How to Cite Sources and Maintain the Originality of your Content

Finding sources on the internet is very easy, but at the same time, it can also be dangerous. Many people take original content from the internet and try to pass it as their own. Hence, no credit is given to the author of the article. So, when you are writing and publishing it on the web, you need to make sure that you are citing your sources. However, you also need to make sure that you are not losing the originality of the content. Here is how to cite sources and keep your content plagiarism-free. 

Citation Style

The style of the citation depends a lot on what kind of format you are using in your writing. For every format, there is a different style guide. There are different kinds of formats, such as MLA, APA, etc. These are some of the common styles that are used in writing. If you are using the MLA format of writing, then you should also use the MLA style guide. In the case of APA format, the rules are different. So, you need to decide on your style and choose between MLA and APA citations. The writers use modern language to create their content for a better understanding of the audience.  

Parenthetical Citation

If you are quoting a blog or a writer, then you can cite the quote within the text. Text citations can be done as a statement. This way, you can maintain the flow of the content while citing the author of the statement. Some people also give links to the social media accounts of the person whose quote is being used. However, you need to be mindful that the webpage that you are citing has the necessary guidelines for content sharing.  

Citing a Website

You can also cite a website within a text. However, you should ensure that the website is giving the nod for the URL to be shared in other content as well. Most of the websites have terms and conditions on their website for more clarity.  

Listing Bibliography and Reference

Citing can also be done in the form of a bibliography or reference. These can be done at the end of the content. However, with every citation, it is also important that you put the page number also. If you are putting references on your footnote, then you can link the text with it. You can choose the title of these citations as works cited page if you are specifying the source.

Check for Plagiarism

No matter what type of content you are citing, you need to make sure that you are not plagiarizing the content. Many people tend to copy contents from the journal articles. Due to this reason, the search engine gives multiple hits on the exact same content on various websites. Hence, it is necessary that the content, including the citing, should check for plagiarism through tools available online. The tools can help in highlighting plagiarism detected or unintentional plagiarism content easily. You can also do a grammar check and fix duplicate content in your writing with the tool.