How to write your BIBLIOGRAPHY

A bibliography or reference section is necessary for any research paper. Unfortunately, there are as many ways to write a bibliography as there are names for it. Here is the standard method.

Things You’ll Need:

• Report Covers
• Research Paper Manuals
• Bonded Paper
• Word-processing Software
  

Step 1: Create a page at the end of the paper. Call it either "Bibliography" or "Works Cited."

Step 2: List, alphabetically by author's last name, all the sources used in writing the paper.

Step 3: Write the last name of the author first, followed by a comma and his or her first name, followed by a period.

Step 4: Write the name of the book in italics, followed by a period. You can also underline the book title.

Step 5: Cite the name of an article, in quotation marks, in place of a book title. Then write the name of the journal or magazine from which it came (italicize the name or underline it). Include a volume number, if applicable.

Step 6: Write the name of the city in which the work was published, followed by a colon.

Step 7: Include the name of the publisher, followed by a comma.

Step 8: Conclude the entry with the date of publication, followed by a period.

Step 9: Number your bibliography page when adding numbers to your paper.

TIPS and WARNINGS:

• Buy a good writer's handbook that gives examples of research writing for your area of study: science, social science or humanities. Each discipline has its own format for bibliographies. Ask your instructor what method of citation he or she prefers.
• Cite material from the Web by following steps 3 to 5, above. Then add the following information: any version or file number, the date that the document was posted or last revised, the complete URL and the date you accessed the document (in parentheses).