How to Properly Cite Sources

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》 How to Properly Cite Sources 《

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by prophetiesdemerlin

#info

Many may not know this, but when we write an article on Amino, it doesn't just show up to of any given particular community...

In more cases than not, these articles are searchable around the globe under countless search engines such as Google, Bing, etc.. by millions of people who may have never even heard of Amino. Furthermore, they don’t even have to Amino to read them.

This is one of many reasons why sourcing informational posts matters.

If one is writing anything meant to be taken seriously, they must be able to back up their claims with solid references that show the reader they did their due diligence.

That said, not all sources are equal, and how we cite them depends on where we’re getting our information from and who we are writing for.

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》 Why Sourcing Matters   《

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Sourcing is important because it shows where information comes from and lets people check it out for themselves.

If we don’t give credit, we’re just asking people to take our word for it, and that’s not quite how knowledge and the sharing of reliable information works.

The internet is full of misinformation, and even well meaning people can spread things that aren’t true. A good source doesn’t just back up what we’re saying, it gives people the chance to go deeper, learn more, and make up their own minds.

In certain cases, ones source may be incorrect or outdated information and by properly sourcing, it can help us make sure that such is more well known and or documented.

Whether we’re writing something casual or something serious, always citing our sources keeps the conversation honest and creates a traceable line of access to the information presented.

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》 How to Properly Source   《

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Below are three common types of sources and how to cite them properly in different contexts.

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》 Books 《

For a scholarly approach, such as college or beyond and or for serious research, you will want to follow this format…

Example:

↱                     ↰

Author Last Name, First Name. Book Title. Publisher, Year.

Hugo, Victor. Les Miserables. 1862.

↳                     ↲

For a more casual approach such as in an online community, one can simply write the book’s title and the authors name with date published at the bottom of the post.

Casual Example:

↱                     ↰

Source

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, 1862.

↳                     ↲

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》 Websites 《

For academic citations, a proper sourced website would be laid out as follows…

Example:

↱                     ↰

Author Last Name, First Name (if available). “Title of Web Page.” Website Name, Publisher (if different), Date Published, URL.

↳                     ↲

For casual sources, you can simply just drop a link to the website at the bottom of your post. Including the author’s name is a plus but not necessarily a requirement.

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》 Videos 《

(YouTube or similar platforms)

For formal citations of video links one would use the following format…

Example:

↱                     ↰

Creator Last Name, First Name (or Channel Name). “Title of Video.” Platform Name, Date Published, URL.

↳                     ↲

For casual video link sources, one may simply just name the channel and link; or just the link to the video would also be acceptable.

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》 A Quick Note on Plagiarism   《

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All too often, here on Amino, I see people copying and pasting pieces of articles into a post and then just dropping a link at the bottom.

But that’s not proper sourcing - it’s plagiarism. In certain cases, such as plagiarizing copywritten work - it can be illegal.

Anytime we are using someone else’s exact words, we need to put them in quotation marks and credit the author after the final quotation mark.

Example:

↱                     ↰

“To have loved is the greatest pearl to be found in life.” – Victor Hugo

↳                     ↲

Proper sourcing means writing the information in your own words and then citing where the information came from.

It’s perfectly okay to include a quote, but it needs to be in quotation marks with the author’s name.

A post should never just be an amalgamation of copied text unless it’s clearly labeled as a collection of quotes.

There’s a big difference between sourcing and just copying and pasting - one gives proper and clear credit, the other could potentially mislead the reader into thinking that the words are those of the posts author.

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》 In Closing    《

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The key to any well written information is clarity. Formal citations are for academic or well-researched work when a writer wants to be taken seriously and provide easily accessible cross references.

For blogs on Amino or casual references, simply including a link or links to where we got our info is perfectly acceptable and any attempt to source, regardless of format - is better than none.

I hope you’ve found this post useful and if you enjoyed please hit the like button - this small gesture from our readers goes a long way for the community and its overall activity!

Thanks for reading!

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》 Bonus Video 《

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For advanced APA Guidelines on “in text sourcing”, check out this short YouTube video presented by writing specialist Dr. Peter Mosely for the Gibson D Lewis Health Science YouTube Channel.

Note: This Is Mostly For Advanced Scientific Papers and Scholarly Articles Only.

Click Here To Watch Now!

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》 Sources    《

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Purdue Online Writing Lab. “MLA Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Web Publications).” Purdue University, https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_electronic_sources.html.

“How do I cite a YouTube or online video?” Berkeley College Library, https://chat.library.berkeleycollege.edu/faq/166951.

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