First Year Writing: Citing Your Sources

Not sure why you need to bother with citations?  Plagiarism is stealing and is very serious.  Read about it at Plagiarism.org

Each citation, no matter what type of source you are citing, will contain some information about what it is, who created it, and when it was created.

For Books:

• Author(s) or Editor(s)
• Title (don't forget subtitles!)
• Edition (if there is more than one)
• Publication Date
• Publisher
• Place of Publication

For Articles:

• Author(s)
• Title of Article(don't forget subtitles!)
• Title of Journal in which the article appears
• Publication Date
• Volume and Issue numbers
• Page numbers

For Websites:

• Author(s), Editor(s), or Organization responsible for content
• Title of website or article 
• Creation, publication, or revision date
• Date accessed
• URL (if a persistent URL is available, use it)

Copley Library has the Chicago Manual of Style Online. The online guide includes access to the quick citation style notes, sample pages for formatting, and the basics of research and writing. You can find it in the Databases A-Z list.

For quick reference for Turabian, take a look at Chicago's Turabian Guide online. Turabian is a simplified presentation of the Chicago Style, and includes great advice for writers at the undergraduate and graduate student levels. The contents of Kate Turabian's A Manual For Writers is available within the Chicago Manual of Style Online, under "Librarian, Teacher, & Student Resources," then "Students." You can also find the print manual in Copley, at the reference desk and on the shelves.

The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) is another great source for quick, online access to citation information in Chicago Style.

• MLA Formatting and Style Guide
• Print manuals can be found in several editions in the Reference sections of Copley Library and the Legal Research Center, at the Copley Library reference desk, in the Copley book stacks, and on permanent reserve at Copley Library.  Check the catalog for availability.

See this page for more information on other citation styles