MLA Handbook
by
The Modern Language Association, the authority on research and writing, takes a fresh look at documenting sources in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook, the official guide to MLA format. Works are published today in a dizzying variety of ways: a novel, for example, may be read in print, online, or as an e-book--or perhaps listened to as an audiobook. Writers of research papers routinely need to know how to cite works on Web sites, videos on platforms like YouTube, interviews and other works created by multiple authors, journal articles contained in databases, online images, posts on social media sites, song lyrics, and more. Instead of providing separate instructions for each format, the MLA's unique, innovative approach recommends one set of guidelines that writers can apply to any type of source. This groundbreaking edition of the MLA's best-selling handbook is short and designed for easy use. It guides writers through the principles behind evaluating sources for their research and thus focuses on the key skills of information and digital literacy. It then shows writers how to cite sources in their writing, offering detailed guidance on in-text citations, quoting and paraphrasing, avoiding plagiarism, and more. Intended for students, teachers, librarians, and advanced scholars, the handbook is an indispensable resource in composition, communication, literature, language arts, film, media studies, digital humanities, and related fields.
| Parenthetical Citation | (Author Last Name pg # - pg #) |
| Narrative Citation | Author's Last Name (pg # - pg #) |
| Source | Author or Editor of Book. | Title of Book: Subtitle of Book. | Publisher, |
Year. |
DOI, Permalink, or URL (If Possible) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book by a Single Author | Author Last Name, First Name. | Title of Book: Subtitle. | Publisher Name, | Year. | https://permalink address. |
| Book by Multiple Authors | Author A's Last Name, First Name, and Author B's First Name Last Name. | Title of Book: Subtitle. | Publisher Name, |
Year. |
https://permalink address. |
| Edited Book | Editor Last Name, First Name, editor. | Title of Book: Subtitle. | Publisher Name, | Year. | https://permalink address. |
| Chapter in an Edited Book | Author Last Name, First Name. | "Title of Chapter." Title of Book: Subtitle of Book, edited by Editor First Name Last Name, | Publisher Name, | Year, pp. pg # - pg #. |
Basic Format for a Single-Author Book:
Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date. https://doi
Example:
Watts, Ann. Outdoor Learning through the Seasons: An Essential Guide for the Early Years. Taylor & Francis, 2013. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203078006
Basic Format for a book with Multiple Authors:
Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date. https://doi
Example:
Nichol, Janni, and Jill Taplin. Understanding the Steiner Waldorf Approach: Early Years Education in Practice. Taylor & Francis, 2012.
Basic Format for an Edited Book:
Editor A's Last Name, First Name, and Editor B's First Name Last Name editors. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date. https://doi#
Example:
Evans, Roy, and Olivia N. Saracho, editors. The Influence of Theorists and Pioneers on Early Childhood Education. Taylor & Francis, 2022. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003120216
Basic Format for a Chapter in an Edited Book:
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Chapter or Entry." Title of Book: Subtitle of Book, edited by Editor's First Name Last Name, Publisher, Publication Date, pp. pg # - pg #. https://doi#
Example:
Tal-Mason, Ali. "Nancy Prince: Strategic (Re)mappings through Travel and Text." Mapping Black Women's Geographies, edited by Kimberly Blockett, Taylor & Francis, 2024, pp. 88-106.
| Source | Author or Editor of Article. | "Title of Article: Subtitle of Article." | Title of Journal, | Volume Number, Issue Number, | Publication Date, | Page Number - Page Number. | Name of Database, | DOI, Permalink, or URL. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Article by a Single Author | Author Last Name, First Name. | "Title of Article: Subtitle of Article." | Title of Journal, | vol. #, no. #, | Publication Date, | pp. pg# - pg#. | Database Name, | https://doi.org/. |
| Article by Multiple Authors | Author A's Last Name, First Name, and Author B's First Name Last Name. | "Title of Article: Subtitle of Article." | Title of Journal, | vol. #, no. #, | Publication Date, | pp. pg# - pg#. | Database Name, | https://permalink address. |
| Article without a DOI and from a non-database |
Author A's Last Name, First Name, et al. |
"Title of Article: Subtitle of Article." | Title of Journal, | vol. #, no. #, | Publication Date, | pp. pg# - pg#. | https://web address. |
Basic Format for a Single Author:
Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Journal, vol. ##, no. ##, Publication Date, pp. ## - ##. Database Name, https://doi#.
Example:
Atkinson, Dennis. "Seeds for Reclaiming Art in Education." International Journal of Art & Design Education, vol. 43, no. 3, Aug. 2024, pp. 433-47. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ezproxy.csupueblo.edu/10.1111/jade.12513.
Format for Multiple Authors:
Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name. "Title of Article." Title of Journal, vol. ##, no. ##, Publication Date, pp. ## - ##. Database Name. https://doi#.
Example:
Jared, Barbara, and Kimberly Hanna. “Academic Integrity: Unique Challenges for Professional Healthcare Education with New Emerging Threats.” New Directions for Teaching & Learning, vol. 2024, no. 179, Sept. 2024, pp. 49–57. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ezproxy.csupueblo.edu/10.1002/tl.20596.
Format for an Article without a DOI and from a Non-Database URL:
Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name. "Title of Article." Title of Journal, vol. ##, no. ##, Publication Date, pp. ## - ##. https://web address.
Example:
Barbo, Geneveave, and Sharmin Alam. "Indigenous People’s Experiences of Primary Health Care in Canada: A Qualitative Systematic Review." Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada: Research, Policy and Practice, vol. 44, no. 4, April 2024, pp. 131-151, https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/reports-publications/health-promotion-chronic-disease-prevention-canada-research-policy-practice.html. Accessed 20 July 2024.
| Source | Author of Website. | "Title of Work." | Source or Site Name, | Date of Publication or Update, | Web Address URL. | Accessed Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Website with the Retrieved Date | Author Last Name, First Name. | "Title of work." | Source or Website Name, | Day Month Year, | https://web address. | Accessed Day Month Year. |
| Website by a Group | Name of Group or Organization. | "Title of work." | Source or Website Name, | Day Month Year, | https://web address. | Accessed Day Month Year. |
Basic Format with a Retrieval Date:
Last Name, First Name. "Title of Work." Source or Website Name. Publication, Edition, Revision Day Month Year. https://address. Accessed Day Month Year Date of Access.
Example:
Brinsko, Soni. "FFA at CSU Pueblo 2025." Wolfpack Weekly. 12 June 2025. https://newscsupueblo.org/2025/06/12/ffa-at-csu-pueblo-2025/. Accessed 16 June 2025.
Format for a Group/Organization:
Name of Group or Organization. "Title of Work." Source or Website Name, Publication, Edition, Revision Day Month Year, https://web address. Accessed Day Month Year.
Example:
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Librarians and Library Media Specialists." Occupational Outlook Handbook, 18 April 2025, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/librarians.htm. Accessed 17 June 2025.