The MLA 9 Works Cited Page: Alphabetical, With Hanging Indents

The first page, the body, and the Works Cited page are the three parts every MLA paper needs. With the first two covered, let's finish by setting up the Works Cited page.

What the Works Cited page is for

As you write, any time you use words, ideas, or facts from a source, you cite it in the body of your paper. Then, at the end, you list every source you cited, in full. Think of it as a directory that helps your reader find the original material behind your work.

It lists only the sources you actually cited. A source you read but never cited doesn't belong here.

Setting up the page

First, the list always starts on a new page after the body of your paper. Insert a page break to get there, instead of pressing Enter over and over.

At the top is the same header as the rest of the paper, and the page numbers keep counting. If the body ends on page 6, Works Cited starts on page 7.

On the first line, one inch from the top, type Works Cited, centered. Keep it plain: no bold, no italics, no quotation marks, no period. If you cite only one source, the label is Work Cited.

On the next line, begin listing your sources in alphabetical order.

Later lessons show how to build each entry. For now, we're just setting up the page.

The detail you don't want to miss: the hanging indent

The list is double-spaced, like the rest of the paper, with no extra space between entries. But instead of indenting the first line of each entry, you do the opposite. This is a hanging indent: the first line sits flush left, and every other line of the same entry is indented half an inch.

It's tempting to fake this with the Tab key. Don't: it falls apart as soon as an entry changes. Every word processor has a hanging indent setting, and it's worth using it from the start.

A finished Works Cited page

Here is the Works Cited page from the sample Bigfoot paper. Each entry is double-spaced, with a half-inch hanging indent.

1. A new pageWorks Cited starts on its own page, and the header and page numbers continue.
2. The labelWorks Cited, centered and plain, on the first line.
3. Alphabetical orderBy the first word of each entry, usually the author's last name.
4. The hanging indentThe first line at the margin, every line after it indented half an inch.
5. Every entry ends with a periodEven an entry that ends with a DOI or a URL.

Take a moment to celebrate. You've now set up every part of an MLA paper: the first page, the body, and Works Cited.

Quick checklist

• A page break before Works Cited
• Works Cited label, centered, not bold
• Header and page numbers continue
• Double spacing throughout, with no extra space between entries
• Alphabetical order
• A half-inch hanging indent on every entry
• Only sources you cited
• Every entry ends with a period

How PERRLA handles the Works Cited page

If you're using PERRLA, all of this is done for you, from the page break to the hanging indents to the alphabetical order. Cite a source and its entry lands on the Works Cited page in the right spot. Before you download, PERRLA's last check points out any entry you added but never cited.

Related MLA 101 lessons

• Adding Works Cited entries: the nine core elements, containers, and the one template behind every entry.
• Formatting a journal article entry: the article in quotation marks, the journal in italics, the numbers, and the DOI.
• In-text citations: author and page with no comma, and when et al. applies.
• Final checks and common mistakes: the last pass before you submit.
• All 18 lessons in MLA 101