Works cited page?

[Hannah]

I have a (probably dumb) question, so do you have to have a works cited page when writing a novel?
So I got this book from our library (18th century clothing by Bobbie Kalman) just to remind myself what a generally poor man or woman would wear during the latter part of that time period, is this something I would need to cite?

Also thank you again @Northerner for the research tips, I don’t feel so stuck now!!

~I don’t know what I’m doing~

[Louise Fowler]

@salome01w4g I wouldn’t think so, seeing as it’s a novel and not a non-fiction historical book or an essay. But I don’t know for sure.

Currently reading Les Miserables

[Northerner]

@salome01w4g it’s not required. However, it’s a very handy way of keeping track of the sources you’ve found most helpful, for your own future reference if not anybody else’s. A good publisher/agent/editor will probably want to see it, to make sure you did your research, even though it won’t be published.

And because it won’t have to be formal, putting the title, authour’s name (if any), and date it was published is enough. If you like, you can even make a note by each entry about what you got from that source or why you like it so much, so if anyone ever comes to you and says “I’m writing a novel set in 18th-century Britain, what books should I read?” you can whip out your handy list of recommendations.

It can actually be a lot of fun.

[Hannah]

@Northerner and @perfectfifths

Okay thank you! I hate citing works (for some reason it’s hard for me) so that is a relief.
I think I’ll probably keep a list of books/websites for future reference thanks for the idea!

~I don’t know what I’m doing~

[Widdrim]

Everything @Northerner and @perfectfifths said! It can also depend on what genre you’re writing, what kind of resources you use, how much research you do…

Historical: This genre usually has a lot of research to make it period accurate, so a lot of authors include works cited as a kind of… credentials? Proof they did their research and know what they’re talking about, and some readers expect some kind of references even if they are arranged in a formal bibliography.

Red Falcons of Tremoine by Hendry Peart has a straight up Works Cited page like an essay (Citing works can be so hard, especially if it’s something weird like a webpage with no author or date. If you want official-ness with low-work, I highly recommend easybib.com or citationmachine.com. College essay lifesaver.)

The Viking’s Quest by Lois Walfrid Johnson has a very, very long acknowledgments where she informally thanks the experts she interviewed, the books she read, the museums, etc. Nothing is “cited” but she gives credit to everyone who’s helped her.

Contemporary: This can have as much research as a science fiction novel, especially if your story calls for an unfamiliar setting, job, or life experience. It’ll probably have fewer textbooks and more Google maps, lifestyle blogs, and consulting friends, so it’s less common.

Fantasy/Sci-fi: By Darkness Hid by Jill Williamson has a shorter version of Lois Johnson’s ackowledgements where she thanks people and lists a few sources she leaned heavily on by title and author.

And there are books that don’t do any of that. Whether or not you include one may also depend on what kind of research you’re doing. If you interview/email a lot of expert people, you’ll probably want to mention them somewhere. If you’re browsing Wikipedia, you might not want to include that (even though Wikipedia is a totally viable research jumpstart lol).

tl:dr – It’s not required, there are lots of options, and you can do whatever you want!! And should you publish it, your editor/publishing house will probably have guidelines 🙂

[Hannah]

@widdrim
Thanks I’ll have to check those links out, I’m writing historical fiction so maybe… 🙁
I never noticed the acknowledgements in Viking Quest, but maybe that’s because I was scrambling to get my hands on the next book 😀

~I don’t know what I’m doing~

[Author]

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