanced by Acrobat PDF files. Download the free Acrobat Reader

Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student and professional papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication). These differences mostly extend to the title page and running head. Crucially, citation practices do not differ between the two styles of paper.

However, for your convenience, we have provided two versions of our APA 7 sample paper below: one in student style and one in professional style.

Note: For accessibility purposes, we have used "Track Changes" to make comments along the margins of these samples. Those authored by [AF] denote explanations of formatting and [AWC] denote directions for writing and citing in APA 7.

APA 7 Student Paper:

Apa 7 professional paper:.

Writing A Book Title In Your Essay – The Right Way

Table of contents

1 APA Style: How to Write Book Titles in Essays
2 APA Style Essay: Writing The Name of The Author
3 MLA Style Essay: Citing a Book Title
4 Chicago Style Essay: Writing the Book Title
5 Writing Various Types of Titles
6 Should We Underline or Italicize Book Titles?

When you are writing an academic essay , the book title and author’s name should be written in italics. However, if the book title is part of a larger work (such as a journal article), it should be underlined instead. So, you’re wondering how to write a book title in an essay?

Writing an essay with a book title can be tricky, particularly because each style guide has its own formatting rules for including titles in the main text. Whether you are using MLA, APA, Chicago, or Harvard referencing styles, you will need to consider how to properly format the book title. For more complicated literature-based assignments, seeking assistance from an admission essay writing service may be wise, as they specialize in writing essays that incorporate academic sources.

In this article, we will explore how to write both titles in an essay properly so that you avoid any mistakes!

APA Style: How to Write Book Titles in Essays

When writing an essay, you must follow the style guide provided by your professor. Some teachers may require you to use APA style and others MLA style. There are some rules on how to quote a book title in an essay. You should use italics and quotation marks when writing book titles in essays. For example: “ The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II. “

When writing a book title in APA Style , you should be aware of these rules:

Write the book title in italics and place it after the author’s name, which is presented in reverse order (last name first).

Use quotation marks around the headline of a chapter or article.

Capitalize proper names that are not common nouns (names of people, places, organizations), but do not capitalize words such as “and,” “or,” “to,” or “and/or.”

Do not capitalize prepositions that appear at the beginning of titles if they are followed by an article (e.g., “A,” “An”), but do capitalize prepositions at the beginning of titles if they are not followed by articles (“Of”).

The first word of the headline should be capitalized, as well as any other words after a colon or hyphen. For example, “The Elements of Style: Grammar for Everyone” or “Theories of Personality: Critical Perspectives.”

Capitalize proper names and words derived from them (e.g., the names of people, places, organizations), except proper nouns used generically (e.g., ‘a bed’).

APA Style Essay: Writing The Name of The Author

You should always use the full name and surname of the author in your APA essay because this will give proper credit to the writer. If you do not mention the author’s full name, people may not know who wrote what and will think you copied it from somewhere else. This will cause lots of problems for you and your reputation as well.

Make sure that all authors’ names appear in the same format in each entry. For example, if one person’s surname is Smith and another’s is Jones, both have first names starting with “J.” It may seem like they are being cited as different people when they’re actually written differently from each other on separate pages in your paper.

To write an APA essay without any issues, there are certain rules that you need to follow while writing an author’s name in APA essay:

Use only one author’s name in your paper unless there are multiple authors
If there are multiple authors, then use both their last names followed by the initials of their first names
Only use initials of first names when there are three or more authors; otherwise, use full names with their last names

Example: Johnson, M.C., Carlson, M., Smith, J. N., & Hanover, L. E.

MLA Style Essay: Citing a Book Title

Now let’s discuss how to mention a book in an essay. The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7th edition, published by the Modern Language Association (2014), contains detailed rules about how to cite a book title in an essay.

The following guidelines will instruct you on how to refer to a book in an essay in MLA style :

List your sources at the end of your paper, before the works cited page or bibliography.
Use italics for titles of books, magazines, and newspapers, but not for articles within those publications, which should be placed in quotation marks.
Include all relevant book information under two categories: “title” and “author.” In the former category, include the work’s title and its subtitle if there is one; do this even if neither appears on your title page (see below). In the latter category, include only primary authors who have written or edited an entire book; if there are multiple contributors, you should cite them separately under each.

The general format for citing the title of the book in an essay is as follows:

Author’s last name, first initial (Date). Title of Book with Subtitle if there is one. Publisher Name/Location of Publisher; Year Published

Chicago Style Essay: Writing the Book Title

One of the most important things to remember when writing in Chicago style is how to write the title of a book in an essay. To write a good book title in an essay, you should follow these steps:

Write it at the beginning of your sentence.
Capitalize it just like any other noun or proper noun.
Put a comma after the title unless it’s an introductory clause or phrase. For example: “The Firm,” by John Grisham (not “by”) and “The Catcher in the Rye,” by J.D Salinger (not “and”).
In addition to the book’s name, punctuation marks should also be italicized.

For example: Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince: Children’s Edition

Writing Various Types of Titles

Now that we covered how to write a book title and author in an essay, it’s time to look at some different types of titles. When you write a book title in an essay, several things must be considered. Whether it’s a book, series, chapter title, editor’s name, or author’s name, how you write it depends on where it appears in your paper.

Here are some key rules for writing headings for novels:

Use capital letters to write the title of the novel. For example, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett .
Use italics and capital letters to write the name of the author and his/her other works mentioned in a book title—for example, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (1813) .

You should use quotation marks when writing headings of short title poems, articles, and stories.

However, before deciding which format to use, it is important to understand the main idea you want to express in your essay. Additionally, you could use essay papers for sale to help you accomplish your goal of writing an essay effectively.

Should We Underline or Italicize Book Titles?

It depends on which style guide you use. The Modern Language Association and Chicago Manual of Style both suggest using italics, while the American Psychological Association suggests using quotation marks with a few exceptions.

The way you write the title of a book in an essay is different depending on the instructions you were given. For example, if you’re writing an essay in APA style, use quotation marks around the book’s name. If you’re writing for MLA or Chicago style , however, italicize the book’s name instead. If you’re writing a handwritten essay instead of using a computer, capitalize and underline the book’s name.

Readers also enjoyed

WHY WAIT? PLACE AN ORDER RIGHT NOW!

Just fill out the form, press the button, and have no worries!

We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. By continuing we’ll assume you board with our cookie policy.

How to Write a Book Title in an Essay (MLA, APA etc.)

Formatting your essay correctly ensures that you get full recognition for the hard work you put into it. Wondering what to do? There are two scenarios that lead you to the question of "how to write a book title in an essay":

You have not been required to use a particular style guide, in which case consistency remains important.
You have been instructed to use a particular style guide. You now simply need to ensure that you are familiar with its rules.

Regardless of which of these scenarios holds true for you, this guide is here to help.

How to Write a Book Title in an Essay

Many style manuals call on writers use title case and italics to format a book title. Title case rules vary slightly from one style guide to the next, but generally capitalize all important words — nouns, pronouns, verbs, and adverbs. Conjunctions and prepositions are not capitalized unless they are very long (generally more than four letters) or they appear at the beginning or end of a book title.

Writers who are not required to work with a specific style manual can't go wrong if they stick to this style. Some examples would be:

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Gift of Fear and Other Survival Signals That Protect us From Violence by Gavin de Becker
The Cat With a Feathery Tail and Other Stories by Enid Blyton

If, on the other hand, you're required to use a style guide, it will likely be one of these:

MLA, commonly used in disciplines relating to literature and social sciences.
APA, commonly used in psychology and other sciences.
Chicago, often used in the publishing industry.
Harvard style, commonly used in philosophy and social sciences.

These are certainly not the only "big players" in the style guide world, but they're ones it's good to be familiar with. There is overlap between these styles, but there are also major differences — so knowing one definitely does not mean you know the others, too.

Guidelines for Writing a Book Title in an Essay

Looking for a short and sharp answer, so you can get on with the rest of your essay? This is it.

Writing Style / Format	General Rules of Writing a Book Title
MLA	Italicize the full title of a book and place it in title case (Conrad, Joseph. ). Place the name of a single chapter in quote marks, instead ("The Great Towns" from by Friedrich Engels).
APA	Italicize the book title. Capitalize the first letter, the first letter of a subtitle, and proper nouns. Example: Chapters are placed in title case, but neither italicized nor placed in quote marks.
Chicago	Italicize the full title and use title case: by Jonathan Swift. Book chapters are placed in quote marks, and use title case, as with MLA.
Harvard	The book title is italicized and placed in title case: by Harper Lee. Chapters are placed in single quote marks: 'Rat' from .

This quick guide will help you reference the book title of your choosing in the body of your essay, but what about your Works Cited pages? Each style guide offers different rules, and we'll use the same book as an example to illustrate the differences.

MLA uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Name. Title of Book . City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Year. Example: Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Game. Tor Books, 1985. (You only have to detail the city of publication if the book was published before 1900, the publisher has offices in many localities, or the publisher is not known in the US.)
APA uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Name. (Year of Publication). Title of book. Example: Card, Orson Scott. (1985). Ender's game.
Chicago style uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Name. Book Title: Subtitle . Place of publication: Publisher, Year. Example: Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Game . Tor Books, 1985.
Harvard uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Initial. (Publication Year). Title . ed. City: Publisher. Example: Card, O. (1985). Ender's Game. Tor Books.

If, after researching, you cannot find relevant information about publication years, publishers, or the city in which a book was published, you may omit it. For a full guide, it is always best to have a physical copy of the latest edition of the style manual you are using. You can, however, get by without this if you need to.

Should you still not know what to do, it will be helpful for you to know that you can "generate" citations for a particular style manual with the help of online tools like Cite Me . These are not always accurate, so if you decide to use one, always check the citation manually.

Why Is Proper Formatting Important?

All of the well-known style manuals ultimately serve the very same set of purposes, although they were each developed for a particular niche. The goals of these style manuals are both explicit and implicit:

Following a style guide ensures consistency throughout a document, in this case an essay.
Consistency ensures that reader's understand precisely what the writer is talking about, without exerting any effort on figuring that out. Clarity is especially important in academic writing.
By using a style guide within a certain discipline, you show that you understand the rules within that discipline. This adds credibility to your voice as a writer. You have done your homework, have ideally bought the style manual, and are part of the "in group".
Sticking to a certain style guide makes it easier for relevant parties to check your references, which they can then use to perform further research.

Students are increasingly asked to refer to style guides at all levels, including in high school. In this case, formatting your essay correctly, in accordance with the right style manual, serves two additional purposes:

You'll lose points if you don't do it right, offering you an additional reason to do your research.
Getting used to these formats prepares you for further education. If you are in high school, it prepares you for college-level writing. If you are an undergraduate student, it prepares you for academic work at the graduate and post-graduate levels.

Can you start an essay with a book title?

Yes, you can start an essay with a book title. This is a valid stylistic choice, but you will always want to consider your introduction carefully.

How do you write a book title in handwriting?

Students sometimes ask whether it is acceptable to underline book titles instead of italicizing them. This practice indeed stems from a time in which most students wrote their essays by hand. Although it has largely fallen out of practice now, you can still underline a book title if you are handwriting your essay.

How do you write a book title and chapter in an essay?

You should mention the chapter title first: "Rat" from Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. Consult the relevant style manual to ensure you get the formatting right.

Can you shorten a book title in an essay?

Yes, you can. Reference the full title the first time you mention it (for example: Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things ). The next time you mention the book, you may simply refer to Furiously Happy .

How to Write the Date in MLA Format
How To Write A Movie Title In An Essay
Someone Walked Over My Grave - Meaning and Origin
14 Tips to Help you Write An Essay Fast
Go Pound Sand - Meaning, Usage and Origin
How to Write a DBQ (APUSH) Essay?

Search Support Center

Search all Support Center

Contact Support

APA Citations (7th edition)

Citing web resources.

Citing Books and eBooks
Citing Journal Articles
Citing Videos

APA: Citing Web Resources from Lawrence W. Tyree Library on Vimeo . View a transcript here.

In this tutorial, you will learn the basics for citing a web page, a blog post, and what you should do if you are missing a date.

Every APA reference needs four parts: author, date, title, and source . As you go through these examples, you will learn how to identify these four parts and how to place and format them into a proper APA reference.

Example 1: A Webpage

For the first example, you will learn how to cite a webpage. The first step is to identify who wrote the content. In this example, the author is Ashley Strickland.

To list a specific author, write the last name , a comma , and the initials , followed by a period .

Example: Strickland, A.

Next, identify when this webpage was published. Dates are usually found near the top or the bottom of the page. Do not use a general copyright date for an overall website.

Unless an item is a newspaper, newsletter, magazine article, or blog post, you only need to provide the year. Since this example is an online news article, you should provide the whole date. After the author, list the entire date in parentheses , starting with the year , a comma , and then the month and day . End with a period.

Example: Strickland, A. (2019, November 19).

Next, identify the title of the page . The title will usually be above the text, in a larger size font.

List the title of the page in italics after the date. Make sure you only capitalize the first word of the title , the first word of the subtitle , which comes after a colon, and any proper nouns . End with a period.

Example: Strickland, A. (2019, November 19). Neptune's moons perform a strange orbit dance around each other .

The last information you need is the source For webpages, this is the website title and the URL , or Web address. In this case, the website is CNN. If you are having trouble locating the name of the website, try looking at the URL, which is located in the address bar at the top of the browser.

The title of the website is listed after the title of the webpage, with a period at the end. Type the website title, a period, and then the URL . There is no period after the URL. This completes your reference.

Example: Strickland, A. (2019, November 19). Neptune's moons perform a strange orbit dance around each other . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/19/world/neptune-moons-orbit-scn-trnd/index.html

If you refer to a work in your paper, either by directly quoting, paraphrasing, or by referring to main ideas, you will need to include an in-text parenthetical citation. There are a number of ways to do this. In this example, a signal phrase is used to introduce a direct quote. Note that the author's name is given in the text, and the publication date and location are enclosed in parentheses at the beginning and end of the sentence. Since there are no page numbers, you should describe where the information is located, either by paragraph number or section.

Example: Strickland (2019) explains that "Naiad is in a tilted, varying orbit that resembles an oddly zigzagging pattern" (para. 2).

Example 2: No Date

Sometimes a webpage may not provide all the information you need for a citation. This example shows how to cite a webpage with no date. Start with the author. While resources are often written by specific people, sometimes an entire organization is the author. In this case, Santa Fe College is the author. Most webpages with no personal author will have an organizational author.

For organizational authors, simply list the name of the organization, capitalizing all important words. Because there is no date, use the abbreviation n.d. in place of a year. This stands for no date.

Example: Santa Fe College. (n.d.).

Next, find the title and the source for this webpage.

Type the title of the webpage in italics and end with a period. Since the website title is the same as the author, this component can be omitted.

Example: Santa Fe College. (n.d.). History of the college . Santa Fe College.

Finally, add the URL. Do not include a period at the end. This concludes the reference.

Example: Santa Fe College. (n.d.). History of the college . https://www.sfcollege.edu/about/history-of-the-college/index

For in-text citations with no date, use the abbreviation n.d.

Example: Santa Fe College (n.d.) states that “community colleges are a uniquely American creation” (para. 2).

Example 3: A Blog Post

Blog posts are cited similarly to webpages. You will need to identify the author of the post, the title of the post, the blog name, date, and URL.

Assemble your citation components in the same order as the previous examples. The only difference in the formatting is that the title of the blog is italicized, and the title of the blog post is not. You will also want to include the entire date.

Example: Kaplan, H. (2017, October 4). Lumia: The art of light. Eye Level . https://americanart.si.edu/blog/eye-level/2017/04/56195/lumia-art-light

<< Previous: Citing Videos
Next: Get Help >>
Last Updated: Sep 12, 2024 11:41 AM
URL: https://library.bu.edu/apacitations

APA Style Quick Guide

Apa quick guide.

APA Reference Formats
APA Reference Examples
In-Text Citations

It may help to know why you are required to cite sources and why you are using the APA style guide for this course.

Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the Power, “To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.” Those writing and discoveries are known as "intellectual property." Merriam-Webster defines "intellectual property" as, "property (such as an idea, invention, or process) that derives from the work of the mind or intellect." The U.S. government protects intellectual property. With some limits, you can draw on the ideas and words of others for use in your own work as a student and as a teacher as long as you credit sources appropriately.

There are many citation styles including APA, MLA, and Chicago. This class uses APA. Citation styles lend themselves to use in specific disciplines. Read this article from Yale University to learn why scholars in different academic disciplines tend to prefer certain styles over others.

Please call or email the library anytime you need help with references and citations. The Reference Librarians will return your email within three business days with the information that you need or will set up an in-person appointment or a zoom appointment to provide further assistance.

"References" is the correct title for your list of sources. This list is arranged alphabetically by author last name. The first line of each reference is not indented. All other lines are indented. References should be double spaced.

Online Journal Article, including articles found in databases

Author Last name, First initial. (Publication Year). Article title. Journal Title, Vol( Issue #), Page range. DOI

Author Last name, First initial. (Year, Month, Day). Page Title. Website title. URL

Podcast Episode

Last name of host, First initial of host. (Host). (Year). Title [Audio podcast]. Producer. URL

Online Newspaper Article

Author Last name, First initial. (Year, Month, Day). Title of article. Title of newspaper . URL

Author Last name, First initial. (Year). Title and subtitle. Publisher.

Author Last name, First initial. (Year). Title [eBook edition]. Publisher . URL if applicable

Print Journal Article

Author Last name, First initial. (Publication Year). Article title. Journal Title, Vol( Issue #), Page range.

Photographer Last name, First initial. (Year photograph was taken). Title or short description of

photograph [Photograph]. Publication or name of website where you found the photograph. URL

Personal Communications

Interviews, emails, and other personal communications that can't be retrieved by the reader aren't included in the reference list, but they should be cited in-text.

(First initial Last name, personal communication, date).

If you state the name of the author in your narrative, the author name is omitted in the in-text citation.

(personal communication, date).

Click here for further information about APA. Source: George Mason University Writing Center

SadatHoseini, A., Shareinia, H., Pashaeypoor, S., & Mohammadi, M. (2023). A cross-cultural concept analysis of

healing in nursing: a hybrid model. BMC Nursing , 22 (1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-023-01404-8

Example with a named author:

Gilmore, Tayler. (2023, August 5). NASA researchers measure sinking land in American Samoa. NASA.

https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/goddard/nasa-researchers-measure-sinking-land-in-american-samoa/

Example with a group author:

American Psychological Association. (n.d.) Disaster and response. https://www.apa.org/topics/disasters-response

Podcast Episode

Natisse, K.M. (Host). (2022). Freedom diving [Audio podcast]. NPR.

https://www.npr.org/2022/09/29/1126052986/freedom-diving

Smith, M. (2024, March 5). Jury selected for bounty hunt homicide trial in Butte. Butte

Standard. https://mtstandard.com/news/local/crime-courts/jury-selected-bounty-hunt-homicide-trial-

butte/article_cb77ddde-da76-11ee-a186-57c1a7d8cb1f.html

Example with one author:

French, S. (2016). Philosophy of science: key concepts. Bloomsbury Academic.

Example with multiple authors:

Jackson, J., Mehl, J.P., & Neuendorf, K.E. (2005). Glossary of geology. American Geological Institute.

Isermann, R. (2011). Fault-diagnosis applications: model-based condition monitoring: actuators, drives, machinery,

plants, sensors, and fault-tolerant systems. [eBook edition]. Springer. 10.1007/978-3-642-12767-0

Smirnov, V. (1968). The sources of ore-forming material. Economic Geology, 63( 4), 380-389.

Staplekamp, B. (2015). Lion drinking water. [Photograph]. National

Geographic. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/cecil-african-lion-anniversary-death-trophy-hunting-

zimbabwe

(K. Carroll, personal communication, March 5, 2024).

(personal communication, March 5, 2024).

Guidance from the APA Style Team

When a prompt is entered into a text-generating tool, the results may vary each time. Predictive text can't be recreated, so the APA Style Team doesn't regard the prompt itself as a useful piece of data. The APA Style Team encourages writers to include their prompts in their narrative text and to include the full text of the generated response in an appendix.

APA m odels references and citations of generated text from existing guidelines for referencing and citing software found in Chapter 10 of the 7th edition of the APA Style Guidelines.

Reference Example

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Sept 1 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat

In-Text Citation Examples

Parenthetical citation: (OpenAI, 2023) - or- (OpenAI, 2023; see Appendix A for the full transcript).

Narrative citation: OpenAI (2023)

In addition to a list of references at the end of a paper or presentation, APA format requires in-text citations.

Paraphrasing:

When paraphrasing an idea from one of your references, you'll include the author and the year from the full reference entry on your reference page. APA does allow for the writer to also include page numbers when creating in-text citations in cases when the page number would be useful in helping the reader to locate the information in the source. Page numbers are generally useful when citing long works.

According to Carroll (2021), Public speaking becomes less stressful with practice.

Public speaking becomes less stressful with practice (Carroll, 2021).

Quoting:

When quoting directly from one of your references, you'll include the author, year, and page number (if there is a page number) from the full reference entry on your reference page.

According to Carroll (2021), "students often had difficulty sleeping the night before an exam" (p. 199).

Carroll (2021) found "students often had difficulty sleeping the night before an exam" (p. 199).

DOI stands for, "Digital Object Identifier." A DOI is a string of characters that is assigned to a written work or other type of object in order to identify the object.

The APA style guide calls for including a DOI in a reference entry when the DOI can be found. When searching Montana Tech's databases, many articles have a DOI posted in the bibliographic information, often alongside the author, title, and date of publication.

A DOI is different than a URL in that a DOI is a permanent identifier. URLs can move, but DOIs will remain constant. The long-term goal of the DOI system is to be able to locate objects with one identifying piece of information.

DOI Guidelines:

APA reference entries should include a DOI or a URL for any digital content.
When both the DOI and the URL can be located, use the DOI in the reference entry. Don't include both the DOI and the URL.
If a DOI can't be located for digital content, do include the URL in the reference entry.
The DOI or URL belong at the end of a reference entry.
Last Updated: Sep 16, 2024 8:26 AM
URL: https://libguides.mtech.edu/APA

Figure Setup

All types of visual displays other than tables are considered figures in APA Style. Common types of figures include line graphs, bar graphs, charts (e.g., flowcharts, pie charts), drawings, maps, plots (e.g., scatterplots), photographs, infographics, and other illustrations.

This page addresses the basics of figure setup, including figure components, principles of figure construction, and placement of figures in a paper. Note that tables and figures have the same overall setup.

View the sample figures to see these guidelines in action. Information is also available on how to use color to create accessible figures .

Figure components

APA Style figures have these basic components:

number: The figure number (e.g., Figure 1) appears above the figure title and image in bold font. Number figures in the order in which they are mentioned in your paper.
title: The figure title appears one double-spaced line below the figure number. Give each figure a brief but descriptive title, and capitalize the figure title in italic title case .
image: The image portion of the figure is the graph, chart, photograph, drawing, or other illustration itself. If text appears in the image of the figure (e.g., axis labels), use a sans serif font between 8 and 14 points .
legend: A figure legend, or key, if present, should be positioned within the borders of the figure and explains any symbols used in the figure image. Capitalize words in the figure legend in title case .
note: Three types of notes (general, specific, and probability) can appear below the figure to describe contents of the figure that cannot be understood from the figure title, image, and/or legend alone (e.g., definitions of abbreviations, copyright attribution, explanations of asterisks use to indicate p values). Include figure notes only as needed.

This diagram illustrates the basic figure components.

Diagram of the components of a prototypical figure (here, a line graph), including the figure number, title, graph, axis labels, legend and notes.

Figures are covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Sections 7.22 to 7.36 and the Concise Guide Sections 7.22 to 7.32

Related handout

Student Paper Setup Guide (PDF, 3MB)

Principles of figure creation

The most important principle to follow when creating a figure is to present information in a way that is easy for readers to understand. Provide sufficient information in the figure itself so that readers do not need to read the text to understand it.

When creating a figure, ensure you meet the following standards:

images are clear
lines are smooth and sharp
font is legible and simple
units of measurement are provided
axes are clearly labeled
elements within the figure are clearly labeled or explained

Use graphics software to create figures in APA Style papers. For example, use the built-in graphics features of your word-processing program (e.g., Microsoft Word or Excel) or dedicated programs such as Photoshop or Inkscape.

Placement of figures in a paper

There are two options for the placement of figures (and tables) in a paper. The first is to embed figures in the text after each is first mentioned (or “called out”); the second is to place each figure on a separate page after the reference list.

An embedded figure may take up an entire page; if the figure is short, however, text may appear on the same page as the figure. In that case, place the figure at either the top or bottom of the page rather than in the middle. Also add one blank double-spaced line between the figure and any text to improve the visual presentation.

View the sample figures for more information on figures.

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

Knowledge Base
Citing sources
The Basics of In-Text Citation | APA & MLA Examples

The Basics of In-Text Citation | APA & MLA Examples

Published on March 14, 2022 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on February 28, 2024.

An in-text citation is a short acknowledgement you include whenever you quote or take information from a source in academic writing. It points the reader to the source so they can see where you got your information.

In-text citations most commonly take the form of short parenthetical statements indicating the author and publication year of the source, as well as the page number if relevant.

We also offer a free citation generator and in-depth guides to the main citation styles.

Generate accurate citations with Scribbr

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text.

Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes

What are in-text citations for, when do you need an in-text citation, types of in-text citation, frequently asked questions about in-text citations.

The point of an in-text citation is to show your reader where your information comes from. Including citations:

Avoids plagiarism by acknowledging the original author’s contribution
Allows readers to verify your claims and do follow-up research
Shows you are engaging with the literature of your field

Academic writing is seen as an ongoing conversation among scholars, both within and between fields of study. Showing exactly how your own research draws on and interacts with existing sources is essential to keeping this conversation going.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

An in-text citation should be included whenever you quote or paraphrase a source in your text.

Quoting means including the original author’s words directly in your text, usually introduced by a signal phrase . Quotes should always be cited (and indicated with quotation marks), and you should include a page number indicating where in the source the quote can be found.

Paraphrasing means putting information from a source into your own words. In-text citations are just as important here as with quotes, to avoid the impression you’re taking credit for someone else’s ideas. Include page numbers where possible, to show where the information can be found.

However, to avoid over-citation, bear in mind that some information is considered common knowledge and doesn’t need to be cited. For example, you don’t need a citation to prove that Paris is the capital city of France, and including one would be distracting.

Different types of in-text citation are used in different citation styles . They always direct the reader to a reference list giving more complete information on each source.

Author-date citations (used in APA , Harvard , and Chicago author-date ) include the author’s last name, the year of publication, and a page number when available. Author-page citations (used in MLA ) are the same except that the year is not included.

Both types are divided into parenthetical and narrative citations. In a parenthetical citation , the author’s name appears in parentheses along with the rest of the information. In a narrative citation , the author’s name appears as part of your sentence, not in parentheses.

Examples of different types of in-text citation
	Parenthetical citation	Narrative citation
Author-date (APA)	The treatment proved highly effective (Smith, 2018, p. 11).	Smith states that the treatment was highly effective (2018, p. 11).
Author-page (MLA)	The treatment proved highly effective (Smith 11).	Smith states that the treatment was highly effective (11).

Note: Footnote citations like those used in Chicago notes and bibliography are sometimes also referred to as in-text citations, but the citation itself appears in a note separate from the text.

An in-text citation is an acknowledgement you include in your text whenever you quote or paraphrase a source. It usually gives the author’s last name, the year of publication, and the page number of the relevant text. In-text citations allow the reader to look up the full source information in your reference list and see your sources for themselves.

At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays , research papers , and other academic texts (except exams and in-class exercises).

Add a citation whenever you quote , paraphrase , or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text.

The exact format of your citations depends on which citation style you are instructed to use. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago .

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.

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, February 28). The Basics of In-Text Citation | APA & MLA Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved September 16, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/citing-sources/in-text-citation-styles/

Is this article helpful?

Jack Caulfield

Other students also liked, how to quote | citing quotes in apa, mla & chicago, how to paraphrase | step-by-step guide & examples, how to avoid plagiarism | tips on citing sources, scribbr apa citation checker.

An innovative new tool that checks your APA citations with AI software. Say goodbye to inaccurate citations!

IMAGES

Formatting an APA title page
APA Title Page Elements and Format
APA Citation Style Guide with Templates
10 Easy Steps: How to Write a Book Title in an Essay APA 2023
Getting Started with APA Style
How to Title an Essay: Guide with Creative Examples [2023]

VIDEO

Reading, Writing & Education : How to Write a College Essay (MLA, APA, Chicago Styles)
Formatting Your APA Essay (Google Docs)
Title Page in APA Format
LESSON 78
How to plan, organise and write academic essays in APA or Harvard style
How to Format your Paper in APA Style

COMMENTS

Q. How do I refer to a book by title in-text in APA format?
Jun 22, 2023 660522. The basic format for an in-text citation is: Title of the Book (Author Last Name, year). Examples. One author: Where the Wild Things Are (Sendak, 1963) is a depiction of a child coping with his anger towards his mom. Two authors (cite both names every time): Brabant and Mooney (1986) have used the comic strip to examine ...
In-Text Citations: The Basics
When using APA format, follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text, like, for example, (Jones, 1998). One complete reference for each source should appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.
Title Page Setup
Follow the guidelines described next to format each element of the student title page. Place the title three to four lines down from the top of the title page. Center it and type it in bold font. Capitalize major words of the title. Place the main title and any subtitle on separate double-spaced lines if desired.
APA Formatting and Style Guide (7th Edition)
General guidelines for referring to the works of others in your essay Author/Authors How to refer to authors in-text, including single and multiple authors, unknown authors, organizations, etc. ... Resources on writing an APA style reference list, including citation formats. Basic Rules Basic guidelines for formatting the reference list at the ...
PDF Student Paper Setup Guide, APA Style 7th Edition
Indent the first line of every paragraph of text 0.5 in. using the tab key or the paragraph-formatting function of your word-processing program. Page numbers: Put a page number in the top right corner of every page, including the title page or cover page, which is page 1. Student papers do not require a running head on any page.
APA Style 6th Edition Blog: What's in a Name? Names With Titles in Them
Typically APA Style reference list entries and in-text citations do not include the authors' academic credentials or professional titles. For example, if a book is written by Samantha T. Smith, PhD, then the reference entry refers to Smith, S. T., and the in-text citation to Smith. Professional titles are also omitted from reference list ...
APA In-Text Citations (7th Ed.)
In-text citations briefly identify the source of information in the body text. They correspond to a full reference entry at the end of your paper. APA in-text citations consist of the author's last name and publication year. When citing a specific part of a source, also include a page number or range, for example (Parker, 2020, p.
APA Title Page (7th edition)
APA provides different guidelines for student and professional papers. The student version of the APA title page should include the following information (double spaced and centered): Paper title. Author name. Department and university name. Course number and name. Instructor name. Due date of the assignment.
APA Style
Use initials for the first and middle names of authors. Use one space between initials. All names are inverted (last name, first initial). Do not hyphenate a name unless it is hyphenated on the item. Separate the author's names with a comma and use the ampersand symbol "&" before the last author listed. Spell out the name of any organization ...
How to Cite a Book
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.".
APA In-Text Citations and Sample Essay 7th Edition
In-text citations point the reader to the sources' information on the references page. The in-text citation typically includes the author's last name and the year of publication. If you use a direct quote, the page number is also provided. More information can be found on p. 253 of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American ...
How to Add an Article Title Into the Text Using APA Format
Including an article title in the text of your writing serves a different purpose than including it in the Works Cited section of a paper. You may want to include the title of an article in your paper when it is the main subject you're writing about, a subject you're discussing that you're referring to ...
How to Capitalize and Format Reference Titles in APA Style
The formatting of the titles of sources you use in your paper depends on two factors: (a) the independence of the source (stands alone vs. part of a greater whole) and (b) the location of the title (in the text of the paper vs. in the reference list entry). The table below provides formatting directions and examples: Independence of source. Text.
How to Create a Title Page in APA Format, With Examples
Add one empty, double-spaced line between the title and the byline. Names are written in standard font (no bold or italics). Names are centered. If there are two authors, separate their names with the word and. If there are three or more authors, separate their names with commas and the word and before the final name.
How to Cite a Book Title in APA, MLA or Chicago
For subtitles, capitalize the first word of a subtitle, even if it is a short, minor word. For example, Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart. Chicago. Use title case, or "headline-style," when writing book titles in the text. In title case in Chicago format, capitalize the following: The first and last words in titles and subtitles.
Formatting Titles
Here is what you need to keep straight: Titles require special capitalization called title case. Title case requires one to. capitalize the first letter of the first and last words of a title; capitalize the first letter of all verbs; capitalize all words of four or more letters; capitalize the first letter of all other words except a, an, the ...
LibGuides: APA 7th Edition Style Guide: In-Text Citations
When paraphrasing or summarizing information, in-text citations must include the author's last name and year of publication. This will be in parenthesis at the end of a sentence, with a space between the name and year, and a comma after the name. Example 1: single author
How to Write an Essay in APA Format
If the essay is in a chapter of a book, edited collection, or anthology, APA format states that you should cite the last name, first name, title of essay, title of collection, publisher, year, and page range. For example: Smith, John, "The Light House," A Book of Poems, editing by Peter Roberts, Allworth Press, 2005, pp. 20-25.
APA Sample Paper
Media Files: APA Sample Student Paper , APA Sample Professional Paper This resource is enhanced by Acrobat PDF files. Download the free Acrobat Reader. Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student and professional papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication).
How to Write a Book Title in Essay [Examples]
Use capital letters to write the title of the novel. For example, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Use italics and capital letters to write the name of the author and his/her other works mentioned in a book title—for example, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (1813). You should use quotation marks when writing headings of short ...
APA Headings and Subheadings
Headings and subheadings provide structure to a document. They signal what each section. is about and allow for easy navigation of the document. APA headings have five possible levels. Each heading level is formatted differently. Note: Title case simply means that you should capitalize the first word, words with four or more letters, and all ...
How to Write a Book Title in an Essay (MLA, APA etc.)
Writing Style / Format. General Rules of Writing a Book Title. MLA. Italicize the full title of a book and place it in title case (Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness). Place the name of a single chapter in quote marks, instead ("The Great Towns" from Condition of the Working Class in England by Friedrich Engels). APA.
APA Style
APA Style is described in the seventh edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, which is a reference book that contains comprehensive guidelines on how to set up a scholarly paper; format a title page, tables, figures, and other paper elements; create references and in-text citations; and write without bias ...
Research: APA Citations (7th edition): Citing Journal Articles
Every APA reference needs four parts: author, date, title, and source. As you go through these examples, you will learn how to identify these four parts and how to place and format them into a proper APA reference. Example 1: A Journal Article with a DOI. For the first example, you will learn how to cite a journal article with a DOI.
Research: APA Citations (7th edition): Citing Web Resources
Every APA reference needs four parts: author, date, title, and source. As you go through these examples, you will learn how to identify these four parts and how to place and format them into a proper APA reference. Example 1: A Webpage. For the first example, you will learn how to cite a webpage. The first step is to identify who wrote the content.
APA Citation Guide
APA 7th edition in-text citations. In-text citations are basically an abbreviated form of a reference list entry. They give the reader enough information to find the relevant source on the APA reference page.. APA in-text citations typically include the author's last name, the date of publication, and, if applicable, a locator, such as a page number or timestamp: (Nguyen, 2022, p. 94).
APA
It may help to know why you are required to cite sources and why you are using the APA style guide for this course. Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the Power, "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."
How to Cite a Journal Article in APA Style
If you want to cite a special issue of a journal rather than a regular article, the name (s) of the editor (s) and the title of the issue appear in place of the author's name and article title: APA format. Last name, Initials. (Ed. or Eds.). (Year). Title of issue [Special issue]. Journal Name, Volume (Issue).
Figure Setup
number: The figure number (e.g., Figure 1) appears above the figure title and image in bold font. Number figures in the order in which they are mentioned in your paper. title: The figure title appears one double-spaced line below the figure number. Give each figure a brief but descriptive title, and capitalize the figure title in italic title case.
The Basics of In-Text Citation
At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays, research papers, and other academic texts (except exams and in-class exercises). Add a citation whenever you quote, paraphrase, or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text.