Final Checks and Common Mistakes in MLA 9

You've done the hard part. Your paper is written, your sources are cited, and your Works Cited page is in order. Now let's make sure everything is polished and ready to submit.

1. Check your formatting

If you used PERRLA, this was handled from the start. If not, check for:

• One-inch margins on every side
• Double spacing throughout, Works Cited included
• A readable font at a standard size, like 12-point Times New Roman
• Your last name and the page number at the top right of every page
• The four-line heading on page 1: name, instructor, course, date
• A centered title with no bold, italics, or quotation marks
• Headings flush left and consistent, if you used them
• Works Cited starting on a new page

2. Proofread your writing

Read your paper slowly, or better yet, out loud, to catch awkward phrasing, grammar mistakes, and run-on sentences. You can also ask someone else to read it. Many schools have writing centers that are a huge help when you leave yourself time to use them.

3. Double-check your in-text citations

• Does every quote, paraphrase, or borrowed idea have a citation?
• Does each citation start with the same word as its Works Cited entry?
• Does every direct quote have its page number, with no comma and no "p."?
• Are citations before the sentence's period, except after a block quote?
• Is et al. used for three or more authors, and only in parentheses?

4. Review your Works Cited page

• Is every source you cited on the list, and nothing you didn't cite?
• Are the entries in alphabetical order?
• Does every entry have a hanging indent?
• Are titles in title case, with articles in quotation marks and books and journals in italics?
• Does every entry end with a period, even after a URL or DOI?

5. Don't forget your instructor's instructions

Sometimes your instructor asks for something different from MLA, like a title page or a different date format, and that's their call. Your instructor's preferences come first.

The mistakes that cost the most

These are the slips we see most often in MLA papers:

• A comma or "p." inside the citation: (Meldrum, 45) instead of (Meldrum 45)
• A bold or underlined title on page 1
• A title page nobody asked for, and no heading on page 1
• No hanging indent on Works Cited
• APA habits: the year after the author, initials instead of first names, sentence-case titles

The finished paper

Here is where the course started: a complete MLA 9 paper, with every one of these checks passed.

The first page, a body page, and the Works Cited page of the sample Bigfoot paper.

Quick checklist

• Formatting checked, page 1 to Works Cited
• Paper proofread, out loud if you can
• Every citation matches a Works Cited entry
• Every quote has its page
• Works Cited alphabetized, with hanging indents and a period at the end of each entry
• Your instructor's instructions followed

How PERRLA checks the paper

If you write in PERRLA, most of this is handled for you. When you're ready, click I'm Finished: PERRLA reads the whole paper against the MLA rules, lists what it finds, and offers a one-click fix for most of it. It never stops you from downloading.

Congratulations: you finished MLA 101

You've reached the end of MLA 101. You're ready to write papers in the MLA format with clarity, confidence, and credibility.

One last note. If you'd rather spend your time on the writing than on the formatting, PERRLA has a 7-day free trial, with no credit card. There's a lot to know about the MLA format, and we're here to help.

Thanks for watching and reading, and good writing.

Related MLA 101 lessons

• Basic page setup: margins, font, double spacing, indents, and the header.
• In-text citations: author and page with no comma, and when et al. applies.
• The Works Cited page: the centered label, alphabetical order, and hanging indents.
• Welcome to MLA 101: how the course is laid out, and how to use it.
• All 18 lessons in MLA 101