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How to Write Book Titles in Your Essays

3-minute read

• 26th May 2023

When writing an essay, you’re likely to mention other authors’ works, such as books, papers, and articles. Formatting the titles of these works usually involves using quotation marks or italics.

So how do you write a book title in an essay? Most style guides have a standard for this – be sure to check that first. If you’re unsure, though, check out our guide below.

Italics or Quotation Marks?

As a general rule, you should set titles of longer works in italics , and titles of shorter works go in quotation marks . Longer works include books, journals, TV shows, albums, plays, etc. Here’s an example of a book mention:

Shorter works include poems, articles, chapters of books, episodes of TV shows, songs, etc. If it’s a piece that’s part of a biggHow to Write Book Titles in Your Essayser work, the piece considered a short work:

Exceptions to the Rule

The rule for writing book titles in italics applies specifically to running text . If the book title is standing on its own, as in a heading, there’s no need to italicize it.

Additionally, if the book is part of a larger series and you’re mentioning both the title of the series and that of the individual book, you can consider the book a shorter work. You would set the title of the series in italics and place the book title in quotation marks:

Punctuation in Book Titles

Do you need to apply italics to the punctuation in a book title? The short answer is yes – but only if the punctuation is part of the title:

If the punctuation isn’t part of the title (i.e., the punctuation is part of the sentence containing the title), you shouldn’t include in the italics:

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Summary: Writing Book Titles in Essays

We hope you’ll now feel confident when you’re writing and formatting book titles in your essays. Generally, you should set the title in italics when it’s in running text. Remember, though, to check your style guide. While the standards we’ve covered are the most common, some style guides have different requirements.

And once you finish writing your paper, make sure you send it our way! We’ll make sure any titles are formatted correctly as well as checking your work for grammar, spelling, punctuation, referencing, and more. Submit a free sample to try our service today.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you write the title of a book in a sentence.

Set the title of the book in italics unless the book is part of a larger work (e.g., a book that’s part of a series):

When do you use quotation marks for titles?

Place titles of shorter works or pieces that are contained in a larger work in quotation marks:

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How to Write a Book Name in an Essay

Last Updated: February 14, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Noah Taxis and by wikiHow staff writer, Danielle Blinka, MA, MPA . Noah Taxis is an English Teacher based in San Francisco, California. He has taught as a credentialed teacher for over four years: first at Mountain View High School as a 9th- and 11th-grade English Teacher, then at UISA (Ukiah Independent Study Academy) as a Middle School Independent Study Teacher. He is now a high school English teacher at St. Ignatius College Preparatory School in San Francisco. He received an MA in Secondary Education and Teaching from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education. He also received an MA in Comparative and World Literature from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a BA in International Literary & Visual Studies and English from Tufts University. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 62,397 times.

When you’re writing an essay that includes a book title, it can be confusing to write the title correctly. However, it’s really easy once you know the rules. How you write the title will vary a little bit depending on the style your instructor assigns and if you are typing or handwriting the essay. Luckily, it's easy to follow the rules for writing a book name in an essay.

Writing Help

Typing an Essay in MLA or Chicago Style Format

• For example, you would write To Kill a Mockingbird , The Lord of the Rings , or Wuthering Heights .

• If you have the book name in front of you, you can just copy it down as it is printed.
• Articles include a, an, and the.
• Prepositions include at, in, on, of, about, since, from, for, until, during, over, above, under, underneath, below, beneath, near, by, next to, between, among, and opposite.
• Coordinating conjunctions include the FANBOYS, which are for, and, not, but, or, yet, and

• For example, you would write the name of William Faulkner’s novel Absalom, Absalom! with both the comma and the exclamation point in italics.

• If the highlight bar goes away, try again, making sure that you don’t click anywhere on the page after you highlight the book name.

• Alternatively, you can press the italicize icon before you type the title.
• If you’re using Microsoft Word to type your essay, the italicize key may appear if you hover over the highlighted book name.

• If the next word after your title appears italicized when you resume typing, simply highlight it and click the italicize icon to remove the formatting.

• For example, The Lord of the Rings trilogy is sometimes published in one volume. In this case, you could write the name of the first novel as "The Fellowship of the Ring" when citing it in an essay.

Typing an Essay in APA Format

• Capitalize the first letter of the words, not the entire word.
• If the word is a two-part hyphenated word in the title, you should capitalize both words. For example, you would write Blue River: The Trial of a Mayor-Elect .
• If there is a dash or colon in the title, you should capitalize the word after the punctuation, regardless of how long the word is. As above, you would write Blue River: The Trial of a Mayor-Elect .

• For example, you would write Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? with the question mark italicized.

• If the book name is not highlighted, left click and drag your cursor again, making sure that you don’t click again anywhere on the page.

• If you are using Microsoft Word, the italics icon may appear when you hover over the highlighted book title. It’s okay to click this key.

Handwriting an Essay

• For MLA and Chicago style essays, capitalize the first word of the book name and every word other than articles, prepositions, or coordinating conjunctions. For example, write The Lord of the Rings .
• If you’re using APA style, capitalize the first word and all words longer than 4 letters. [9] X Research source This means you would write Public Policy in Local Government .

• If you’re writing on lined paper, it may help to follow along the line of the paper. However, make sure your line is dark enough so that your instructor will see that you properly underlined the book name.

• For example, you would write Judy Blume’s Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by underlining the punctuation marks as well as the words.

Expert Interview

Thanks for reading our article! If you’d like to learn more about academic writing, check out our in-depth interview with Noah Taxis .

• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_general_format.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/subject_specific_writing/writing_in_literature/writing_about_literature/formatting.html
• ↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/underline-or-italicize-book-titles/
• ↑ https://askus.library.wwu.edu/faq/116757
• ↑ https://libguides.up.edu/apa/books_ebooks
• ↑ https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/italics-quotations/italics

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How To Write Book Titles The Proper Way: A Complete Guide For Writers

• February 10, 2022

Book titles within essays or papers can be tricky. There are specific rules that are given for how to include a book title in a way that sets it apart from the content of your writing given by the Modern Language Association. However, as with many other things in life, there are exceptions to the rules. This article will guide you through the rules of the writing style guides so that you can include a book’s title in your paper or essay correctly.

How to write book titles:

Style guides and book titles.

When it comes to book titles within text, there are a few different style guides that have rules you can follow, depending on your writing type. The three types that you will encounter most often are; MLA style, Chicago manual of style, and APA. A writing instructor will usually tell you what style guide you are expected to use for a particular essay or paper.

MLA Style Guide

The MLA handbook states that you should always italicize book titles when styling book titles within your text. The exception to this rule are religious texts. You would not italicize the Holy Bible or the sacred books or titles of other religions. Note the following example.

Pam had stayed most of the summer indoors, re-reading her favorite book series. She was already up to  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone , and she didn’t regret not being more active or going outside.

In the above example, the book title is italicized. Fiction titles and nonfiction titles alike must be in italics when within the text.

Series Titles in MLA

In the above example, a book from a series was used. But what if the text had not specified which book from the series Pam was reading? Would it still need to be in italics? The answer is: in this case, yes. In other cases, sometimes.

It’s really not as confusing as it seems. When you are talking about a book series but don’t want or need to include the complete series titles for the purposes of your work, you only have to put words in italics that also appear in the book titles. So, because  Harry Potter  is part of the title of all of the books in the series, you would italicize his name every time you mention the book.

However, if you were talking about Katniss Everdeen, you would not have to do this, as the book series she is featured in doesn’t use her name in the titles of  The Hunger Games  series. The same would be true of books like the Nancy Drew books.

Quotation Marks

There are instances in which titles should be placed inside of quotation marks within a paper or essay. This is done when you cite the titles of poems , a chapter title, short stories, articles, or blogs.

So, for example, if you were to write a paper that featured a poem from a book, you would put the book title in italics and the poems cited in quotation marks.

An example of an enduring love poem is “Annabel Lee” from  The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe. 

Chapter Title

Another time that quotation marks should be used is when using the title of a chapter. If you are citing a specific chapter of a book, you would enclose the title of the chapter in quotation marks, and the title of the book should be in italics.

The desperation and sadness of a man on death row can be seen in the “Wild Wind Blowing” chapter of Norman Mailer’s  The Executioner’s Song. 

Short Stories

Short stories are another case. Much like the title of a chapter or poem, in which the title is placed in quotation marks, while the title of the book or collection it is found in is italics. The same can be said for sections, stories, or chapters cited within a literary journal.

Stepping away from his norm of horror and gore, Stephen King writes of trust, love, and regret in his story “The Last Rung on the Ladder,” which can be found in his short story collection  Night Shift. 

Punctuation Marks

If you are citing a story or title that includes question marks, you need to make sure to italicize the question mark when citing. Keep all punctuation, such as a question mark, comma, ellipses, colon, or exclamation mark, as it is in the original individual books.

If you want a funny and irreverent read, you’ve got to try  Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea.  Chelsea Handler has done a phenomenal job of being vulgar, relatable, and explaining life from her viewpoint in this hilarious and memorable book.

The Digital Age: Are Book Titles Underlined Anymore?

MLA style used to dictate that a book title should either be in italics or underlined. However, that is no longer the case. As computers started to take over as the major tool used in writing, it became unpopular to underline book titles. Therefore, this rule was dropped from the style guides.

However, it should be mentioned that when handwriting an essay or research paper, many instructors prefer that you underline book titles, as it’s relatively difficult to handwrite italics. If you are in a writing course or a class that is heavy on handwritten work, be sure to ask your instructor or teacher which method they prefer for citing a book title.

How to Come Up with Book Title Ideas

Now that quotation marks, italics, and style guides have been discussed, let’s move on to how you can come up with your own book title. If you’d like a title for your book that sounds interesting and will get a reader’s attention, you may find this article helpful.

Coming up with a good title for your book is a challenging yet essential marketing decision . The right title can make your target audience choose your new book off of the shelf instead of another writer’s work. Your book cover and your book title are quite possibly the most important marketing decisions you will make.

How to Choose a Good Book Title

Certain criteria should be met if you want to have a good book title , and there are specific steps involved in getting there. You may have assumed up until now that titles of books were just spur of the moment decisions made by authors or publishers, but a lot of work goes into writing good titles.

Grab the Reader’s Attention

As a general rule, you want your reader to remember your title and to sound interesting, even without the reader having seen the cover. There are several ways to do this. You can be a little dark with your title, be controversial, provoke the reader, or even be funny.

There are many examples of such works that use memorable and attention-seeking titles. The following are some different titles that are effective and would most likely provoke a reader to grab them from a shelf for closer inspection.

• Burn After Writing (Sharon Jones)
• Love in the Time of Cholera (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
• Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (Mindy Kaling)
• Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea (Chelsea Handler)
• The Devil Wears Prada (Lauren Weisberger)
• Chicken Soup for the Soul (various authors)
• God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian (Kurt Vonnegut)

Shorter Titles

If your full title for your book is long, you may end up boring a reader or creating a situation where a reader tries to remember the title of your book, but it’s too long and ends up getting it confused with another book. Although you should always do your best to make sure that there aren’t books by other authors that share a title or have a title similar to your book (more on that in a minute), you don’t want a person to get confused and get the wrong book instead.

Research Your Title Ideas

It’s a good idea to take the titles you have considered for your book and make a list. Then, do your homework. You can use tools like Google Adwords to test out your title to see if there are others like it, or you can simply use any search engine and plug your title ideas into the search bar and see what similar or exact titles of the same words pop up.

Readers are generally busy people. They don’t have the time or the energy to ensure that writers get a title right. They’ll look for the book they are interested in, and if it proves to be too difficult, or if there are other books written that have the same title, they’ll move on to something else.

A writer really has to make sure that they have a title that isn’t going to be ignored, is interesting, isn’t too long, and isn’t too similar to other works.

The same goes for titles of short works within a larger body of work. Short works, like poems or stories, need to have unique titles as well when included in a larger body of work, such as a collection. If stories are similar in nature, be sure to title them differently so that readers will be able to tell them apart, as well.

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How to Write Book Titles in Essays: APA, MLA, Chicago Styles

It’s your practical and up-to-point guide on how to write a book title in an essay. You’ll get the formatting rules and examples for citing book and author names in academic papers.

We’ve covered the top three citation styles: APA, Chicago, and MLA.

How to Write the Title of a Book in an Essay

First, remember the general rules of citing book names in academic works.

Here’s how to cite books in essays :

• Use capitalization. Every word of a book’s name goes in the title case, except prepositions, articles, and coordinating conjunctions.
• Use italics for longer and independent works. Use double quotations for shorter ones (poems, articles, book chapters, or play acts and scenes).
• Use single quotations for a book’s title within another title. (When citing monographs about literary works, for example.) 

While capitalization rules depend on the citation style, some general tips have a place to be. Please, no capitalization for:

• Articles: a, the (unless the book title begins with it)
• Coordinating conjunctions and prepositions: of, and, or, but, for, to, nor, in, so (unless the book title begins or ends with it)

Subordinating conjunctions (although, unless, because, if) go in capital letters.

How to Write a Book Title in an Essay: APA

APA (American Psychological Association) is the most popular style for citing academic works. It’s common for the social sciences like Education, Psychology, Sociology, and others. The current edition: 7th (2019).

Book titles in APA stand for:

• Italics. (If a book name includes any punctuation, italicize it too.)
• Capitalization. (Capitalize all words longer than four letters , regardless of the part of speech. Also, use capital letters for two-part words and those coming after a dash or a colon.)
• Double quotations instead of italics. (When citing a short work like an article or a poem; when citing a book chapter or when the book is a part of an anthology.)

For example: 

The Lord of the Rings but “The Fellowship of the Ring” (The latter is part of the trilogy.)

Related: How to Cite a Movie in APA Format

How to Write the Name of a Book in an Essay: Chicago

The Chicago Manual of Style is a guide by the University of Chicago. It’s common for fields like History, Fine Arts, and Business. The current edition: 17th (2017).

How to format book titles in Chicago:

• Italicize longer and independent works; put shorter ones in double quotations.
• Use italics for punctuation within a title.
• Capitalize all words except articles (a, the) and ALL prepositions or conjunctions (regardless of length).

For example:

In George Orwell’s 1984 , the author presents a dystopian society characterized by pervasive government surveillance and the suppression of individual freedom. The harrowing events in “Chapter 2,” where Winston Smith begins to rebel against the Party by starting a forbidden diary, mark a pivotal moment in the novel’s exploration of resistance against totalitarianism.

The style resembles the MLA format, but it’s flexible, allowing you to “break the rules if necessary.”

How to Write a Book Title in an Essay: MLA

MLA format stands for the Modern Language Association. It’s common for humanities like Literature, Culture, Linguistics, etc. The current edition: 8th (2016). 

How to format books in MLA:

• Italicize all words, including punctuation and those of two parts or going after colons and hyphens.
• Capitalize all words except articles (a, the) , prepositions, and short conjunctions within a book title.
• Use double quotations instead of italics when writing a book chapter or a part of a book series.

In Little Women , Beth March dies in Chapter 40, “The Valley of the Shadow.”

Formatting Book Author Names in Papers

Use the author’s full name (first and last) to format it in your essay for proper credit.

If a book has two authors, use both last names and initials. For works with three or more authors, use the last name of the first one and add “et all.”

No need to italicize author names in papers.

Why Properly Cite Book Titles in Essays

The short answer:

You won’t get a high grade for an essay. Formatting blunders count as mistakes.

The longer answer:

• You prove writing skills and an understanding of the rules in academia.
• Your papers maintain consistency. It’s critical to stick to criteria to prevent confusion. The consistent format for book headings also serves to better scannability and readability.
• You learn to cite different types of references for your future projects.

Do you italicize book titles?

Yes, you put book titles in italics. Please italicize long and stand-alone works: books, movies, webpages, reports, or music albums. Shorter works’ titles (articles, essays, poems, songs, or book chapters) come in quotations. (1)

Do you underline book titles?

Underlining book titles is an outdated practice. Some still use it in handwritten essays, but it’s not a must-follow rule. Neither APA nor MLA (or Chicago) mentions underlining book names in academic papers.

How to use book title capitalization in texts?

Capitalize every word in a book’s title. Exceptions are articles (a, the), prepositions, and short (three or fewer letters) conjunctions in mid-titles.

Are books italicized in all formatting styles?

Yes, book titles come in italics in all styles: APA, MLA, and Chicago. When citing book chapters or a book as a part of a series, use quotation marks instead.

How to write a book author in an essay?

Use the author’s full name when citing their book in your papers. For works with several authors, mention their last names and initials. Unlike book titles, author names come in standard formatting with no italics.

References:

• https://english.csuci.edu/resources/essay-writing-essentials.htm
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• Essay writing
• Writing tips

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How to Write a Book Title in MLA Formatting

by Joe Bunting | 0 comments

You're writing a paper for school and suddenly you stop in the middle of the sentence. You have to write a book title, but you don't how to format it. How do you format a book title in MLA style? Good news: you're in the write place (sorry, I had to).

In this post, we'll talk about MLA style and formatting, whether it's appropriate for your project, and most importantly, how to write a book title in MLA style.

What Is MLA?

MLA stands for Modern Language Association, a society primarily based in the United States but with international standing, that has a mission to “strengthen the study and teaching of language and literature”. Founded in the late 1800s by an American novelist and professor, MLA publishes a set of resources used by students and teachers, including the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers .

The MLA handbook is one of the main style manuals for students and scholars in the world, especially for anyone studying literature, film, or theater.

Should You Format Based on MLA Style?

If you're writing a paper for a class in literature, theater, or film, absolutely use MLA style. Outside of that, it depends. Here are the most frequent style guides associated with various disciplines:

• Literature, Film, Theater:   MLA
• Psychology:   APA
• Science (Physics, Biology, Chemistry): CSE or APA
• Journalism:   AP
• Mathematics:   AMA
• Publishing:   Chicago

You can find a full list of international style guides here .

Now that you know if you should be using MLA style, how do you format a book title with it?

How to Format a Book Title in MLA Style: Example

In MLA style, book titles are italicized, as so:

Henry Thorough argues in Walden  that the best life is lived in deliberate simplicity so as to discover what life truly is about.

In fact, most style guides, including MLA and   Chicago style, require book titles to be italicized , not underlined.

If the book title has a subtitle, the subtitle should be italicized as well and separated by a colon to be formatted correctly for MLA style, as in:

Natural History of the Intellect: the last lectures of Ralph Waldo Emerson

Should You Underline Book Titles in MLA Style?

If you are using MLA style, you should not underline book titles. Instead, italicize the titles.

However, AP style, the guide used by journalists, suggests putting titles in quotation marks, not italicization.

Still, I wouldn't recommend underlining a book's title. In fact, I couldn't find a single style guide that requires book titles to be underlined, but if you know of one that does, let me know in the comments!

Which style guide do you use most? MLA? Chicago? APA? AP? Or do you just write based on your own rules?!  Let me know in the comments .

Let's cement this formatting lesson in our minds by putting it to use right away with the following writing exercise .

What are your favorite books of all time? Write about what you love about them and why they are your favorites for fifteen minutes . Make sure to use the correct formatting for each title!

When your time is up, post your practice in the comments section . And if you post, please be sure to read a few practices by other writers and share your feedback with them.

Happy writing!

Joe Bunting

Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris , a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).

Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.

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How to Write A Book Title In Your Essay

Writing an essay can be an intimidating task, especially when it comes to citing sources. Properly citing book titles is an essential part of academic writing, and failure to do so can result in loss of marks. In this article, we’ll take a comprehensive look at how to write a book title in your essay and provide some practical tips to ensure that you get it right.

Understanding the Importance of Properly Citing a Book Title

Before we dive into the details, it’s vital to understand why book titles are such an essential part of academic writing. The primary purpose of citations is to give credit to the original source of information you use in your work. This not only avoids plagiarism but also adds credibility to your arguments as it demonstrates that you have conducted thorough research.

Moreover, citing a book title accurately is crucial to avoid any confusion or ambiguity in your writing. By providing a precise reference to the book you used, you enable your readers to locate the exact information you are citing, rather than searching through multiple sources to find the right one.

Why Book Titles Matter in Essays

Book titles play a crucial role in your essay, serving as a reference point for your readers to identify the source of information. Properly citing book titles also reflects your professionalism and attention to detail as a writer. This ultimately contributes to a more persuasive and compelling piece of writing.

Furthermore, citing book titles accurately also helps you avoid any potential legal issues. Using someone else’s work without proper attribution can lead to copyright infringement and legal action against you. Therefore, it’s essential to give credit where it’s due and cite your sources correctly.

The Role of Citations in Academic Writing

As mentioned earlier, citations are not just a formality; they serve a critical purpose in academic writing. By acknowledging the work of others, you are providing evidence that supports your argument, enhancing the credibility of your work. Additionally, citations also provide a way for readers to locate the source of information in the event that they need to cross-reference or verify your claims.

Moreover, citations can also help you build on the existing body of knowledge in your field. This not only adds depth to your writing but also shows your readers that you are well-versed in the latest developments in your field.

Properly citing book titles is a fundamental aspect of academic writing. It not only helps you avoid plagiarism and legal issues but also adds credibility to your work and contributes to a more persuasive and compelling piece of writing. So, make sure to give credit where it’s due and cite your sources accurately.

Different Citation Styles and Their Rules

When writing an essay or research paper, it is important to give credit to the sources you have used. This is where citation styles come in. There are multiple citation styles that you can use when citing book titles in essays. The most popular ones are APA, MLA, Chicago/Turabian, and Harvard referencing style. Let’s take a look at each of them in more detail.

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

APA style is commonly used in the social sciences such as psychology, sociology, and education. When citing book titles using APA style, you need to italicize the title and capitalize only the first word of the title, the first word of any subtitle, and any proper nouns. For example, if you were citing the book “The Psychology of Human Misjudgment” by Charlie Munger, your citation would look like this:

Munger, C. (2019).  The psychology of human misjudgment . New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

MLA style is primarily used in the humanities such as literature, languages, and cultural studies. When citing book titles using MLA style, you need to italicize the title and capitalize all words in the title except conjunctions, articles, and prepositions. For example, if you were citing the book “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, your citation would look like this:

Fitzgerald, F. Scott.  The Great Gatsby . Scribner, 2004.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Chicago/Turabian style is typically used in the humanities, history, and social sciences. When citing book titles using this style, you have the option of italicizing the title or placing it in quotation marks. You should also capitalize the first letter of the first word and any subsequent important word in the title. For example, if you were citing the book “The Origin of Species” by Charles Darwin, your citation would look like this:

Darwin, Charles.  The Origin of Species . London: John Murray, 1859.

Harvard Referencing Style

Harvard referencing style, also known as author-date referencing, is often used in the sciences and social sciences. When citing book titles using Harvard style, you need to italicize the title and capitalize the first letter of the first word and any subsequent important word in the title. For example, if you were citing the book “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions” by Thomas Kuhn, your citation would look like this:

Kuhn, T. (2012).  The Structure of Scientific Revolutions . Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

It is important to note that each citation style has its own specific rules and guidelines. It is important to choose the appropriate citation style for your discipline and to follow the rules consistently throughout your paper. By doing so, you will ensure that your work is properly cited and that you are giving credit where credit is due.

Formatting Book Titles in Your Essay

Now that you have a good understanding of the different citation styles, let’s take a closer look at how to format book titles within your essay.

When you are writing an essay, it is essential to format the book titles correctly. Proper formatting not only helps you avoid plagiarism, but it also makes your work look professional and polished. In this article, we will discuss the different capitalization rules, italics, underlining, and quotation marks, and how to handle subtitles and edition numbers.

Capitalization Rules for Book Titles

Most citation styles have specific rules for capitalizing book titles. As a general rule, it is essential to capitalize the first word of the title, the first word of any subtitle, and any proper nouns. Proper nouns include the names of people, places, and things that are specific and unique. However, specific styles may use different capitalization conventions, so it’s always important to refer to the style guides before formatting your work. By following the capitalization rules, you can ensure that your essay looks professional and is easy to read.

Italics, Underlining, and Quotation Marks

When formatting book titles, you have three options: italicize, underline, or place them in quotation marks. While most citation styles prefer the use of italics, you may find that your professor or institution requires a different style. It’s always important to clarify any specific requirements before submitting your work. Italicizing the title of a book makes it stand out and helps the reader to identify it easily. Underlining and quotation marks are used less frequently but may be required in certain situations.

Handling Subtitles and Edition Numbers

When citing a book with a subtitle or edition number, it’s essential to include both the title and the subtitle or edition number. You can separate the title and subtitle with a colon, and for the edition number, use the appropriate abbreviation (e.g., 2nd ed.). Including the subtitle and edition number helps the reader to identify the specific version of the book that you are referencing. It also shows that you have taken the time to research the book thoroughly.

Incorporating Book Titles in Your Essay Text

Knowing how to format book titles using the appropriate citation style is an essential skill for any academic writer. However, simply knowing how to format the title is not enough; you also need to know how to incorporate it effectively into your essay text.

Introducing the Book Title in Your Essay

Introducing the title of a book in your essay can be tricky, especially if you are not familiar with the specific citation style you are using. In general, it is essential to use the correct formatting to ensure that your essay is both professional and easy to read. For example, in MLA style, you should italicize the title, whereas in Harvard style, only the first letter of the first word and any subsequent important word should be capitalized. It is also important to include the author’s name and the publication date in your introduction to provide context for your reader.

When introducing a book title in your essay, you can use a variety of techniques to make it stand out. For example, you could use bold or underline formatting, or you could place the title in quotation marks. Whatever technique you choose, be sure to use it consistently throughout your essay.

Using Parenthetical Citations for In-Text References

Parenthetical citations are an essential part of academic writing as they help to identify the original source of information. When using parenthetical citations to cite a book title, it is crucial to include the author’s last name and the page number in parentheses. For example: (Fitzgerald, 2004, p. 37).

When citing a book title in your essay, it is important to remember that you should only include the page number if you are directly quoting from the book. If you are paraphrasing or summarizing information, you do not need to include the page number.

Creating a Works Cited or Bibliography Page

Finally, when citing book titles in your essay, it’s essential to create a Works Cited or Bibliography page. This page lists all the sources you used in your work and includes the author’s name, title, publication date, publisher, and location.

The Works Cited or Bibliography page is typically located at the end of your essay, and it should be formatted according to the specific citation style you are using. Be sure to double-check your formatting and citations to ensure that they are accurate and consistent.

Final Thoughts

Citing book titles in your essay may seem like a small detail, but getting it wrong can result in significant consequences. By following the rules and guidelines outlined in this article, you can ensure that your citing is accurate, and your essay is professional and credible. Remember always to clarify any specific requirements with your professor or institution to avoid any confusion

Frequently asked questions about writing an essay

What is the difference between an essay and a report.

An essay is typically shorter and has a narrower focus than a report. An essay is usually written in response to a question or topic, and it presents an argument, opinion or point of view. A report, on the other hand, is often longer and provides more detailed information on a particular topic.

How do I write a good introduction for an essay?

Your introduction should include a brief overview of the main points you will be discussing in your essay. It should also include a thesis statement, which is a single sentence that summarises your argument.

How do I write a good conclusion for an essay?

Your conclusion should summarise the main points of your argument, and should leave the reader with a clear understanding of your position. It should also include a brief restatement of your thesis statement.

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How to Write a Book Title in an Essay (MLA, APA etc.)

Formatting your essay correctly ensures that you get full recognition for the hard work you put into it. Wondering what to do? There are two scenarios that lead you to the question of "how to write a book title in an essay":

• You have not been required to use a particular style guide, in which case consistency remains important.
• You have been instructed to use a particular style guide. You now simply need to ensure that you are familiar with its rules.

Regardless of which of these scenarios holds true for you, this guide is here to help.

How to Write a Book Title in an Essay

Many style manuals call on writers use title case and italics to format a book title. Title case rules vary slightly from one style guide to the next, but generally capitalize all important words — nouns, pronouns, verbs, and adverbs. Conjunctions and prepositions are not capitalized unless they are very long (generally more than four letters) or they appear at the beginning or end of a book title.

Writers who are not required to work with a specific style manual can't go wrong if they stick to this style. Some examples would be:

• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• The Gift of Fear and Other Survival Signals That Protect us From Violence by Gavin de Becker
• The Cat With a Feathery Tail and Other Stories by Enid Blyton

If, on the other hand, you're required to use a style guide, it will likely be one of these:

• MLA, commonly used in disciplines relating to literature and social sciences.
• APA, commonly used in psychology and other sciences.
• Chicago, often used in the publishing industry.
• Harvard style, commonly used in philosophy and social sciences.

These are certainly not the only "big players" in the style guide world, but they're ones it's good to be familiar with. There is overlap between these styles, but there are also major differences — so knowing one definitely does not mean you know the others, too.

Guidelines for Writing a Book Title in an Essay

Looking for a short and sharp answer, so you can get on with the rest of your essay? This is it.

This quick guide will help you reference the book title of your choosing in the body of your essay, but what about your Works Cited pages? Each style guide offers different rules, and we'll use the same book as an example to illustrate the differences.

• MLA uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Name. Title of Book . City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Year. Example: Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Game. Tor Books, 1985. (You only have to detail the city of publication if the book was published before 1900, the publisher has offices in many localities, or the publisher is not known in the US.)
• APA uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Name. (Year of Publication). Title of book. Example: Card, Orson Scott. (1985). Ender's game.
• Chicago style uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Name. Book Title: Subtitle . Place of publication: Publisher, Year. Example: Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Game . Tor Books, 1985.
• Harvard uses the following format: Author Last Name, First Initial. (Publication Year). Title . ed. City: Publisher. Example: Card, O. (1985). Ender's Game. Tor Books.

If, after researching, you cannot find relevant information about publication years, publishers, or the city in which a book was published, you may omit it. For a full guide, it is always best to have a physical copy of the latest edition of the style manual you are using. You can, however, get by without this if you need to.

Should you still not know what to do, it will be helpful for you to know that you can "generate" citations for a particular style manual with the help of online tools like Cite Me . These are not always accurate, so if you decide to use one, always check the citation manually.

Why Is Proper Formatting Important?

All of the well-known style manuals ultimately serve the very same set of purposes, although they were each developed for a particular niche. The goals of these style manuals are both explicit and implicit:

• Following a style guide ensures consistency throughout a document, in this case an essay.
• Consistency ensures that reader's understand precisely what the writer is talking about, without exerting any effort on figuring that out. Clarity is especially important in academic writing.
• By using a style guide within a certain discipline, you show that you understand the rules within that discipline. This adds credibility to your voice as a writer. You have done your homework, have ideally bought the style manual, and are part of the "in group".
• Sticking to a certain style guide makes it easier for relevant parties to check your references, which they can then use to perform further research.

Students are increasingly asked to refer to style guides at all levels, including in high school. In this case, formatting your essay correctly, in accordance with the right style manual, serves two additional purposes:

• You'll lose points if you don't do it right, offering you an additional reason to do your research.
• Getting used to these formats prepares you for further education. If you are in high school, it prepares you for college-level writing. If you are an undergraduate student, it prepares you for academic work at the graduate and post-graduate levels.

Can you start an essay with a book title?

Yes, you can start an essay with a book title. This is a valid stylistic choice, but you will always want to consider your introduction carefully.

How do you write a book title in handwriting?

Students sometimes ask whether it is acceptable to underline book titles instead of italicizing them. This practice indeed stems from a time in which most students wrote their essays by hand. Although it has largely fallen out of practice now, you can still underline a book title if you are handwriting your essay.

How do you write a book title and chapter in an essay?

You should mention the chapter title first: "Rat" from Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. Consult the relevant style manual to ensure you get the formatting right.

Can you shorten a book title in an essay?

Yes, you can. Reference the full title the first time you mention it (for example: Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things ). The next time you mention the book, you may simply refer to Furiously Happy .

Related posts:

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• Someone Walked Over My Grave - Meaning and Origin
• 14 Tips to Help you Write An Essay Fast
• Go Pound Sand - Meaning, Usage and Origin
• How to Write a DBQ (APUSH) Essay?

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• APA Style - 7th edition
• Specific Rules for Authors & Titles

APA Style - 7th edition: Specific Rules for Authors & Titles

• Basic Information

Rules for Writing Author and Editor Information

Rules for writing titles.

• Media Sources
• Internet Sources
• In-text Citations
• Reference Lists

There are certain things to keep in mind when writing the author's name according to APA style. Authors may be individual people, multiple people, groups (institutions or organizations), or a combination of people and groups. 

• You must include all the authors up to 20 for individual items. For example, if you are using an article that has 19 authors you must list them all out on your reference page. 
• Use initials for the first and middle names of authors. Use one space between initials.
• All names are inverted (last name, first initial).
• Do not hyphenate a name unless it is hyphenated on the item.
• Separate the author's names with a comma and use the ampersand symbol "&"  before the last author listed.
• Spell out the name of any organization that is listed as an author.
• If there is no author listed, the item title moves in front of the publication date and is used.

An item that you use may have an editor instead of an author or in the case of audiovisual materials a writer or director.

• For editors follow the same rules above and put the abbreviation (Ed.) or (Eds.) behind the name(s). 
• For audiovisual materials follow the same rules as above and put the specialized role (Writer) (Director) behind the name. 

Zhang, Y. H.  (one author)

Arnec, A., & Lavbic, D. (two authors)​

Kent State University (organization as author)

Barr, M. J. (Ed.). (1 editor)

Powell, R. R., & Westbrook, L. (Eds.). (2 editors)

here are certain things to keep in mind when writing a title according to APA style.

• Book titles are italicized and written using sentence case (only the first word of a title, subtitle, or proper noun are capitalized).
• Book chapter titles are written using sentence case and are not italicized.
• Journal titles are italicized and written using title case (all the important words are capitalized).
• Article titles are written using sentence case and are not italicized.
• Webpages and websites are italicized and written using sentence case.

Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (book title, American Psychological Association is a proper noun so it is capitalized)

Student perspective of plagiarism (book chapter title)

Internet plagiarism in higher education: Tendencies, trigging factors and reasons among teacher candidates (article title, Tendencies is the first word of a sub-title so it is capitalized)

Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education (journal title)

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• Last Updated: Jul 14, 2023 4:23 PM
• URL: https://libguides.library.kent.edu/apa7

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How to Write the Title of a Book in an Essay

• by Lesley V.
• November 21, 2023

If you want to know how to cite books in essays properly, here’s my guide on the top three citation styles.

You’ll learn to cite the title of books in essay in APA, MLA, and Chicago.

Get ready to remember formatting guidelines and consider examples.

Book Titles: Formatting Guide  

How to write a book title in an essay: apa .

I’ll focus on the latest version, APA’s 7th edition [1]. For this format, you provide the author’s surname, initials, the publishing year (use round brackets), the italicized title, the publisher, and DOI if the manual has it.

If the book has several authors, place surnames in the alphabetic order, with “&” before the last surname. If it’s an edited work without an author, put the editor’s surname and initials at the beginning. In the case of several editors, add “Ed.” or “Eds.” after the initials.

If the copy has both an author and an editor, place the author’s surname initials in the beginning and add the editor’s surname and initials in brackets between the book title and the name of its publisher.

•  Shakespeare, W. (1954).  The tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark . The Folio Society. 
•  Black S. (1981).  How to live this life . (White A. & Brown L., Eds.) Scale University Press. 

How to Write a Book Title in an Essay: MLA 

I provide the rules according to MLA’s 8th edition [2]. 

Provide the author’s full name, italicize the book title, the publishing place (for works older than 1900), the publisher, and the publication date.

If the  copy has several authors , you write the first author’s surname and their name after a comma and then name other authors in the usual name-surname order. Add “and” before the last author in the list. 

In the case of books with no authors, the MLA format doesn’t require you to note the editors. You can skip the part with authorship and start with the title in italics. 

Examples to correctly cite books in MLA:

• Shakespeare, William.  The tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark . The Folio Society. 1954.
• Encyclopedia of Montana . Summerset, 1993.

How to Write Book Titles in Essays: Chicago

The fine points of the Chicago style are the fine points for the footnotes and endnotes as in-text references: 

In the footnote, you provide the author’s first and last name, italicize the book title, specify the place of publication, publisher, and year in round brackets, and write the page number. 

The difference between the footnote and source in the bibliography is not so big. In the bibliography, you provide the author’s surname, not the name first. Also, don’t use round brackets and page numbers. 

Writing Author Names in Paper Bodies 

Authors’ surnames in the bodies of papers go in capital letters. Depending on the citation style, it might or might not require a personal name. 

For example, APA 7 or MLA 8 doesn’t require the author’s name. In-text citations in APA will be  “As Shakespeare (1954) writes, ” while Chicago, as you can see from above, requires both first and last names in footnotes.

In Lieu of a Conclusion: FAQs

• Are books italicized? 

Yes, the titles of the books go in italics in the references. 

• Do you underline book titles? 

No, you don’t need to underline the book titles. The exception might be if you write an essay by hand. It’s hard to italicize titles when handwriting, so you underline the name to specify it.

• How do you write book titles with subtitles in an essay? 

Italicize the title, start with a capital letter, and place the subtitle after the colon, also capitalized.  For example :  I am Malala: The story of the girl who stood up for education and was shot by the Taliban.

• How to write a short story title in an essay?

A story, poem, essay, or any other short genre represented as a book part must go in quotation marks. For example:   “The Intruder.”  It’s a short story in Andre Dubus’s collection,  Dancing After Hours .

• Why properly cite books in essays?

The title of the books in the essay is critical for a reader to understand what kind of source this is.

References:

• https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/index.html

2. https://libguides.southernct.edu/mla/core/title

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How to Format a Book Title in Writing: Step-by-Step Guide

My name is Debbie, and I am passionate about developing a love for the written word and planting a seed that will grow into a powerful voice that can inspire many.

Choosing the Right Format for Your Book Title

Understanding the use of italics and quotation marks, formatting fiction book titles: novels, short stories, and anthologies, formatting non-fiction book titles: essays, articles, and chapters.

• ` for main sections, ` ` for sub-sections, and so on. This enables readers to grasp the overall organization of the content at a glance. 4. **List chapter titles**: Consider creating a clear and concise unnumbered list to display chapter titles. Use the ` ` tag to indicate an unordered list and ` ` tags for each chapter title. This formatting approach enables readers to quickly skim through the chapter titles and navigate the book efficiently. By following these HTML formatting guidelines, non-fiction authors can give their essays, articles, and chapter titles a professional and visually appealing look, enhancing the overall reading experience for their audience. Remember to stay consistent with formatting choices throughout the book to maintain a cohesive and well-structured publication. Navigating the Formatting of Book Titles with Subtitles

Special Cases: Formatting Series Titles and Edition Numbers

Helpful tips for consistency and clarity in book title formatting, frequently asked questions, final thoughts.

When it comes to selecting the perfect format for your book title, it’s essential to consider various factors to ensure that your title stands out and captures the attention of potential readers. Here are some key aspects to keep in mind while making this decision:

1. Length: The length of your book title plays a crucial role in its format. For longer titles, it’s generally recommended to opt for a smaller font size or consider dividing it into sections using line breaks. On the other hand, shorter titles might benefit from a larger and bolder font to create visual impact.

2. Font Style: The font style you choose can greatly influence the visual appeal of your book title. Consider the genre and tone of your book when selecting a font. Serif fonts often work well for formal or traditional genres, while sans-serif fonts offer a modern and clean look suitable for contemporary or light-hearted themes. Moreover, it’s essential to ensure that the chosen font is easily readable both in print and digital formats.

When it comes to writing, it is essential to understand and properly utilize italics and quotation marks. These formatting tools serve different purposes and can greatly enhance the clarity and effectiveness of your writing. Here’s a breakdown of how and when to use them:

Using Italics: 1. Emphasizing words or phrases: Italics can be used to highlight specific words or phrases in your text for added emphasis. For example, you might italicize an important concept or a foreign word. 2. Titles of works: Italicize the titles of books, movies, TV shows, plays, poems, albums, and other standalone works. This helps differentiate them from the surrounding text and gives them more prominence. 3. Thoughts and inner dialogue: Italics can be used to represent a character’s inner thoughts or dialogue. This helps readers distinguish between the character’s external dialogue and their internal musings.

Using Quotation Marks: 1. Direct quotations: Quotation marks are commonly used to indicate direct speech or a quote from another source. When including someone’s exact words, it is important to enclose them in quotation marks to avoid plagiarism and give credit to the original author or speaker. 2. Titles of shorter works: Quotation marks are used to denote the titles of shorter works such as articles, short stories, poems, episodes of TV shows, and songs. This sets them apart from the main body of text. 3. Words as words: Quotation marks can be used to indicate that a word is being discussed rather than used in its usual sense. For instance, you might write, “The word ‘process’ can have multiple meanings.”

In the vast world of fiction, titles hold significant importance as they are meant to capture readers’ attention and convey the essence of the story within. When it comes to formatting fiction book titles, whether they belong to novels, short stories, or anthologies, it’s crucial to follow a consistent style. Here are some guidelines to help you navigate the art of formatting book titles:

1. Novels: When formatting the title of a novel, it should be italicized to indicate that it’s a standalone book. For example, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Alternatively, you can also use quotation marks if italicizing is not an option, such as “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger.

2. Short Stories: Similar to novels, short story titles are also typically italicized or enclosed in quotation marks. However, if the short story is a standalone book (e.g., “Animal Farm” by George Orwell), it’s common to treat it like a novel and italicize the title. On the other hand, if the short story is part of a larger collection, it should be placed in quotation marks within the larger anthology’s title, like “The Tell-Tale Heart” in “The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe.”

HTML allows for easy and effective formatting of non-fiction book titles, such as essays, articles, and chapters. By utilizing specific HTML tags, authors can enhance the visual appeal and organization of their writing. Here are some key formatting guidelines to consider:

1. **Italicize** titles: Use the ` ` tag to add emphasis to the title of an essay or article. This formatting option distinguishes the title from the rest of the text, allowing readers to easily identify it.

2. **Enclose chapter titles in quotation marks**: To differentiate chapter titles from the main text, surround them with the ` ` tag. This helps readers navigate through the book and locate specific sections with ease.

3. **Use headings to structure content**: Employ HTML heading tags (`

When it comes to formatting book titles with subtitles, it’s important to follow consistent rules to maintain clarity and professionalism. Here are a few tips to help you navigate the formatting nuances:

1. Capitalization: In book titles, capitalize the first and last word, all nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs. However, do not capitalize coordinating conjunctions (e.g., and, but), articles (e.g., a, an, the), or prepositions (unless they are the first or last word of the title). For subtitles, capitalize the first letter of the first word, proper nouns, and all significant words. Minor words like articles and prepositions should remain lowercase.

2. Punctuation: Use the appropriate punctuation marks to separate the main title and subtitle. Typically, a colon is used. For example: “The Art of Fiction: A Comprehensive Guide to Writing Engaging Stories.” If the main title already contains a colon, consider using a dash to set apart the subtitle, such as: “The Miracle Morning – The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life Before 8 AM.”

3. Italicize: In most cases, it is preferable to italicize both the main title and the subtitle to distinguish them from the rest of the text. However, if italics are not available (for example, in certain mediums like email or plain text), you can use double quotation marks (” “) to enclose book titles instead. In professional writing, avoid using underlines for book titles as it may be confused with hyperlinks in online formats.

In the world of publishing, series titles and edition numbers are essential elements to consider when formatting your content. To ensure consistency and clarity, here are some guidelines to follow for these special cases:

1. Formatting Series Titles: – Italicize series titles to set them apart from the rest of the text. For example, if you have a book series called “Adventures in Wonderland,” ensure that this series title is italicized throughout your content. – Capitalize the first letter of each significant word in the series title, except for articles, conjunctions, and prepositions unless they are the first or last word of the title. – If the series title includes a proper noun or a brand name, make sure to capitalize it consistently.

2. Including Edition Numbers: – Place the edition number immediately after the title but within the same sentence, separated by a comma. For example, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, 20th Anniversary Edition.” – Use numerals for edition numbers, followed by “th,” “st,” “nd,” or “rd” to denote the corresponding ordinal indicator. For instance, 5th edition, 1st edition, 2nd edition. – If the edition belongs to a specific publisher or includes additional descriptors, such as “revised” or “abridged,” include this information after the edition number, separated by a comma.

One of the key elements in book design is the formatting of its title. Consistency and clarity in book title formatting can greatly enhance the visual appeal and readability of your book. Here are a few helpful tips to consider:

– Use a clear and legible font: Select a font that is easy to read and complements the theme or genre of your book. Avoid using overly decorative or complex fonts that may hinder clarity. – Maintain consistent capitalization: Decide on a capitalization style for your book titles and stick to it throughout. You can choose to capitalize all significant words or only the first word and proper nouns. Consistency in capitalization will give your book a polished and professional appearance. – Pay attention to spacing and punctuation: Ensure proper spacing between words, as well as before and after punctuation marks. Consistency in spacing and punctuation will help maintain a visually pleasing layout . – Consider font size: The size of your book title should be appropriate, neither too small nor too large. Make sure the font size stands out while still fitting within the overall design.

– Include subtitle possibilities: If your book has a subtitle, consider different formatting options to differentiate it from the main title. You can use italics, a smaller font size, or a different font style to make the subtitle stand out. – Experiment with font styles and weights: To add visual interest and emphasize certain words or phrases in your title, try using different font styles or weights. For example, you could use bold or italics to highlight key words, while keeping the rest of the title in a regular font style. – Limit the use of special characters: While some special characters may be appropriate for specific genres, it’s generally best to keep them to a minimum. Using too many special characters can make the title appear cluttered and difficult to read. Stick to simple, clear typography for optimal clarity and consistency.

By following these tips, you can ensure that your book title formatting maintains consistency and clarity, allowing potential readers to easily recognize and engage with your work. Remember, a well-formatted book title not only enhances the overall design but also conveys professionalism and attention to detail.

Q: Why is it important to format a book title correctly in writing? A: Formatting a book title correctly is important as it helps readers identify the source you are referring to, and it also shows respect for the author’s work. Correct formatting enhances the clarity and professionalism of your writing.

Q: How should I format a book title in an essay or an article? A: When writing an essay or article, you should use italics or underlining to format the title of a book. For example, “To Kill a Mockingbird” should be written as To Kill a Mockingbird.

Q: Are there any exceptions to this rule? A: Yes, there are a couple of exceptions. If you are using a typewriter or handwriting your work, you should underline the book title instead of italicizing it. Similarly, when writing an email or a text message, you can use quotation marks instead of italics or underlining. For example, “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

Q: How about shorter works like short stories or poems? A: Shorter works, such as short stories, poems, or chapters, should be put in quotation marks. For instance, “The Tell-Tale Heart” is the title of a short story by Edgar Allan Poe.

Q: What if the book title already contains quotation marks or italics? A: If the book title you’re referencing already contains quotation marks, you should use single quotation marks to set it off. In case the title is already in italics, you should leave it unaltered and not add any additional formatting.

Q: How should I format a book title when writing a bibliography or a reference page? A: In a bibliography or reference page, you should list book titles in italics or underlining, depending on your writing style guide’s specifications. Make sure to be consistent throughout your entire bibliography.

Q: Are there any additional formatting guidelines for book titles? A: Yes, there are a few additional guidelines to keep in mind. Capitalize the first letter of the first and last word in the title, as well as any important words in between. Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or), or prepositions unless they are the first word of the title.

Q: Is it necessary to format book titles correctly in every instance? A: Yes, it is best to maintain consistent and correct formatting of book titles in all instances. Whether you’re writing an academic paper, an article, or even a casual blog post , correctly formatting book titles demonstrates attention to detail and respect for the author’s work.

In conclusion, following the correct formatting rules for book titles is crucial. This step-by-step guide will help you avoid any confusion and present your writing in a professional and polished manner.

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Unlocking Book Title in Essay: Expert tips

Getting yourself into a college, plus completing assignments on time, is a double trouble. You wouldn’t wish to go through this process even if it seems so easy. This issue escalates and becomes a heavy burden when students need to write a book title in essay. Choosing a book title is often not only difficult but requires a broad knowledge of the topic, content, and its implications. 

Before you start sweating and unable to keep your cool, read this blog. Our experts, with multiple years of experience, have developed this guide for you. Today, we will be discussing the ins and outs of book titles in essays, how to make one, etc. By the time you end this blog, all of you will be pros in writing essays and their titles. Without further ado, let’s get going!

Table of Contents

What is a Book Title in Essay?

A book title is a name you give to your assignment or a write-up. It’s typically short and composed of five to eight words. In some instances, it can be lengthy, up to twenty to thirty words. Here is an example of a book title that might be considered too long for academic work still it justifies the need. J.R.R. Tolkien’s book, which later turned into a movie grossed multi-million dollar business around the world, had a lengthy name.

“Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” 

A book title can be as short as required and as lengthy as necessary to justify the needs. It’s the choice of an author to pick a title that relates to the story but also encapsulates a riddle in it. This way, you’ll be successful in creating interest for your readers.

How to Write the Title of a Book in an Essay?

Many students wonder how to write book titles in essays. It seems like the curse of Sisyphus where even after learning all the things, they reach back to square one. Here, we will discuss all the steps that will guide students in the right direction.

Write Titles in Essays After Thoroughly Studying Prompt

The first rule for writing an essay title for a book is to understand the requirements mentioned in the essay prompt. Without reading the instructions it’s impossible to write a title appropriately or the one that suits your book precisely.

Every educational institution has a different set of rules that dictates the format or style of book titles in essays. These rules include styling formats such as MLA (Modern Language Association), APA (American Psychological Association), Chicago / Turabian, AMA ( American Medical Association), CSE (Council of Scientific Editors) format, etc.

Each of these formats serves a different purpose and set of rules that differentiate them from others. Before writing a book title, it’s essential for students to know what will be the style they are required to use. Many academic disciplines prefer APA (American Psychological Association) and MLA (Modern Language Association) formats. Although these formats cater only to specific subjects, they can still be used interchangeably. Let’s look at what style suits your academic subjects:

MLA (Modern Language Association):

Modern language association or MLA in short is a paper styling guide that’s predominantly used for the subjects of arts and humanities. MLA is also used for essays related to history, performing arts such as drama, music, dance and literature, etc. Majority of disciplines follow this style for making papers, assignments and final projects. There are few similarities in MLA and APA format, still they maintain the individual identity when compared head to head.

APA (American Psychological Association):

American psychological association is a citation style used for many scientific researches. APA format is primarily used for papers related to psychology, social sciences, earth sciences such as archeology, geology, geophysics, marine biology, etc. This format is used widely across the globe. It’s also thought of as a basic standard for formatting and styling different types of papers.

There are many differences between MLA and APA especially when you go through in-text citation, bibliography and title page. These nuances are hard to detect at first by students but with a thorough understanding they can be identified rather easily.

Chicago / Turabian:

If you’re a journalism student then Chicago / Turabian style is the one you’d go for. All the newspapers, editorials and blog sections use this format regularly. This styling format is journalists favorite one and used as a standard worldwide.

Scholarly writing, biography, autobiography and all the authors use this in their write up for citing sources.

AMA (American Medical Association):

For medical science students AMA format offers appropriate citations guidelines. This format is approved for use in all medical colleges such as ACP (American College of Physicians), Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins Medical University, Perelman School of Medicine, etc.

Medical students from all disciplines completing their MD, or Fellowship in Medicine, Surgery, Cardiology must use this format style for their final project, thesis, and term papers.

CSE (Council of Scientific Editors):

CSE styling format is not widely used because of its relevance to scientific papers only. These styling guidelines offer students scholarly formats that are followed by prominent scientists and engineers. Even with a limited use, this format is still used as standard for the papers written on new technological advancements related to science and technology, etc.

Connect the Title With Essay’s Context

The second step that’s mostly overlooked is writing a title that doesn’t justify its connection or relevance with the essay. While writing an essay’s title it’s important to know that the title must justify the context of the assignment. This way, you can meet your reader’s expectations and provide them accurate information that satisfies their curiosity.

Your book title is your hook that grabs your audience’s attention and persuades them to read your essay. Without a book title, even your professor that has a moral obligation to read your assignment and pass their remarks, won’t be interested in gazing his eyes on the first paragraph.

Additionally, students can change their strategy in writing a title by first completing their essay, then starting its title. When you write the entire essay, you’ll have plenty of information on the context, research and its implications. This helps you in curating the best and suitable words for your book title that intrigues your readers and provides a sneak peek of the essay as well.

Hence, when you start writing the book title in an essay, always compose it in the end. Additionally, going through your essay allows you to search and pick a useful title that suits your assignment.

These two steps are a must for every student who wants to complete their book title for an essay writing assignment. These actions not only enhance their understanding but also sharpen their creativity and analytical skills.

General Rules to Write the Title of a Book in an Essay With Examples

There are many rules that a student must follow in order to find the best title of books in an essay. These rules start from grammar, punctuations, quotation marks and using capital and small case words and sentences. Our professionals will guide you comprehensively on these actions that you just take. So, let’s go through them one by one.

Capitalize the first letter of all nouns, verbs, and adjectives

The general rule starts with using capital letters for all proper nouns such as names of people, things, places. Secondly you will need to capitalize verbs and adjectives as well. This will enhance the readability and make your title prominent for readers. For example:

“Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”

Avoid Capitalizing Articles, Prepositions, or Coordinating Conjunctions

The second rule on how to put a book title in an essay starts with avoiding small mistakes. These errors or mistakes start with avoiding capitalizing the articles, prepositions and conjunctions. Although finding these words might be a handful for new students, here we will let you know which words need this attention. It concludes the following list:

“A, an, the, above, across, against, along, among, around, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, by, down, from, in, into, near, of, off, on, to, toward, under, upon, with and within.” 

When we talk about conjunctions they include FANBOYS such as “for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so”

When you write the title for your book essay, use the above mentioned words but in small letters. By doing this, you can make it more appealing and eye-catching. Have a look at the example below:

“The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”

Include Punctuation in the italics if it’s Part of the Title

The third rule to write a book title in an essay is adding punctuation marks in italics. Although it’s not necessary that your title will contain one, still if you use it, ensure to change its font style to italic. Here is an example of how you’ll be able to do that:

“Look ,  that’s How it’s Done ! ”

Use Quotation Marks

If the essay you’re writing is an anthology then there’s no need to italicize its title, you can use quotation marks. Since anthology consists of a collection of essays, short stories, or poems. So, it’s best practice to use quotation marks to highlight the importance or significance of a book title. For example:

“The Twilight Saga: New Moon”

The rules we mention here must be adhered to when making titles of books in essays. They are not only requirements of a college or university, but they also improve writing and professionalism of students.

MLA Style: Book Title in Essay

MLA (Modern Language Association) style is a famous formatting style for books. This style is used in a variety of books related to humanities, history, art, literature, biography, auto-biography, etc. Modern language association is widely used by students of humanities discipline and thus by far the easiest and recognizable format in the world.

Typically, book citations in MLA style doesn’t require students to add a title page because there is no need for it. A page header is more than enough to contain the information that’s needed. On the other hand, it’s solely your professor’s discretion to ask for a title page because it might be important in their opinion.

Secondly, you might be needing a title page if you are engaging in a group research project. These group research requires a book title page to demonstrate the student’s investigational work. If you’re writing an essay that requires a MLA style book title then you can make it by following these steps:

Italicize the Book Title:

The first thing students must do is to italicize the book title. If your professor has asked to use quotation marks then there’s no need to use italic style. You can either bold the title and its content when using quotation marks. For example, a book title of an essay related to any subject or discipline may look like this:

Italic Style:  The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Quotation Marks MLA Style Book Title:

“The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”

Mention your Name:

The second thing you must mention on your essay title page is the name of the author(s). The golden rule of thumb is to mention the full name of the first writer, followed by the last name of other contributing authors, etc. Here is a mock example of list of writers in an essay title:

Student name: John Wick, Charon, Winston, Tarasov, Bowery

College / University/ Institute Name:

Thirdly, you have to mention your college, university or any educational, vocational institute’s name. This might be the most important step in your book title, because your essay might be asked to be provided to an outside audience. For such instances, institute name is a must to mention. Student may follow the below example:

School/College Name: Allied School of Nursing and Patient Care

Instructor Name

Your teacher’s name might be worth mentioning if you are writing in MLA (Modern Language Association) style. The book title pape may look like this when you mention the instructor or teacher name.

Instructor / Teacher Name: Christian Grey

Submission Date:

The submission date shows the stipulated time when the paper or an essay was submitted for review. Student must mention in on their title page below other details such as paper title, instructor name, school / college details, etc. here’s an example:

Date / Submission Date: 07/17/2017

APA Style: Book Title in Essay

American Psychological Association or APA in short provides styling guides for essays or college papers related to some prominent disciplines. The subjects that use APA style book title format include psychology, social sciences, nursing, economics, business administration, biology, chemistry, archeology, computer science, etc.

Unlike MLA, APA offers simplicity in writing the page title with ease. If you have problems with book citations in APA style, follow these simple steps below:

Capitalize Every Word That’s More Than Four Words Long

The first thing on how to write a book title in an essay APA is capitalizing the first word of the sentence. Although it’s a basic rule that governs English writing, the same is followed in American Psychological Association’s format.

Additionally, students must understand that there’s no need to capitalize every word in the title, just the first word. Common and proper nouns must be capitalized in the title. The words that are joined by hyphens must also be capitalized like “Time-Consuming”, etc.

Similarly, if your essay title has colons the principle will be the same, so students must use title case when writing a book title.

Punctuations Should be in Italic

If you’re using quotations or any punctuation marks, change them in italic style.

Chicago Style: Book Title in Essay

Chicago style is a widely used styling format for papers. It’s a holy grail for journalism students and used for literary work, editorials, blog posts, investigative journalism, etc. Chicago style book titles for an essay or research paper can be written by following the example below. Our experts have carefully formulated this to help you understand the complexities of book citations in Chicago style .

Italic Quotation Form:

“ Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix ”  by  J. K. Rowling

Italic Book Title Form:

Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix  by  J. K. Rowling

Chicago Style Title with Exclamation Mark Form:

Oh ,  the Places You’ll Go !   By  Dr.Seuss

Chicago style offers the same guidelines throughout the content. Whether students want to use styling format for book or essay title or bibliography. They must use an italic font and when content is written in quotations, only the marks are changed in italics and the rest of the content remains unchanged.

This blog answers the most searched question that perplexed the students for many years. A title of an essay is the gateway to evaluate your literary comprehension and analytical skills. The more you know, the more you’ll be able to communicate better and demonstrate your capabilities.

Our experts have extracted all the information from the prominent textbooks to provide you first hand experience on this critical topic. By reading this, students can easily compose book titles in essays in a styling format as required by their professor or college. Understanding the intricacies involved in accurately styling your essay title enhances your reader’s interest and piques their curiosity.

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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / How to Cite Sources / How to Cite a Book Title in APA, MLA or Chicago

How to Cite a Book Title in APA, MLA or Chicago

When writing a book title in the text, not the references, most academic style manuals require title-style capitalization and italics. For example, they would all format the book title Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in the same way. However, each style manual follows slightly different rules for handling hyphenated terms and subtitles. For details, read the guide below.

Below are the guidelines on how to style a book title following MLA , APA , or Chicago.

• Use title-style capitalization when writing book titles in the text: capitalize the first and last words in the title and any other major words.
• Italicize book titles.
• For example, Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary styles the word “rewrite” without a hyphen. So, in the book title  Live Free: Re-write Your Story , lowercase “write” after the prefix “re.”
• Though you don’t typically capitalize articles in titles, do capitalize an article that starts a subtitle. In the above example, capitalize “The” since it starts the subtitle.
• The first word of the title
• The first word of a subtitle
• The first word after a colon, em dash, or other end punctuation in a heading
• Major words
• Any words of four letters or more
• Capitalize the second word in a compound hyphenated term in a title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince .
• For subtitles, capitalize the first word of a subtitle, even if it is a short, minor word. For example, Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart .
• The first and last words in titles and subtitles
• Prepositions, even if they are four letters or more
• to (even as part of an infinitive verb)
• Coordinating conjunctions
• For example, in the book title Live Free: Re-write Your Story , lowercase “write” after the prefix “re.”
• If the title includes a hyphenated spelled-out number or fraction, capitalize the second element (e.g., Catch Twenty-Two ).

If a book title appears in an article title, you style it the same way as described above. So for example, if the article you are citing is called: “Why Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is the best book in the Harry Potter series,” you would instead style this as: “Why Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets  is the best book in the Harry Potter series.”

For more info on formatting rules for citation styles, visit our guides listed below:

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Q. How do I refer to a book by title in-text in APA format?

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Answered By: Gabe Gossett Last Updated: Jun 22, 2023     Views: 618107

The basic format for an in-text citation is: Title of the Book (Author Last Name, year).

One author: Where the Wild Things Are (Sendak, 1963) is a depiction of a child coping with his anger towards his mom.

Two authors (cite both names every time): Brabant and Mooney (1986) have used the comic strip to examine evidence of sex role stereotyping. OR The comic strip has been used to examine evidence of sex role stereotyping (Brabant & Mooney, 1986).

Three or more authors (cite the first author plus et al.): Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy (Clare et al., 2016) depicts a young man's experience at the Shadowhunter Academy, a place where being a former vampire is looked down upon.OR Clare et al. (2016) have crafted a unique story about a young man's journey to find himself.

No author: Cite the first few words of the reference entry (usually the title) and the year. Use double quotation marks around the title of an article or chapter, and italicize the title of a periodical, book, brochure, or report. Examples: From the book Study Guide (2000) ... or ("Reading," 1999).

Note: Titles of periodicals, books, brochures, or reports should be in italics and use normal title capitalization rules.

If you are citing multiple sources by multiple authors in-text, you can list all of them by the author's last name and year of publication within the same set of parentheses, separated by semicolons.

Example: (Adams, 1999; Jones & James, 2000; Miller, 1999)

For more information on how to cite books in-text and as a reference entry, see the APA Publication Manual (7th edition) Section 10.2 on pages 321-325 .

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Comments (13)

• This was very useful for me! I was having a really hard time finding information on how to mention an article title AND the author in text in APA so this was very helpful!!! by Ryan Waddell on Jun 27, 2019
• If I just mention that I used a book to teach a topic do I have to include it in the reference list? by Franw on Oct 17, 2019
• @Franw, if it is a source that informs your paper in any way, or if your reader would have reason to look it up, then you should include a full reference list entry for the book. by Gabe [Research & Writing Studio] on Oct 18, 2019
• Maybe I'm misunderstanding the question, but I think the OP is asking how to refer to a book title, not how to cite one. I believe APA uses quotation marks around book titles and MLA uses italics. by AB on Dec 12, 2019
• @AB: The first sentence has been tweaked to clarify title of book usage, reflecting the examples given. For APA style you should use italics for book titles. It would be quotation marks. by Gabe [Research & Writing Studio] on Dec 12, 2019
• Hi, can any one help me with in-text-citation of this, how can i cite it in the text Panel, I. L. (2002). Digital transformation: A framework for ICT literacy. Educational Testing Service, 1-53. by Milad on Aug 20, 2021
• @Milad: In that case it would be (Panel, 2002). If you are quoting, or otherwise choosing to include page numbers, put a comma after the year, then p. and the page number(s). by Gabe Gossett on Aug 20, 2021
• Hey, I'm a little bit curious, what if I'm mentioning a book and paraphrasing it but still want to give credit. Would I put the information into parenthesis instead? Like: Paraphrased info. ("Title in Italics" Author, year) by Kai on Sep 14, 2023
• @Kai: Apologies for not seeing your question sooner! (Our academic year has not started yet). If I am understanding your question correctly, what I suggest is referring to the book title in the narrative of your writing, rather than in the in-text citation. I do not see an examples of using a book title in an in-text citation except for rare circumstances including citing a classic religious text or using the title when there is no author information because it is the start of your reference list entry. Basically, APA's in-text convention is supposed to make it easy for your reader to locate the source being cited in the reference list. So the first part of the in-text citation, usually authors, comes first to locate it alphabetically. Putting the book title first when you have an author name can throw that off. by Gabe Gossett on Sep 21, 2023
• Perhaps this is along the lines of the response to Kai - Can you reference a book title as a common point of social understanding to demonstrate a common concept? Is official citing required if you use widely known titles such as "Where's Waldo" and "Who Moved My Cheese?" to make a point of illustration? by Chez Renee on Sep 30, 2023
• @Chez: Aside from some classical religious texts, if it is a published book, I'd try to make sure that it is appropriately cited for APA style. That said, I think I understand where it gets tricky with things like Where's Waldo, since that is a series of books and stating "Where's Waldo" is a cultural reference many people would understand, though you can't reasonably cite the entire series. I don't believe that APA gives guidance for this particular issue. If it is being referred to in order to back up a claim, it would help to cite a particular book. If not, then it might work to use a statement such as, "Hanford's Where's Waldo series . . ." by Gabe Gossett on Oct 02, 2023
• How to cite a dissertation thesis in apa form? by Elizabeth on Feb 05, 2024
• @Elizabeth: For citing a dissertation or thesis you can check out our page answering that here https://askus.library.wwu.edu/faq/153308 by Gabe Gossett on Feb 05, 2024

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• How to Cite a Book | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

How to Cite a Book | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

Published on February 26, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on January 17, 2024.

To cite a book, you need a brief in-text citation and a corresponding reference listing the author’s name, the title, the year of publication, and the publisher. The order and format of information depends on the citation style you’re using. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago style .

Use the interactive example generator to explore the format of book citations in MLA and APA.

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Table of contents

Citing a book in mla style, citing a book in apa style, citing a book in chicago style, where to find source information in a book, frequently asked questions about citations.

An MLA book citation includes the author’s name , the book title (in italics, capitalized headline-style), the edition (if specified), the publisher, and the year of publication. If it’s an e-book , write “e-book” (or a more specific description, e.g. “Kindle ed.”) before the publisher name.

The corresponding in-text citation lists the author’s last name and the page number of the passage cited.

You can also use our free MLA Citation Generator to create your book citations.

Generate accurate MLA citations with Scribbr

Citing a book chapter in mla.

To cite a book chapter , first give the author and title (in quotation marks) of the chapter cited, then information about the book as a whole and the page range of the specific chapter.

The in-text citation lists the author of the chapter and the page number of the relevant passage.

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An APA Style book citation lists the author’s last name and initials, the year of publication, the title and any subtitle (in italics, capitalizing only the first word), the edition (if specified), and the publisher. Add a DOI or URL to the end of the entry if available (e.g. for e-books or books accessed online ).

In an in-text citation, state the author’s last name and the publication year, and a page number if you need to show the location of a specific quote or paraphrase .

You can also use our free APA Citation Generator to automatically generate your book citations. Search for a title, DOI, or ISBN to retrieve the details.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Citing a book chapter in apa.

To cite a book chapter , list information about the chapter first, followed by information about the book, including the book’s editor(s) and the chapter’s page range within the book.

The author of the chapter, not the editor of the book, is listed in the in-text citation.

Chicago notes and bibliography style uses footnotes to cite sources instead of parenthetical citations. These notes refer to a bibliography at the end giving full source details.

A Chicago bibliography entry for a book includes the author’s name, the book title and subtitle, the edition (if stated), the location and name of the publisher, and the year of publication. For an e-book , add the e-book format (e.g. “Kindle”) at the end.

Chicago also has an alternative style, Chicago author-date . You can see examples of book citations in this style here .

Citing a book chapter in Chicago

To cite a book chapter , start with the author and the title of the chapter (in quotation marks), then give the title (in italics) and editor of the book, the page range of the chapter, the location and name of the publisher, and the year of publication.

All the information you need for a book citation can usually be found on the book’s title page and copyright page. The main things you’re looking for are:

• the title (and subtitle if present)
• name(s) of the author(s)
• year of publication
• place of publication

You should also check if the book specifies an edition (e.g. 2nd edition, revised edition) and if any other contributors are named (e.g. editor, translator).

The image below shows where to find the relevant information on the title and copyright pages of a typical book.

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The main elements included in all book citations across APA , MLA , and Chicago style are the author, the title, the year of publication, and the name of the publisher. A page number is also included in in-text citations to highlight the specific passage cited.

In Chicago style and in the 6th edition of APA Style , the location of the publisher is also included, e.g. London: Penguin.

When a book’s chapters are written by different authors, you should cite the specific chapter you are referring to.

When all the chapters are written by the same author (or group of authors), you should usually cite the entire book, but some styles include exceptions to this.

• In APA Style , single-author books should always be cited as a whole, even if you only quote or paraphrase from one chapter.
• In MLA Style , if a single-author book is a collection of stand-alone works (e.g. short stories ), you should cite the individual work.
• In Chicago Style , you may choose to cite a single chapter of a single-author book if you feel it is more appropriate than citing the whole book.

Check if your university or course guidelines specify which citation style to use. If the choice is left up to you, consider which style is most commonly used in your field.

• APA Style is the most popular citation style, widely used in the social and behavioral sciences.
• MLA style is the second most popular, used mainly in the humanities.
• Chicago notes and bibliography style is also popular in the humanities, especially history.
• Chicago author-date style tends to be used in the sciences.

Other more specialized styles exist for certain fields, such as Bluebook and OSCOLA for law.

The most important thing is to choose one style and use it consistently throughout your text.

The abbreviation “ et al. ” (Latin for “and others”) is used to shorten citations of sources with multiple authors.

“Et al.” is used in APA in-text citations of sources with 3+ authors, e.g. (Smith et al., 2019). It is not used in APA reference entries .

Use “et al.” for 3+ authors in MLA in-text citations and Works Cited entries.

Use “et al.” for 4+ authors in a Chicago in-text citation , and for 10+ authors in a Chicago bibliography entry.

When you want to cite a specific passage in a source without page numbers (e.g. an e-book or website ), all the main citation styles recommend using an alternate locator in your in-text citation . You might use a heading or chapter number, e.g. (Smith, 2016, ch. 1)

In APA Style , you can count the paragraph numbers in a text to identify a location by paragraph number. MLA and Chicago recommend that you only use paragraph numbers if they’re explicitly marked in the text.

For audiovisual sources (e.g. videos ), all styles recommend using a timestamp to show a specific point in the video when relevant.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2024, January 17). How to Cite a Book | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 9, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/citing-sources/cite-a-book/

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The Colorado Sun

Telling stories that matter in a dynamic, evolving state.

Infomercials, Erik Estrada and rural workforce housing

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Good morning and happy Wednesday!

I have to say, as a child reared on Nick At Nite reruns, the last name I expected to read in a Colorado Sun story was Erik Estrada. But as reporter Tracy Ross explains below, Estrada’s post-“CHiPs” career steered him right into the middle of a busted real estate development project that could pay off for a rural Colorado workforce decades later (Ponch, as far as we know, is not involved).

Rather than keep you guessing on how exactly those dominoes fell, let’s just get right to the story — and the rest of the news from a busy day in Colorado, shall we?

Eric Lubbers

CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

Pagosa Springs has a housing crisis. Somehow, CHiPs star Erik Estrada is part of the answer.

Just before the Great Recession in 2008, a shifty real estate company called National Recreation Properties Inc., bought up lots of lots near Pagosa Springs as part of a portfolio of subdivisions it would hawk to out-of-state speculators on infomercials featuring pitchman Erik Estrada. But the bust of those properties, the fallout from a lawsuit against the developers and a fresh housing crisis have led to a unique opportunity to create workforce housing, Tracy Ross reports.

• Colorado lawmakers approve bill to require landlords to complete serious repairs faster. A basic housing standards law has been in place since 2008, but legislators and advocates have long sought improvements to the law to close loopholes that made it difficult for renters to get serious repairs done. Tatiana Flowers explains.

Video of Littleton bus aide punching nonverbal student prompts arrest, call for action

A bus aide for The Joshua School, Kiarra Jones, 29, faces two counts of crimes against at-risk children, after officers reviewed footage from a bus camera showing Jones elbowing a nonverbal boy in the stomach and hitting him in the face with her fist. Olivia Prentzel has more on the arrest and what parents are demanding.

ENVIRONMENT

Epa sets tough “forever chemicals” standard for first time and hands colorado $41 million to fix water.

“EPA’s new national drinking water standard is a big deal and a major win for communities suffering from PFAS in their drinking water.”

— Ian Coghill, an attorney with Earthjustice

For the first time, there is an enforceable national standard for the amount of PFAS “forever chemicals” that can be in drinking water. As Michael Booth reports, the standard is one the biggest goals of environmental activists in Colorado and they hope the move will require downstream improvements to water quality throughout the state.

• Colorado debating bill that would allow local governments to regulate pesticides. Industry lobbyists are fighting it. A bill in the legislature would allow cities to make their own rules on the chemicals, but applicators hammer a “patchwork” system, Michael Booth writes.
• Boulder scientists say new CO2 records were set in 2023 as warming levels keep rising. Growth of carbon emissions slowed slightly, according to recently released NOAA measurements. But emissions need to reverse to keep Earth cool enough for humans. Michael Booth reports.

Boulder County: Xcel gave inadequate notice before outages left 55,000 without power

Emergency response officials in Boulder County say they did not know where Xcel planned to cut power during last week’s intense windstorm until hours before the shutdown — and even then, they were not provided with maps or details about where the shutdown would happen. Tracy Ross breaks down the response and the ripple effects of the shutdown.

STATE LEGISLATURE

Colorado house republicans’ ill-fated effort to impeach secretary of state jena griswold fails in first vote.

Sandra Fish and Jesse Paul have the story of the resolution that was always destined to fail in the legislature, which is controlled by Democrats — while providing an opportunity for Republicans to voice support for former president Donald Trump and rile up their base heading into the November election.

Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

THE COLORADO REPORT

• Colorado could use $700 million of TABOR surplus on a new child tax credit. A proposal in the legislature would provide lower-income families an average of $2,500 per year under a state-level child tax credit with money provided by a budget surplus. — CPR News
• Larimer County man arrested for allegedly killing 7 of neighbors’ cattle. Michael Hester, 37, was arrested for allegedly shooting several livestock around his Buckhorn Road property, causing over $30,000 in losses, according to the sheriff’s office. — The Denver Post 🔑
• Avalanche forecaster rescued after being caught in slide near I-70 tunnels. A Colorado Avalanche Information Center forecaster was caught and partially buried in an avalanche Monday on the Front Range. He’s now recovering after rescuers extracted him. — Summit Daily
• Town of Elizabeth intended to fire its police chief, sued 9News trying to keep that secret. The town spent thousands of dollars suing the TV station to keep records related to its former police chief secret. The officer now works for Edgewater Police. — 9News

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

Section by Kevin Jeffers | Product Team

THE OPINION PAGE

• When GOP chair Dave Williams shuts out the press, even fair-minded Republicans have to shudder.  The only “fake” news here is that Williams, who kicked a Sun reporter out of the state assembly, acted on anything beyond his own self-interest. — Mike Littwin  

The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at [email protected] .

Old Firehouse Books suggests titles featuring miracles, essays and horror

Each week as part of SunLit — The Sun’s literature section — we feature staff recommendations from bookstores across Colorado. This week, the staff from Old Firehouse Books in Fort Collins recommends:

• “The Familiar” by Leigh Bardugo, a tale of a worker of small miracles
• “All Things Are Too Small” by Becca Rothfeld, essays in praise of excess
• “Diavola” by Jennifer Thorne, a story of vacation horror — and family

Read what the bookstore staff had to say about each. Pick up a copy and support your local bookstores at the same time.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Section by Kevin Simpson | Writer

Thanks for sticking with us to the bottom of the newsletter today! Have a good one and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.

— Eric & the whole staff of The Sun

Corrections & Clarifications

Notice something wrong? The Colorado Sun has an ethical responsibility to fix all factual errors . Request a correction by emailing [email protected] .

Type of Story: News

Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

This byline is used for articles and guides written collaboratively by The Colorado Sun reporters, editors and producers. More by The Colorado Sun