Contents of MLA Guide
This guide page will help you with your Vol State assignments that require you to use Modern Language Association (MLA) citation and format style. The resources on this page, available both online and in print in the library, provide self-help assistance for using MLA style.
This page provides you with links to online resources, print copy of MLA Handbook in the library, tips on using the Bedford Handbook, examples of formatting a MLA style paper, examples of common citation formats, and a link to NoodleTools, an online citation management tool.
MLA style: online resources
Online resources to help you learn about and use MLA style for your course assignments at Vol State.
- MLA Formatting & Style Guide (from Purdue OWL)Purdue OWL is the most trusted academic source for writing and formatting research papers and all citation styles.
- MLA Style CenterThe MLA Style Center is published by the Modern Language Association. This free resource is designed as a companion to the MLA Handbook, 9th edition.
MLA Handbook
The MLA Handbook is the "official" guide to the MLA style. It is available in print format at all Vol State libraries.
MLA Handbook by Call Number: LB2369 .M52 2021ISBN: 9781603293518Publication Date: 2021-04-06Relied on by generations of writers, the MLA Handbookis published by the Modern Language Association and is the only official, authorized book on MLA style.
MLA style: examples of papers
- MLA Style Sample Paper (from Purdue OWL)Example of a paper with MLA Style formatting
- MLA General Format (from Purdue OWL)General guidelines for formatting citations and paper using MLA Style
MLA style with NoodleTools
Select MLA Style for your project in NoodleTools for a properly formatted Works Cited page and in-text citations. Annotations and an annotated bibliography can be created with NoodleTools.
NoodleTools only provides help with citations, not the paper itself.
- NoodleTools (login)
Web-based citation management tool for MLA, APA, and Chicago styles. Register to create an account; it is free for Vol State students.
Use the NoodleTools Research Guide for easy to follow instructions. Go to libguides.volstate.edu/noodletools
MLA style: citation format examples
In this section are commonly used source types showing the correct format with an example(s) of a source. This is a quick guide to help you create your own citations. Please note: The first line of each entry should align with the left margin. All subsequent lines should be indented 5 spaces or set a hanging indent at 1/2 inch.
Books
Format: Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date.
Example: Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. Penguin, 1987.
Magazines
Format: Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Magazine, Day Month Year, pages.
Example: Buchman, Dana. "A Special Education." Good Housekeeping, Mar. 2006, pp. 143-48.
Newspapers
Format: Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Periodical, Day Month Year, pages.
Example: Brubaker, Bill. "New Health Center Targets County's Uninsured Patients." Washington Post, 24 May 2007, p. LZ01.
Academic Journals
Format: Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Journal, vol., no., Day Month Year, pages. Database, URL or DOI.
Examples:
McKinney, Lyle and Andrea Backsheider Burridge. "Helping or Hindering? The Effects of Loans on Community College Student Persistence." Research in Higher Education, vol. 56, no. 4, Jun 2015, pp. 299-324. ProQuest Research Library, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11162-014-9349-4.
Nickel, Eleanor Hersey. "'But This is the South': Ambivalent Regionalism in Jan Karon's Mitford Novels." Studies in Popular Culture, Spring 2010, vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 17-333. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/23416153.