MLA Works Cited Page Overview

Unless instructed otherwise, double-space the entries in your Works Cited and Works Consulted pages, but do not add a space between each entry. Align the first line of each entry to the left margin, and indent subsequent lines of a Works Cited entry one half-inch (usually one tab or five spaces).

All references include these basic elements with variation depending on the resource type:

Author

• List authors in the order they are presented in the source. Separate names with commas. Insert the word and [not an ampersand (&)] before the last author’s name.
• For the first author listed, start with the last name, followed by a comma, followed by the first name and middle initial. List subsequent authors’ names by initial of the first name, followed by a period and then the last name: first name I. last name.
• For translators or editors listed within a reference citation (not at the beginning), cite the translator or editor first name last name.
  • If your paper focuses on the translated version of the text in particular (e.g., analyzes the translation itself, not qualities of the original work), cite the translator first and the author after the title. The author is to be cited first name last name.
• For corporate, organizational, or departmental “authors,” list the company, organization, or department name as the author. Exclude any initial article such as a, an, or the from the name of the organization.
• If there is no author provided, begin the citation with the title of the work.
• Alphabetize your list of sources by the authors’ last names. If there is no author given for a source, alphabetize by the title.

Title

• Use the title listed on the title page of a book (not the cover) or the first page of an article.
• Italicize titles of independent publications, (any work that is not published within or as part of another work) such as books, journals, movies, etc. For shorter works, such as poems or short stories published in a larger collection, do not italicize the titles. Use quotation marks around the titles.
• If titles are on two lines, or there are two parts to a title, write them out on one line separated by a colon (:).
• Write out all words, including and rather than using the ampersand (&).
• Write article and chapter titles in plain text with quotation marks.
• Only capitalize all significant words in the title (not articles or short prepositions).

Original Source

• For non-book resources, specify where the work was originally published (i.e., in what journal or anthology) and where it can be found (e.g., on what pages).
• If your instructor or editor requires you to use URLs, only break URLs after the slashes. E.g., www.wordpress.com/ thebloggerdaily/ post_18392372
• For reprinted works, indicate the original printing of the work and the most recent date. Include the original date before the publication information.

Year of Publication

• List the year of publication of the work you are using.
• If you are using a reprinted copy, indicate both years in the bibliographic citation.
• If no year of publication is provided, use n.d. to note no date was provided.

Medium of publication

• Common markers for mediums of publication include:
  • Television – sources accessed via television broadcast
  • Radio – sources accessed via radio broadcasts
  • Performance – live performances
  • Film
  • DVD
  • CD
  • Personal interview
  • Telephone interview
  • E-mail
  • Microform
  • Digital file – use if you cannot specify the type; otherwise specify the file type and add ‘file’
  • PDF file
  • MP3 file
• Add the medium of publication marker at the end of the citation.

Notations for Missing Data

• No publisher: n.p.
• No pagination/page numbers: n.pag.
• No date of publication: n.d.