Finishing Touches: Writing a Bibliography

Citing sources is an excellent way to improve the credibility of your article, and makes your writing look more professional. When citing sources on Mibba, please follow the guidelines below, to keep things simple and consistent.

Citing a Website

Clinton, Courtney. “Finishing Touches: Writing a Bibliography” Mibba. April 18, 2012.

Above is an example for citing this article in a bibliography. Begin with the authors name. Next, include the article’s title in quotes, and hyperlink the article. If the article is associated with any research institution, academic university or organization, you can include that as well (where “Mibba” is). Finally, end with the date the article was written. Notice that each item is separated by a period for ease of reading.

To cite an article in text, simply include a hyperlink with either the author’s last name or the organization in parentheses. For example:

“One way to improve the credibility of your article is to include a bibliography (Mibba).”

“One way to improve the credibility of your article is to include a bibliography (Clinton).”

Notice that the period at the end of the sentence comes after the parentheses.

When using online resources, it can sometimes be difficult to locate all parts of the citation, and that’s fine. Just include the information available, and remember that the more credible a source is, the more information it will contain.

Citing an Academic, Newspaper, or Magazine Article

Aljabar, Paul, Heckemann, Rolf A., Keihaninejad, Shiva. “Automatic morphometry in Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment.” NeuroImage. Volume 56. June 15, 2011.

Citing an academic or newspaper article is very similar to citing a web source. Begin with the authors of the article, listed in alphabetical order. Next, follow with the title of the article in quotations. Academic articles often don't capitalize titles the way you would in most writing. If the article is available online, you can include a hyperlink. After the article title, include either the newspaper or organization that published the article. Next, include the volume or issue number, if available. End with the date the article was published.

To cite an article in text, include the author's last name in parentheses.

“The majority of differences between a healthy brain and a brain with Alzheimer’s are found in the temporal lobe (Aljabar, et al).”

Notice that because there are multiple authors, you only need to list the first author's name, followed by "et al". Or, you can cite the organization:

“The majority of differences between a healthy brain and a brain with Alzheimer’s are found in the temporal lobe (Neuroimage)."

Citing a Book

Faulkner, William. The Sound and the Fury. 1929.

For the purposes of Mibba, citing a book is pretty simple. Include the author’s name, followed by a period. If the book has multiple authors, list them in alphabetical order, separated by commas. Italicize the title and follow with a period. End your citation with the date of publication.

If you think it’s important, you can include other information such as the publisher before the date. For example, the publisher would be important if the book was put out by an organization or university relevant to your article and you want your reader to know that.

To cite a book in text, simply put the author’s last name in parentheses:

“The author uses Quentin’s watch to symbolize time, and the desire to overcome time (Faulker).”

Citing Film and Visual Media

Guns, Germs and Steel. Jared Diamond. PBS. July 11, 2005. TV.

To cite visual media, begin with the title of the piece in italics. Next, include the director or producer. If relevant, you may list any notable actors or contributors. Next, include the producing organization (“PBS”). Place the date next, and end with the type of media- film, TV, DVD, etc.

To cite a film in text, include either the director’s name or publishing organization in parentheses:

“Jared Diamond postulates that differences in wealth throughout the world result primarily from geography (Diamond). “

“Jared Diamond postulates that differences in wealth throughout the world result primarily from geography (PBS)."

Don’t see your source here?

With a world of information at your finger tips, you may find a nontraditional source without instructions to cite. In that case, always try to include some sort of title, or description of content if one is not available. If possible, look for a name or organization to associate with your source. Including a date of publication is also another important detail to include if available for any source.