How to Write a Bibliography for your Research Paper

Bibliography can be precisely explained as the organized listing of references that are used in the research papers. The list of reference highlights journal articles, list of books and online resources that are depicted at the end of university essays, dissertations, and assignments. Derived from the term ‘bibliographia’, it signifies intellectual activity of listing down the reference sources.

Features of bibliography 

When writing a bibliography, make sure the purpose is to communicate the reader that the sources you have used contain sufficient detail in a standardized manner. We focus on the significant features essential to craft a comprehensive bibliography.

• The list of sources should be cited at the end of a research paper with variously used titles like ‘References’ ‘Works cited’ or simply, ‘Bibliography’.
• The entries within the list should be depicted in alphabetical order by using the author’s last name at first.
• Bibliography primarily includes the full surname and initials of the author, year and place of publication, volume, chapters and page number of sources.
• In case of online sources, inclusion of author name, title of the article or webpage, date of publication and the presence of webpage address or URL is mandatory.

Types of bibliography

The design of bibliography varies with the changing style of research papers. Let’s have a glimpse of the three typical bibliography majorly used in academic research papers.

1. Descriptive bibliography

It represents a bibliographical record in complete detail of the publishing history and physical characteristics of the sources included in writing a research paper. The descriptive data mainly emphasize on providing sufficient detail so that the reader may identify the sources used, recognize the content and understand the publication details.

An absolute set of descriptive bibliography contains the key information summarized as:

Format

 A conventional and symbolic formula describing the books in terms of pages, volumes, folds and signatures.

Binding

An all-round description of binding techniques especially for the books that were written after 1800.

Title

Dictates a title page transcription

Contents

List the contents of books, journal articles and encyclopedia.

Properties

Consider the physical properties of paper including the details of production process, chain-line measurements and description of watermarks, if any.

Sample descriptive bibliography

Craig S. Abbott, An Introduction to Bibliographical and Textual Studies, 4^th ed. (New York: MLA, 2009), pp.36-50

This bibliographic description includes the following:

• Quasi-facsimile transcription of the Title page (Williams and Abbott, pp. 40-43)
• Date of book publication - (2009)
• Place of book publication - (New York)
• Folding of sheets (pp. 40-43)
• Signatures counted by leaves – (Front and back = 1 leaf)
• Citation format – MLA

 2. Enumerated bibliography

Enumerated bibliography list references based on a systematic arrangement of books, journal articles, reference works and encyclopedias. Based on unified principles, enumerated bibliography provides core elements of text resources that include surname of author, date and place of publication. This significant form of bibliography does not include descriptive information about the source in details or any reference to the physical nature, text transmission or materiality.

The enumerated list is rather precise and comprehensive and relates to the specific sources used in preparing a research paper.

Sample of enumerated bibliography:

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Konemann, 1990.

Here the following information has been given:

• Author’s name and surname
• name of the book (Heart of Darkness: A documentary of Filmmaker’s Apocalypse)
• place of publication
• publication year.

 3. Annotated Bibliography

Annotated bibliography primarily considers an alphabetical list of sources along with an annotation of the type of research done on a certain topic. Annotations or addition of notes on the research sources defines the unique characteristics of this particular bibliography. The researcher summarizes content of each reference in the given notes. This is a way to evaluate the usefulness of sources utilized in the research paper.

Sample annotated bibliography

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. New York: Anchor Books, 1995. Print

Note:

Lamott’s book offers worthy advice on the nature of a writing life complete with its failures, success and insecurities. Considering the realities of being a writer, the chapters in Lamott’s book are anecdotal encompassing various aspects of life ranging…

Lamott in his book recommends suggestion for those struggling with writing anxieties…

MyAssignmenthelp.com is here to present you with absolute set of Bibliography

Academic paper will be appealing to the professor if it is presented with acknowledgeable bibliography. MyAssignmenthelp.com has come across a number of questions raised by university students once they are done writing the research paper. The major complains are: How to write a bibliography? What should be the key factors in it? How should I arrange it?

MyAssignmenthelp.com gives you multiple reasons to relax, by the time they solve your queries. With the leading honor in town, MyAssignmenthelp.com has arrangements for all standards of bibliography recommended by university professors. Whether that task is a short essay or solid dissertation, our assignment experts are well-versed with the type of bibliography that would fit in with the help of Bibliography maker online.

Features that attract thousands of students worldwide are:

• Get an absolute list of bibliography with a thematic presentation of books, journal articles and websites
• Our eminent writers prepare the list of bibliography respective to APA, MLA, Harvard and Chicago format
• We ensure top quality bibliography with the sequential and alphabetical presentation of author’s list
• We are the fastest service provider in industry that takes few hours to prepare the list of references
• Solve your bibliography queries through live online chat. Our representatives are waiting 24x7 for you.