We have print books that you can access at our campuses and eBooks that you can access anywhere!
This print copy of MLA's official publication lays out every aspect of MLA style formatting. There's a copy of the 9th Edition at every campus!
We also have eBooks, like this online guide that can be accessed anywhere through our library!
Anytime you use information, ideas, facts, or phrases from a source you must include an in-text citation directing the reader to the full citation on the Works Cited page. There should be a reference for each in-text citation and a citation for each resource on the Works Cited page. You must have first created the full citation for the resource to create the in-text citation. Follow these guidelines when creating in-text citations:
Purdue OWL. (n.d.). In-text citations: Author/authors. Purdue Writing Lab. https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_style_introduction.html.
The pattern for in-text citations is straightforward in MLA:
Narrative citation | Parenthetical citation | |
One author | As Smythe mentions... (21). | ... (Smythe 21). |
2-3 authors | Smythe, Jonas, and Whitby mention ... (21). | ...(Smythe, Jonas, and Whitby 21). |
4+ authors | According to Smythe et al. ... (21). | ...(Smythe et al. 21). |
An organization | Federal Bureau of Investigation ... (43). | ...(FBI 43). |
Except when it isn’t!
Purdue OWL. (n.d.). In-text citations: Author/authors. Purdue Writing Lab. https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_style_introduction.html.