Skip to Main Content
SSU ship logo and 'Salem State University' text

MLA Citation Guide (8th Edition): Books, Ebooks, & Pamphlets

Note on Formatting

Note: For your Works Cited list, all citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Book in Print with One Author

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any. Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. 

Works Cited List Example  

 Kirsh, Steven J. Children, Adolescents, and Media Violence: A Critical Look at the Research. 2nd ed., Sage, 2006. 

In-Text Citation Example

 (Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (Kirsh 70)

Book in Print with Two Authors

Last Name, First Name of First Author, and First Name Last Name of Second Author. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. 

  Note:Only the first author listed appears in "Last Name, First Name" format. Authors' names are separated by a comma. Before the last author to be listed, add the word "and."

Works Cited List Example  

  Wykes, Maggie, and Barrie Gunter. The Media and Body Image: If Looks Could Kill. Sage, 2005. 

In-Text Citation Example

  (Author's Last Name and Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (Wykes and Gunter 53)

Book in Print with Three or More Authors

Last Name, First Name of First Author, et al. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. 

  Note: If you have three or more authors list only the first author's name followed by et al. instead of listing all authors names. For example Smith, John, et al. The first author is the first name listed on the work you are citing, not the first name alphabetically.

Works Cited List Example  

  Nickels, William, et al. Understanding Canadian Business. 9th ed., McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2016. 

In-Text Citation Example

(First Author's Last Name et al. Page Number)

Example: (Nickels et al. 5)

Book With a Group or Corporate Author

Name of Corporate Author. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of Publication.

 Note: When a work is published by an organization that is also its author, begin the entry with the title, skipping the author element, and list the organization only as publisher.

Works Cited List Example  

  Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation. Employability Skills: Creating My Future, Nelson, 1996. 

In-Text Citation Example  

  (Name of Corporate Author Page Number)

  Example: (Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation 14)

eBook From a Library Database with One Author

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any. Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. Name of Library Database, Permalink URL.

Works Cited List Example

  McClean, Shilo T. Digital Storytelling: The Narrative Power of Visual Effects in Film. MIT Press, 2007. eBook Comprehensive Academic Collection (EBSCOhost), unr.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e025xna&AN=446856&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_Cover.

In-Text Citation Example

 (Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (McClean 132)

eBook From a Library Database with Two Authors

Last Name of First Author, First Name, and First Name Last Name of Second Author. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. Name of Library Database, Permalink URL.

  Note: Only the first author listed appears in "Last Name, First Name" format. Authors' names are separated by a comma. Before the last author to be listed, add the word "and."

Works Cited List Example  

  Boss, Stephen, and Jason Cranford Teague. The New Web Typography: Create a Visual Hierarchy with Responsive Web Design, CRC Press, 2016. Ebook Central, ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/knowledgecenter/detail.action?docID=4689429.

In-Text Citation Example

  (Author's Last Name and Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (Boss and Teague 22)

eBook From a Library Database with Three or More Authors

Last Name of First Author, First Name, and First Name Last Name of Second Author. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication. Name of Library Database. 

  Note: If you have three or more authors you may choose to list only the first author's name followed by et al. instead of listing all authors names. For example Smith, John, et al. The first author is the first name listed on the work you are citing, not the first name alphabetically.

Works Cited List Example  

  Ziarek, Ewa Plonowska, et al. A Time for the Humanities: Futurity and the Limits of Autonomy, Fordham UP, 2008. eBook Comprehensive Academic Collection (EBSCOhost), unr.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e025xna&AN=1045294&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_Cover.

In-Text Citation Example

(First Author's Last Name et al. Page Number)

Example: (Ziarek et al. 75)

eBook From a Website

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any. Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication, Website Name, URL. Accessed Access Date.

Works Cited List Example

  Henty, George Alfred. The Cat of Bubastes: A Tale of Ancient Egypt. Blackie and Son, 1889. HathiTrust Digital Library, babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015073478847. Accessed 6 July 2016.

In-Text Citation Example

 (Author's Last Name Page Number)

 Example: (Henty 132)

Pamphlet with a Group or Corporate Author

Name of Corporate Author. Title of Pamphlet: Subtitle if Any. Publisher Name, Year of Publication. Pamphlet.

 Note: When a work is published by an organization that is also its author, begin the entry with the title, skipping the author element, and list the organization only as publisher.

Works Cited List Example 

 Bait and Switch Selling. Competition Bureau of Canada, 2014. Pamphlet.

In-Text Citation Example

 (Title)

 Example: (Bait and Switch Selling)

Short Story, Essay, or Article From a Book (Anthology or Collection)

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Short Story, Essay, or Article." Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, edited by Editor's First Name and Last Name, Edition if given and is not first, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication, Page numbers of the essay, article, or short story. 

Works Cited List Example  

  Ross, Colin. "The Story of Grey Owl." Fiction/Non-Fiction: A Reader and Rhetoric, edited by Garry Engkent and Lucia Engkent, 2nd ed., Thomson Nelson, 2006, pp. 327-333. 

  Note: The first author's name listed is the author of the chapter/essay/short story.

  Note: If there is no editor given you may leave out that part of the citation.

In-Text Citation Example  

  (Author's Last Name Page Number)

  Example: (Ross 332 )