Do you plan to quote something from someone else’s book, song, or other piece of work? That’s fine. Usually. Just make sure you’re citing sources in your book properly.
Here are a few things to consider.
When Citing Sources, Style Matters
The purpose of citing sources in your book is to give credit where credit’s due. Don’t cite your sources, and you put yourself at risk for copyright infringement. However, that’s not the only thing to worry about. You also need to worry about how your citations look.
Remember—readers want to read a great story, and they want it to look nice. So, yes—how you style your citations matters. But all citations are not the same.
- Parenthetical citations, a.k.a. In-text citations. If you’re an academic, you may prefer to include citations at the end of your sentences. That’s fine, but it’s the least attractive option. With this option, you add the source author’s last name and other information, such as the year of publication. If citing a book by Ray Bradbury, it may look like this. (Bradbury, 1964)
- Footnotes. If you want a prettier way to cite sources, use footnotes. Once you decide to go with footnotes, prepare to make more choices.
- Numbers, letters, or something else? You have to figure out how you want to indicate you’re citing a source. Depending on your preference, you may use numbers, Roman numerals, or other symbols. Ideally, the symbol will show up as superscript text, like this.4 Choose something clear and not distracting.
- Footnotes or endnotes. Footnotes give all of the information for citing sources at the bottom of the page where the cited material is found. Prefer to stick all that info elsewhere? With end notes, you put everything at the end of a chapter or section. You can even put it all at the end of the book.
Consistency Is More Important Than Style
No matter what style you prefer, consistency is vital when citing sources in your book. In fact, consistency is more important than whether you go with in-text citations or footnotes.
So, figure out the style you want, make every citation have the same format, and you’re golden. Even if readers prefer a different style, they’ll forgive you if you do it the same way every time.
Citing Your Sources Doesn’t Mean It’s Legal
For the most part, authors can cite whatever sources they want in their books. Sometimes, however, citing sources isn’t enough. You have to get express written permission or even pay to use someone else’s words in your book.
What can you not quote as you wish?
- Poetry
- Song lyrics (written by singers/songwriters/bands or for musicals)
The exception is really old poetry and songs. Once music or poetry reaches a certain age, it becomes part of the public domain. That opens the door to quoting and using their work as you see fit, no permission required.
Want help citing sources, formatting your book, and more? Argyle Fox Publishing is here to help. Learn about us, and if we look like the company for you, submit your manuscript for consideration.