Still feeling iffy? Here’s a trick: pretend you’re making a tiny, boring tombstone for the article. The citation is its epitaph. “Here lies Jane Doe’s piece on lunch-stealing squirrels. Published October 12, 2026. May its words live forever in your bibliography.”
Also, don’t forget the hanging indent! In MLA, the second line of the citation is indented half an inch. It’s like the citation is leaning back, relaxing. “I’ve been cited. I’m chill.”
If you mess up the punctuation? The world won’t end. The MLA police won’t knock on your door. Just take a breath, fix it, and move on. You’ve got this.
