Dr. Elizabeth Johnson

Whether you are an undergraduate or graduate student, the scenario to start writing a paper may sound like, “I don’t know how to cite that source… I’ll do that part later.” The procrastination bug is ever present when advancing the mechanics of citing a paper. But this Spring 2025, the TSU Libraries and Media Center members encourage all patrons to become familiar with databases offered to assist in completing academic papers and saving/citing sources – Academic Writer, Endnote and Endnote 21.

Academic Writer helps users learn and apply APA Style better by offering templates to begin writing papers. It assists with formatting papers and provides guidance with questions about conducting research. Its self-paced learning modules and reference-building tools help facilitate academic success and build a strong writing foundation.

Users must create their own personal accounts at Academic Writer to use the service’s Reference and Write features and save Favorites. On your first visit to Academic Writer, click on Welcome in the title bar; then click on Login. When the Login form opens, click on Create an Account. Remember that you must always log in to your account at Academic Writer to use all its features.

But what about those students using MLA or another citation style? MLA Handbook Plus is an online database that offers the full text of the ninth edition of the handbook. It also provides short videos paired with quizzes to help students better understand how to cite a website vs. a scholarly journal.

There are additional eBooks available through the TSU Libraries to help with citing:

• The Complete Guide to Referencing and Avoiding Plagiarism (2007)
• Citation Analysis in Research Evaluation (2005)
• Annotations in Scholarly Editions and Research Differentiation, Systematization (2020)
• Academic Writing and Plagiarism: A Linguistic Analysis (2010)
• Cite Right: A Quick Guide to Citation Styles – MLA, APA, Chicago, the Sciences, Professions, and More (2006)
• MLA Handbook (2021)
• Everything You Need to Know About MLA Citations (2012)

In addition to using Academic Writer, patrons should incorporate Endnote (for Windows or MACs). This database allows the subscriber to collect, organize, and cite various articles from Web of Science and save them in a cloud. The articles are not only science related, but cover a variety of disciplines. In addition, it affords a "Cite As You Write" in Google Docs plug-in. A few differences that Endnote 21 offers patrons are: share a library as read and write or read-only with up to 1,000 other users; one-click find full text feature; online database searching/search options; create smart groups (based on a search of EndNote library that automatically updates); change case (change capitalization of selected text); find and replace feature for Boolean operator searches; email reference attached PDF; and more features.

To learn more about Endnote and Endnote 21, go to the Citation Tools and Management Style reference guide where there are instructions to download either platform.

So, when thinking about the role of TSU Libraries and Media Center, remember that library staff are not just custodians of books; rather we are here to assist as information navigators and digital literacy educators in the areas of digital literacy training, research assistance, and technology support. Patrons are welcome to make appointments with the library liaisons at both libraries.