How Do I Cite A Short Story Posted To A Website Whose Author Is ...

Skip to content

How do I cite a short story posted to a website whose author is different from that of the story?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook.

Cite the short story the same way you would cite a poem posted to a blog by someone who is not the poem’s author but who is responsible for the blog as a whole. List the author of the story, the story’s title, and the name of the website containing the story. Then list the author of the website in the Contributors element, preceded by the label “created by.” Complete the entry by providing the name of the site’s publisher (if different from the name of the site), the publication date, and the URL:

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Cask of Amontillado.” PoeStories.com, created by Robert Giordano, Design 215, 2005-2020, poestories.com/read/amontillado.

Note that the above example shows a date range in the Publication Date element because a range is given in the copyright line at the bottom of the website.

Get the MLA Handbook

Get the e-book Apple Kindle Nook Order a print copy

Recommended Posts

Ask The MLA

How do I cite a Twitter thread or conversation in my text and in my works-cited list?

Ask The MLA

How do I distinguish between different dictionary entries for the same term in my in-text citation?

Ask The MLA

If a book has a copyright date but no publication date, should I use the copyright date as the publication date in my works-cited-list entry?