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The Beginner's Guide to Writing an Essay | Steps & Examples

An academic essay is a focused piece of writing that develops an idea or argument using evidence, analysis, and interpretation.

There are many types of essays you might write as a student. The content and length of an essay depends on your level, subject of study, and course requirements. However, most essays at university level are argumentative — they aim to persuade the reader of a particular position or perspective on a topic.

The essay writing process consists of three main stages:

  • Preparation: Decide on your topic, do your research, and create an essay outline.
  • Writing : Set out your argument in the introduction, develop it with evidence in the main body, and wrap it up with a conclusion.
  • Revision:  Check your essay on the content, organization, grammar, spelling, and formatting of your essay.

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Table of contents

Essay writing process, preparation for writing an essay, writing the introduction, writing the main body, writing the conclusion, essay checklist, lecture slides, frequently asked questions about writing an essay.

The writing process of preparation, writing, and revisions applies to every essay or paper, but the time and effort spent on each stage depends on the type of essay .

For example, if you’ve been assigned a five-paragraph expository essay for a high school class, you’ll probably spend the most time on the writing stage; for a college-level argumentative essay , on the other hand, you’ll need to spend more time researching your topic and developing an original argument before you start writing.

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Before you start writing, you should make sure you have a clear idea of what you want to say and how you’re going to say it. There are a few key steps you can follow to make sure you’re prepared:

  • Understand your assignment: What is the goal of this essay? What is the length and deadline of the assignment? Is there anything you need to clarify with your teacher or professor?
  • Define a topic: If you’re allowed to choose your own topic , try to pick something that you already know a bit about and that will hold your interest.
  • Do your research: Read  primary and secondary sources and take notes to help you work out your position and angle on the topic. You’ll use these as evidence for your points.
  • Come up with a thesis:  The thesis is the central point or argument that you want to make. A clear thesis is essential for a focused essay—you should keep referring back to it as you write.
  • Create an outline: Map out the rough structure of your essay in an outline . This makes it easier to start writing and keeps you on track as you go.

Once you’ve got a clear idea of what you want to discuss, in what order, and what evidence you’ll use, you’re ready to start writing.

The introduction sets the tone for your essay. It should grab the reader’s interest and inform them of what to expect. The introduction generally comprises 10–20% of the text.

1. Hook your reader

The first sentence of the introduction should pique your reader’s interest and curiosity. This sentence is sometimes called the hook. It might be an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a bold statement emphasizing the relevance of the topic.

Let’s say we’re writing an essay about the development of Braille (the raised-dot reading and writing system used by visually impaired people). Our hook can make a strong statement about the topic:

The invention of Braille was a major turning point in the history of disability.

2. Provide background on your topic

Next, it’s important to give context that will help your reader understand your argument. This might involve providing background information, giving an overview of important academic work or debates on the topic, and explaining difficult terms. Don’t provide too much detail in the introduction—you can elaborate in the body of your essay.

3. Present the thesis statement

Next, you should formulate your thesis statement— the central argument you’re going to make. The thesis statement provides focus and signals your position on the topic. It is usually one or two sentences long. The thesis statement for our essay on Braille could look like this:

As the first writing system designed for blind people’s needs, Braille was a groundbreaking new accessibility tool. It not only provided practical benefits, but also helped change the cultural status of blindness.

4. Map the structure

In longer essays, you can end the introduction by briefly describing what will be covered in each part of the essay. This guides the reader through your structure and gives a preview of how your argument will develop.

The invention of Braille marked a major turning point in the history of disability. The writing system of raised dots used by blind and visually impaired people was developed by Louis Braille in nineteenth-century France. In a society that did not value disabled people in general, blindness was particularly stigmatized, and lack of access to reading and writing was a significant barrier to social participation. The idea of tactile reading was not entirely new, but existing methods based on sighted systems were difficult to learn and use. As the first writing system designed for blind people’s needs, Braille was a groundbreaking new accessibility tool. It not only provided practical benefits, but also helped change the cultural status of blindness. This essay begins by discussing the situation of blind people in nineteenth-century Europe. It then describes the invention of Braille and the gradual process of its acceptance within blind education. Subsequently, it explores the wide-ranging effects of this invention on blind people’s social and cultural lives.

Write your essay introduction

The body of your essay is where you make arguments supporting your thesis, provide evidence, and develop your ideas. Its purpose is to present, interpret, and analyze the information and sources you have gathered to support your argument.

Length of the body text

The length of the body depends on the type of essay. On average, the body comprises 60–80% of your essay. For a high school essay, this could be just three paragraphs, but for a graduate school essay of 6,000 words, the body could take up 8–10 pages.

Paragraph structure

To give your essay a clear structure , it is important to organize it into paragraphs . Each paragraph should be centered around one main point or idea.

That idea is introduced in a  topic sentence . The topic sentence should generally lead on from the previous paragraph and introduce the point to be made in this paragraph. Transition words can be used to create clear connections between sentences.

After the topic sentence, present evidence such as data, examples, or quotes from relevant sources. Be sure to interpret and explain the evidence, and show how it helps develop your overall argument.

Lack of access to reading and writing put blind people at a serious disadvantage in nineteenth-century society. Text was one of the primary methods through which people engaged with culture, communicated with others, and accessed information; without a well-developed reading system that did not rely on sight, blind people were excluded from social participation (Weygand, 2009). While disabled people in general suffered from discrimination, blindness was widely viewed as the worst disability, and it was commonly believed that blind people were incapable of pursuing a profession or improving themselves through culture (Weygand, 2009). This demonstrates the importance of reading and writing to social status at the time: without access to text, it was considered impossible to fully participate in society. Blind people were excluded from the sighted world, but also entirely dependent on sighted people for information and education.

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The conclusion is the final paragraph of an essay. It should generally take up no more than 10–15% of the text . A strong essay conclusion :

  • Returns to your thesis
  • Ties together your main points
  • Shows why your argument matters

A great conclusion should finish with a memorable or impactful sentence that leaves the reader with a strong final impression.

What not to include in a conclusion

To make your essay’s conclusion as strong as possible, there are a few things you should avoid. The most common mistakes are:

  • Including new arguments or evidence
  • Undermining your arguments (e.g. “This is just one approach of many”)
  • Using concluding phrases like “To sum up…” or “In conclusion…”

Braille paved the way for dramatic cultural changes in the way blind people were treated and the opportunities available to them. Louis Braille’s innovation was to reimagine existing reading systems from a blind perspective, and the success of this invention required sighted teachers to adapt to their students’ reality instead of the other way around. In this sense, Braille helped drive broader social changes in the status of blindness. New accessibility tools provide practical advantages to those who need them, but they can also change the perspectives and attitudes of those who do not.

Write your essay conclusion

Checklist: Essay

My essay follows the requirements of the assignment (topic and length ).

My introduction sparks the reader’s interest and provides any necessary background information on the topic.

My introduction contains a thesis statement that states the focus and position of the essay.

I use paragraphs to structure the essay.

I use topic sentences to introduce each paragraph.

Each paragraph has a single focus and a clear connection to the thesis statement.

I make clear transitions between paragraphs and ideas.

My conclusion doesn’t just repeat my points, but draws connections between arguments.

I don’t introduce new arguments or evidence in the conclusion.

I have given an in-text citation for every quote or piece of information I got from another source.

I have included a reference page at the end of my essay, listing full details of all my sources.

My citations and references are correctly formatted according to the required citation style .

My essay has an interesting and informative title.

I have followed all formatting guidelines (e.g. font, page numbers, line spacing).

Your essay meets all the most important requirements. Our editors can give it a final check to help you submit with confidence.

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An essay is a focused piece of writing that explains, argues, describes, or narrates.

In high school, you may have to write many different types of essays to develop your writing skills.

Academic essays at college level are usually argumentative : you develop a clear thesis about your topic and make a case for your position using evidence, analysis and interpretation.

The structure of an essay is divided into an introduction that presents your topic and thesis statement , a body containing your in-depth analysis and arguments, and a conclusion wrapping up your ideas.

The structure of the body is flexible, but you should always spend some time thinking about how you can organize your essay to best serve your ideas.

Your essay introduction should include three main things, in this order:

  • An opening hook to catch the reader’s attention.
  • Relevant background information that the reader needs to know.
  • A thesis statement that presents your main point or argument.

The length of each part depends on the length and complexity of your essay .

A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . Everything else you write should relate to this key idea.

The thesis statement is essential in any academic essay or research paper for two main reasons:

  • It gives your writing direction and focus.
  • It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.

Without a clear thesis statement, an essay can end up rambling and unfocused, leaving your reader unsure of exactly what you want to say.

A topic sentence is a sentence that expresses the main point of a paragraph . Everything else in the paragraph should relate to the topic sentence.

At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays , research papers , and other academic texts (except exams and in-class exercises).

Add a citation whenever you quote , paraphrase , or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text.

The exact format of your citations depends on which citation style you are instructed to use. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago .

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Gather material through writing and experimenting with journaling, researching and taking notes to develop into poems or prose works.

Creative Nonfiction , Fiction , Memoir , Personal Essay , Poetry , Short Story

A_Wilde_time Wiki Commons

The Lyric Essay: Invitation to Play

With elizabeth winder.

Create dynamic, genre-bending works of musical prose in this playful and exploratory lyric essay workshop. 

lyric essay course invitation to play

The Magic of Flash Nonfiction

With tamara dean.

Tell your stories quickly and stylishly in this short form creative nonfiction workshop, where you'll come away honing the magic of flash nonfiction.

the magic of flash nonfiction

The Soundtrack of Your Life: Writing About Music, Memories and Mix Tapes

In a song inspired class, write several essays about the music that has moved you through life: the emotions, the relationships, the events, the outcomes.

writing essays course

The Surprising Sentence: Honing Your Prose Style

With jessie roy.

Great sentences stack up into great stories. Learn how to hone your style and voice at the most basic unit of writing, the sentence, in this workshop.

the surprising sentence writing course

Where the Diary Ends and the Essay Begins

Start a diary practice and turn it into a mode of writing personal essays in this generative journaling workshop. 

From diary to essay writing course

Word Flashes & Eye Snapshots: Sketching Your Life Awake

For any writer wanting to root writing in vision and vision in the body: for poetry, fiction, essay, memoir & pleasure.

writing essays course

Write from the Untamed Mind: Find Your Voice

With susan vespoli.

Join Susan in two writing circles each week: intimate spaces for writers to free-write together, saying yes to whatever shows up, followed by group read-arounds. These writing sessions are spontaneous, intimate, freeing, and transformative.

Write from the Untamed Mind writing course

Writing About Family

Family is complicated, and so is writing about it. Navigate the complexities of writing about real relationships in this generative essay class.

Writing about Family

Writing Autobiographical Fiction

With jack smith.

Learn to depart from "what really happened," and write compelling fiction from your own life experiences.

writing autobiographical fiction

Writing Chronic Illness

Creative nonfiction offers a container for the sharing and exploration of illness. Tell the story of your body in this healing-oriented workshop.

Writing chronic illness

Writing Circle Workshop: Writing for Happiness, Healing, and Health (Monday/Friday)

Expressive writing can be a powerful elixir for what ails you. Learn and practice tools for writing expressively, including two virtual writing circles each week, turn raw writing into poetry or prose, and come away with a better understanding of how writing can lead toward wellness.

Creative Nonfiction , Fiction , Lifestyle and Wellness , Memoir , Personal Essay , Poetry , Short Story

writing for happiness healing and health

Writing Circle Workshop: Writing for Happiness, Healing, and Health (Tuesday/Saturday)

Writing place in creative nonfiction.

In Creative Nonfiction, place is a character in itself. Deeply explore a narrative and a place of your choosing, and make weekly progress on your essay or memoir.

writing place in creative nonfiction

Writing the (Modern) Love Essay

With paz pardo.

How do you distill the complexity of (modern) love into language? Learn how in this workshop, where you'll transform your lived experience of romance into an essay. 

writing essays course

Writing the Memoir-in-Essays

Learn how to tell your story through the memoir-in-essays, a form that allows writers to interweave the facts of their lives in interesting and evocative ways.

Writing the Memoir-in-Essays

Writing with Consistency and Courage

What makes a successful writer? It's not talent, craft, or even the right connections—it's consistency and courage.

writing with consistency and courage

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Essay and report writing skills

Essay and report writing skills

Course description

Course content, course reviews.

Writing reports and assignments can be a daunting prospect. Learn how to interpret questions and how to plan, structure and write your assignment or report. This free course, Essay and report writing skills, is designed to help you develop the skills you need to write effectively for academic purposes.

Course learning outcomes

After studying this course, you should be able to:

  • understand what writing an assignment involves
  • identify strengths and weaknesses
  • understand the functions of essays and reports
  • demonstrate writing skills.

First Published: 10/08/2012

Updated: 26/04/2019

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Writing the Essay

  • International Writing Workshops
  • Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
  • Tandon School of Engineering
  • Tisch School of the Arts
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In Writing the Essay, you are invited to work together with students from CAS, Steinhardt, Meyers, and Silver whose interests span the curriculum—and one hundred different majors—to develop meaningful, original writing. This class is designed so that students of all backgrounds and abilities share ideas as equals and develop together as colleagues. Our faculty are essayists, poets, novelists, academic writers, social scientists, and playwrights. We are all writers who share the conviction that writing is a crucial tool for unlocking and creating knowledge within the university and for making change in the wider world. The diverse interests that we bring to our conversations as teachers of writing mirror the multiperspectival conversations that you will have with other students in our classrooms, where budding writers consider the published work of accomplished authors alongside the developing drafts of their classmates.

Writing the Essay offers you the reading, writing, and thinking practices essential for rigorous engagement in your courses across New York University and challenges you to develop a sense of yourself as a writer who addresses the urgent questions of our times. Writing the Essay may be your first encounter with the essay as an academic and creative form that embraces inquiry and acts as a path to knowledge, rather than a statement of opinion or position: instead of justifying assumptions, essay writing unwinds them. Here you can begin to explore evidence through open-minded questions and come to develop ideas through analysis. You will be introduced to the concept that writing begins with inquiry and persists through an ever-evolving exchange of ideas. Writing is a process of vision and revision: you will revisit and revise your own writing as you come to know your sources, audiences, and discourse communities with increasing expertise.

Over the course of a semester, you will come to understand the many ways that you may engage with texts and evidence and become confident in your choices. You will begin to transcend static, binary positions and instead build nuanced interpretations and conversations that allow simultaneous admiration and skepticism. Learning multiple modes of analysis leads not only to more dynamic and accurate treatments of evidence, but to a habit of thinking more deeply and intricately. You will come to employ these habits of thought as you create complex ideas through the essay, and you’ll learn that your ideas can be meaningful, innovative, and difference-making. As your ideas accumulate and mature, you will mold your own voice and identity as a writer. Sharing your work and views with the classroom community, you will practice the social process of writing. Through this shared work, you will begin to find your path among a community of emerging scholars.

Silver Center

Writing the Essay pushed me to further explore and effectively communicate my ideas through my writing. It is a great foundational course that I encourage students to use as an opportunity to engage their creativity as they develop and refine their technical skills. - Kendall Ross, Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, 2021

Although I never looked forward to essay classes in college, WTE has given me analysis and representation skills that I can apply throughout the rest of my college career. The in-class discussions were always engaging, and I looked forward to every meeting session. - Eric Yao

To this day, I regard Writing the Essay as one of the most important classes I’ve taken in NYU. It was there for the first time I learned that words matter. This is a lesson I’ve taken with me to every internship, course or personal life experience I’ve had since then. - Adriana Sofia Monzon, CAS, 2021

Out of all the classes I’ve taken at NYU, Writing the Essay has made the most lasting impression on me. It gave me confidence in my own ideas and reignited my sense of intellectual curiosity. This course didn’t just teach me how to write, it also taught me how to think. - Emily Yan, Stern School of Business, 2021

WTE was my most transformative NYU experience. Instead of being constrained by writing structures taught in highschool, WTE was where I first learned to trust in and express my own voice, and has given me the ability creatively, academically, and professionally communicate my voice in a cogent manner. - Iris Wu Zimmer, CAS 2021

Learning Outcomes, Skills, and Techniques

When a student attends a section of Writing the Essay at Washington Square, they can expect to

Read thoughtfully and attentively with the purposes of questioning, understanding, and responding as a writer in an ongoing discourse

Pose and explore complex intellectual problems

Select, integrate, and analyze sources that illuminate complex problems

Use research tools, such as library and public databases, to independently locate useful, appropriate, and interesting topics and sources 

Ethically represent sources, including the work of other writers and creators, in order to engage with them fairly and thoughtfully 

Practice analytical techniques that carry across a variety of source types and disciplines

Build clear and complex arguments through the analysis and synthesis of multiple sources

Create original ideas through argumentation and analysis

Learn rhetorical practices to attend to genre, audience, discipline, and convention

Write clear complex essays that develop through inductive reasoning

Revise written work deeply to improve higher order concerns, like structure and argument

Understand writing as a process that happens over time, through feedback and revision, and within a community

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55 Best Essay Creative Writing Classes in 2024

Showing 55 courses that match your search.

8-week Personal Essay & Memoir II/III (intermediate & advanced)

Sackett Street Writers

Through group discussion of student work, plus that of published authors, writers in this workshop will examine the art and craft of creative nonfiction. The focus will be on learning to understand and use a full range of literary techniques in order to tell a truly compelling nonfiction story.

Website: https://sackettworkshop.com/writing/2023/12/30/8-week-per...

Categories: Essay

Start date:

March, 2024

Prerequisites: No prerequisites

Introduction to Personal Essay 6-Week Online Workshop with Diana Spechler

Austin Writing Workshops

This workshop, led by Diana Spechler, explores the art of personal essay writing. You'll receive weekly prompts, read great essays, and engage in discussions. The course, designed for writers of any level, focuses on navigating personal narratives' challenges and ends with at least one polished essay. It's asynchronous, allowing flexibility for participants from different time zones​​.

Website: https://writingworkshops.com/products/8-week-online-intro...

Online Advanced Essays and the Persona Narrator (Ford)

The Writers Studio

In this eight-week class, we will look at published works by notable essayists to see how their use of persona narrator and other elements of craft help them both to live into their material and to welcome the reader.

Website: https://courses.writerstudio.com/courses/online-advanced-...

writing essays course

How to Write a Novel

Your story matters. Unlock your potential with daily video lessons from bestselling ghostwriter Tom Bromley, and finish your first draft in just 3 months. Learn more →

Introduction to Writing Speculative Nonfiction Essays

Clarion West

As writers and readers we all bring something different to the page and have our own lens with which we view not only the world, but the media we consume. Learn how to leverage your unique perspective and expertise into a well crafted essay on your favorite media.

Website: https://clarion-west-online.teachable.com/p/gilmore-specu...

Open all year round

Blog and Text Writing for Scientists and Scientific Entrepreneurs

Scientists and scientific entrepreneurs need to inform the public about their work. They are also now aware of the need to do so in the online content world. This course focuses specifically on blog writing. We touch briefly however on how one enters into this type of work.

Website: https://www.skillshare.com/en/classes/Blog-and-Text-Writi...

A Comprehensive Guide To Writing a First Class Scientific Essay

This class is designed to guide beginner writers on how to write a high-quality literature review and research article for STEM subjects. The class is designed to give students a clearer idea of the best practices in scientific writing.

Website: https://www.skillshare.com/en/classes/A-Comprehensive-Gui...

Using the Tools of Fiction in Nonfiction

The Writer's Center

Whether you are crafting an essay or writing a memoir, the tools of fiction can bring depth and suspense to your work. This class will cover four tools of fiction. We will examine contemporary examples of each tool used in nonfiction, and then we will practice them with generative exercises.

Website: https://writer.org/event/using-the-tools-of-fiction-in-no...

April, 2024

Writing Motherhood

This workshop is for writers who have become mothers (self-defined), or mothers who need to write. In this six-week class, we will read and discuss texts on the topic of motherhood from a diversity of perspectives, and explore and interrogate our own relationship with motherhood through our writing.

Website: https://grubstreet.org/findaclass/class/writing-motherhoo...

6 Weeks, 3 Essays

When it comes to writing about our lives and the wider world, it can be difficult to know where to begin. This course is for writers who are ready to produce new essays, but need the inspiration and accountability to get started.

Website: https://grubstreet.org/findaclass/class/6-weeks-3-essays-9/

Prerequisites: For writers age 13 - 18 ONLY.

The Braided Essay (seminar)

Lilly Dancyger

For essays that tell more than a single story or incorporate research, reporting, or criticism, writers can turn to the braided essay format. An expansive and complex form, the braided essay can accommodate these additional elements, but it also takes skill to pull off with cohesion. This 4-week seminar by Lilly Dancyger will help guide you through the entire process, from idea to drafting to weaving strands together.

Website: https://www.lillydancyger.com/the-braided-essay

The Personal/Critical Essay: Writing About Art and The Self

Tin House (with Lilly Dancyger)

This one-day craft intensive class (led by Lilly Dancyger) will study and discuss examples of personal/critical essays, in other words essays which examine art as a way to express personal feelings, thoughts, or experiences. The class will help you generate new writing that sits between art criticism and memoir.

Website: https://tinhouse.com/product/winter-craft-intensive-lilly...

January, 2024

Intro to the Personal Essay

If you want to learn the art of writing personal essays, but have no idea where to begin (or you need a refresher), this course is for you. Over six weeks, you will learn the essentials of the personal essay and put them into practice by writing your own drafts.

Website: https://grubstreet.org/findaclass/class/intro-to-the-pers...

How to choose an essay writing class

Looking to build your writing skillset, learn more about your genre, or finally finish that essay you’ve been working on? You’re in the right place. That’s why we built this directory of the best writing courses.

However, creative writing classes aren’t one size fit all. If you’re planning to join an essay writing class in particular, you’ll want to make sure that it matches what you’re seeking to learn about essay writing.

So make sure to consider the following questions when you’re researching essay writing courses:

  • Who is the instructor? How many years of experience do they have in essay writing?
  • Is there something in particular you’d like to learn about essay writing? Does this course include it?
  • How long is the course, and where is it taught?
  • How much does the essay writing course cost? Does it fit into your budget?

More essay writing resources

Whether you’re a new or established author, there are always evergreen resources out there to how to get a headstart on essay writing. 

Free online materials

  • How to Write a Novel (blog post)
  • How to Edit a Book (blog post)

Recommended books

  • For writers in the UK:  Writers' & Artists' Yearbook  
  • For writers in the US:  Writer’s Market 2020

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

MLA Formatting and Style Guide

OWL logo

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook (9 th ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page.

The following overview should help you better understand how to cite sources using MLA  9 th edition, including how to format the Works Cited page and in-text citations.

Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in MLA. See also our MLA vidcast series on the Purdue OWL YouTube Channel .

Creating a Works Cited list using the ninth edition

MLA is a style of documentation that may be applied to many different types of writing. Since texts have become increasingly digital, and the same document may often be found in several different sources, following a set of rigid rules no longer suffices.

Thus, the current system is based on a few guiding principles, rather than an extensive list of specific rules. While the handbook still describes how to cite sources, it is organized according to the process of documentation, rather than by the sources themselves. This gives writers a flexible method that is near-universally applicable.

Once you are familiar with the method, you can use it to document any type of source, for any type of paper, in any field.

Here is an overview of the process:

When deciding how to cite your source, start by consulting the list of core elements. These are the general pieces of information that MLA suggests including in each Works Cited entry. In your citation, the elements should be listed in the following order:

  • Title of source.
  • Title of container,
  • Other contributors,
  • Publication date,

Each element should be followed by the corresponding punctuation mark shown above. Earlier editions of the handbook included the place of publication and required different punctuation (such as journal editions in parentheses and colons after issue numbers) depending on the type of source. In the current version, punctuation is simpler (only commas and periods separate the elements), and information about the source is kept to the basics.

Begin the entry with the author’s last name, followed by a comma and the rest of the name, as presented in the work. End this element with a period.

Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. Routledge, 1994.

Title of source

The title of the source should follow the author’s name. Depending upon the type of source, it should be listed in italics or quotation marks.

A book should be in italics:

Henley, Patricia. The Hummingbird House . MacMurray, 1999.

An individual webpage should be in quotation marks. The name of the parent website, which MLA treats as a "container," should follow in italics:

Lundman, Susan. "How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow, www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html.*

A periodical (journal, magazine, newspaper) article should be in quotation marks:

Bagchi, Alaknanda. "Conflicting Nationalisms: The Voice of the Subaltern in Mahasweta Devi's Bashai Tudu." Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature , vol. 15, no. 1, 1996, pp. 41-50.

A song or piece of music on an album should be in quotation marks. The name of the album should then follow in italics:

Beyoncé. "Pray You Catch Me." Lemonade, Parkwood Entertainment, 2016, www.beyonce.com/album/lemonade-visual-album/.

*The MLA handbook recommends including URLs when citing online sources. For more information, see the “Optional Elements” section below.

Title of container

The eighth edition of the MLA handbook introduced what are referred to as "containers," which are the larger wholes in which the source is located. For example, if you want to cite a poem that is listed in a collection of poems, the individual poem is the source, while the larger collection is the container. The title of the container is usually italicized and followed by a comma, since the information that follows next describes the container.

Kincaid, Jamaica. "Girl." The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories, edited by Tobias Wolff, Vintage, 1994, pp. 306-07.

The container may also be a television series, which is made up of episodes.

“94 Meetings.” Parks and Recreation, created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur, performance by Amy Poehler, season 2, episode 21, Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, 2010.

The container may also be a website, which contains articles, postings, and other works.

Wise, DeWanda. “Why TV Shows Make Me Feel Less Alone.”  NAMI,  31 May 2019,  www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone . Accessed 3 June 2019.

In some cases, a container might be within a larger container. You might have read a book of short stories on Google Books , or watched a television series on Netflix . You might have found the electronic version of a journal on JSTOR. It is important to cite these containers within containers so that your readers can find the exact source that you used.

“94 Meetings.” Parks and Recreation , season 2, episode 21, NBC , 29 Apr. 2010. Netflix, www.netflix.com/watch/70152031?trackId=200256157&tctx=0%2C20%2C0974d361-27cd-44de-9c2a-2d9d868b9f64-12120962.

Langhamer, Claire. “Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England.” Historical Journal , vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-96. ProQuest, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966. Accessed 27 May 2009.

Other contributors

In addition to the author, there may be other contributors to the source who should be credited, such as editors, illustrators, translators, etc. If their contributions are relevant to your research, or necessary to identify the source, include their names in your documentation.

Foucault, Michel. Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason. Translated by Richard Howard , Vintage-Random House, 1988.

Woolf, Virginia. Jacob’s Room . Annotated and with an introduction by Vara Neverow, Harcourt, Inc., 2008.

If a source is listed as an edition or version of a work, include it in your citation.

The Bible . Authorized King James Version, Oxford UP, 1998.

Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee. Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students. 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.

If a source is part of a numbered sequence, such as a multi-volume book or journal with both volume and issue numbers, those numbers must be listed in your citation.

Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current Conditions and Future Directions.” Social Work and Society: The International Online-Only Journal, vol. 6, no. 2, 2008, www.socwork.net/sws/article/view/60/362. Accessed 20 May 2009.

Quintilian. Institutio Oratoria. Translated by H. E. Butler, vol. 2, Loeb-Harvard UP, 1980.

The publisher produces or distributes the source to the public. If there is more than one publisher, and they are all are relevant to your research, list them in your citation, separated by a forward slash (/).

Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive, www.artchive.com/artchive/K/klee/twittering_machine.jpg.html. Accessed May 2006.

Women's Health: Problems of the Digestive System . American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2006.

Daniels, Greg and Michael Schur, creators. Parks and Recreation . Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, 2015.

Note : The publisher’s name need not be included in the following sources: periodicals, works published by their author or editor, websites whose titles are the same name as their publisher, websites that make works available but do not actually publish them (such as  YouTube ,  WordPress , or  JSTOR ).

Publication date

The same source may have been published on more than one date, such as an online version of an original source. For example, a television series might have aired on a broadcast network on one date, but released on  Netflix  on a different date. When the source has more than one date, it is sufficient to use the date that is most relevant to your writing. If you’re unsure about which date to use, go with the date of the source’s original publication.

In the following example, Mutant Enemy is the primary production company, and “Hush” was released in 1999. Below is a general citation for this television episode:

“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer , created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, Mutant Enemy, 1999 .

However, if you are discussing, for example, the historical context in which the episode originally aired, you should cite the full date. Because you are specifying the date of airing, you would then use WB Television Network (rather than Mutant Enemy), because it was the network (rather than the production company) that aired the episode on the date you’re citing.

“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, episode 10, WB Television Network, 14 Dec. 1999 .

You should be as specific as possible in identifying a work’s location.

An essay in a book or an article in a journal should include page numbers.

Adiche, Chimamanda Ngozi. “On Monday of Last Week.” The Thing around Your Neck, Alfred A. Knopf, 2009, pp. 74-94 .

The location of an online work should include a URL.  Remove any "http://" or "https://" tag from the beginning of the URL.

Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases , vol. 6, no. 6, 2000, pp. 595-600, wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/6/00-0607_article. Accessed 8 Feb. 2009.

When citing a physical object that you experienced firsthand, identify the place of location.

Matisse, Henri. The Swimming Pool. 1952, Museum of Modern Art, New York .

Optional elements

The ninth edition is designed to be as streamlined as possible. The author should include any information that helps readers easily identify the source, without including unnecessary information that may be distracting. The following is a list of optional elements that can be included in a documented source at the writer’s discretion.

Date of original publication:

If a source has been published on more than one date, the writer may want to include both dates if it will provide the reader with necessary or helpful information.

Erdrich, Louise. Love Medicine. 1984. Perennial-Harper, 1993.

City of publication:

The seventh edition handbook required the city in which a publisher is located, but the eighth edition states that this is only necessary in particular instances, such as in a work published before 1900. Since pre-1900 works were usually associated with the city in which they were published, your documentation may substitute the city name for the publisher’s name.

Thoreau, Henry David. Excursions . Boston, 1863.

Date of access:

When you cite an online source, the MLA Handbook recommends including a date of access on which you accessed the material, since an online work may change or move at any time.

Bernstein, Mark. "10 Tips on Writing the Living Web." A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites, 16 Aug. 2002, alistapart.com/article/writeliving. Accessed 4 May 2009.

As mentioned above, while the MLA handbook recommends including URLs when you cite online sources, you should always check with your instructor or editor and include URLs at their discretion.

A DOI, or digital object identifier, is a series of digits and letters that leads to the location of an online source. Articles in journals are often assigned DOIs to ensure that the source is locatable, even if the URL changes. If your source is listed with a DOI, use that instead of a URL.

Alonso, Alvaro, and Julio A. Camargo. "Toxicity of Nitrite to Three Species of Freshwater Invertebrates." Environmental Toxicology , vol. 21, no. 1, 3 Feb. 2006, pp. 90-94. Wiley Online Library, doi: 10.1002/tox.20155.

Creating in-text citations using the previous (eighth) edition

Although the MLA handbook is currently in its ninth edition, some information about citing in the text using the older (eighth) edition is being retained. The in-text citation is a brief reference within your text that indicates the source you consulted. It should properly attribute any ideas, paraphrases, or direct quotations to your source, and should direct readers to the entry in the Works Cited list. For the most part, an in-text citation is the  author’s name and the page number (or just the page number, if the author is named in the sentence) in parentheses :

When creating in-text citations for media that has a runtime, such as a movie or podcast, include the range of hours, minutes and seconds you plan to reference. For example: (00:02:15-00:02:35).

Again, your goal is to attribute your source and provide a reference without interrupting your text. Your readers should be able to follow the flow of your argument without becoming distracted by extra information.

How to Cite the Purdue OWL in MLA

Entire Website

The Purdue OWL . Purdue U Writing Lab, 2019.

Individual Resources

Contributors' names. "Title of Resource." The Purdue OWL , Purdue U Writing Lab, Last edited date.

The new OWL no longer lists most pages' authors or publication dates. Thus, in most cases, citations will begin with the title of the resource, rather than the developer's name.

"MLA Formatting and Style Guide." The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab. Accessed 18 Jun. 2018.

Home — Essay Samples — Geography & Travel — Travel and Tourism Industry — The History of Moscow City

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The History of Moscow City

  • Categories: Russia Travel and Tourism Industry

About this sample

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Published: Feb 12, 2019

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