Manual Reference Entry

When Auto-Cite can’t find your source, or when you need to cite unpublished works, interviews, or archival materials, manual entry lets you create references from scratch.

When to Use Manual Entry

• No identifier available – Old publications, archival sources
• Unpublished works – Manuscripts, personal communications
• Non-traditional sources – Interviews, presentations, artwork
• Correcting auto-fetched data – When databases have errors
• Custom reference types – Sources that don’t fit standard categories

Creating a Manual Reference

Step 1: Start a New Reference

Navigate to References > Add New.

Step 2: Choose Reference Type

Select the type that best matches your source:

Available reference types

Type	Use For
Article	Journal articles, magazine articles, newspaper articles
Book	Complete books, monographs
Chapter	Book chapters, anthology contributions
Conference Paper	Conference proceedings, presentations
Thesis	Dissertations, theses, student papers
Report	Technical reports, white papers, working papers
Webpage	Online articles, blog posts, websites
Dataset	Research data, databases
Software	Programs, applications, code
Interview	Personal interviews, oral histories
Legal Case	Court cases, legislation
Patent	Patents and patent applications

Step 3: Fill in Required Fields

The reference entry form

Always required:

• Title – The work’s title

Usually required (depends on type):

• Author(s) – Creator names
• Date – Publication year (at minimum)
• Source – Journal, publisher, website, etc.

Step 4: Add Optional Fields

Optional fields improve citation accuracy:

• Volume/Issue – For journal articles
• Pages – Page numbers or range
• DOI/URL – For linking
• ISBN/ISSN – For books/journals
• Publisher – For books
• Place – Publication location
• Abstract – For your reference
• Notes – Personal notes

Step 5: Publish

Click Publish to add the reference to your library.

Field-by-Field Guide

Authors

Enter author names in these formats:

Single author:

Smith, John A.

Multiple authors:

Smith, John A.
Jones, Mary B.
Williams, Robert

Enter each author on a new line or separated by and:

Smith, John A. and Jones, Mary B.

Corporate author:

World Health Organization

Format notes:

• Last name first: Surname, Given Names
• Include middle initials when known
• Use full organization names, not abbreviations

Dates

Enter dates in these formats:

What You Know	Enter
Full date	2020-03-15 or March 15, 2020
Month and year	2020-03 or March 2020
Year only	2020
Approximate	c. 1920 or circa 1920
No date	n.d.

For items in press: forthcoming or in press

Titles

Article/chapter titles:

• Use sentence case (only first word and proper nouns capitalized)
• Include subtitle after a colon

Book/journal titles:

• Use title case (major words capitalized)
• Italics are applied automatically by citation style

Examples:

Article: The effects of climate change on biodiversity: A meta-analysis
Book: The Elements of Style

Page Numbers

Enter page ranges:

Format	Example
Page range	42-50 or 42-50
Single page	42
Non-consecutive	42, 45, 48-50
Online (no pages)	Leave blank

DOI

Digital Object Identifiers should be entered as:

Correct:

10.1038/nature12373

Also acceptable:

https://doi.org/10.1038/nature12373

The plugin normalizes the format automatically.

URL

For web sources, include the full URL:

https://example.com/article/title

Access date: Some citation styles require when you accessed the URL. Fill in the Access Date field if available.

Reference Type Guidelines

Journal Article

Required: Title, Author, Journal, Year, Volume Optional: Issue, Pages, DOI

Example fields:

• Title: Effects of mindfulness on stress reduction
• Author: Smith, John A.
• Journal: Journal of Clinical Psychology
• Year: 2020
• Volume: 45
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 234-248
• DOI: 10.1234/jcp.2020.45.3.234

Book

Required: Title, Author, Year, Publisher Optional: Edition, Place, ISBN

Example fields:

• Title: Understanding Research Methods
• Author: Jones, Mary B.
• Year: 2019
• Publisher: Academic Press
• Place: New York
• Edition: 3rd
• ISBN: 978-0-123456-78-9

Book Chapter

Required: Title, Author, Book Title, Editor, Year, Publisher Optional: Pages, Place

Example fields:

• Title: Chapter on data analysis
• Author: Smith, John A.
• Book Title: Handbook of Research Methods
• Editor: Williams, Robert
• Year: 2020
• Publisher: Sage Publications
• Pages: 125-150

Website/Webpage

Required: Title, URL Recommended: Author, Date, Website Name, Access Date

Example fields:

• Title: Climate Change Facts
• Author: Environmental Protection Agency
• Website: EPA.gov
• URL: https://www.epa.gov/climate-change-facts
• Date: 2021-06-15
• Access Date: 2021-12-01

Thesis/Dissertation

Required: Title, Author, Year, University, Type Optional: URL, DOI

Example fields:

• Title: Machine learning applications in healthcare
• Author: Johnson, Sarah
• Year: 2020
• University: Stanford University
• Type: Doctoral dissertation

Troubleshooting Manual Entry

Citation appears incomplete

• Check that required fields are filled
• Verify the reference type is correct for your source

Author names display incorrectly

• Use Surname, Given Names format
• Check for extra spaces or punctuation

Date format wrong

• Use YYYY, YYYY-MM, or YYYY-MM-DD
• Avoid spelled-out dates in non-standard formats

Reference doesn’t appear in search

• Make sure it’s published (not draft)
• Check that title is not empty

Best Practices

1. Choose the right type – Reference types affect how citations are formatted
2. Be consistent – Use the same name format for the same author
3. Include DOIs – Even for manual entries, add DOI if available
4. Add notes – Record where you found obscure sources
5. Review before publishing – Check for typos in author names and titles

Next Steps

• Auto-Cite – When identifiers are available
• Finding Identifiers – Track down DOIs and other IDs
• Citation Block – Use your new reference