Citing your sources clearly and consistently is absolutely vital in academic writing, so referencing is an important skill to learn. In this guide, we’re going to set out how to reference an ebook using Chicago style citations.
Chicago style citations use either the ‘NB’ (notes and bibliography) system (primarily used in the humanities) or an author–date system with in-text citations (more common in scientific subjects). In both cases, all citations are accompanied by full publication detail in a bibliography at the end of the document.
When using the NB system, each time you reference a text you should include a number in superscript accompanied by either a footnote or endnote. The first time a source is cited, the footnote should include all relevant information, including the author’s full name, the title and full publication details.
In the case of an ebook, this means you also need to include either the format (e.g., PDF ebook) or URL where it can be found online:
n. Author Name, Title (City of Publication: Publisher, year), Format/URL.
So, for example, if you download an ebook for Kindle the first note would appear as follows:
1. Timothy Writer, My Book (Victoria: PMD Publications, 2015), Kindle Edition.
The online version of this book, meanwhile, would be presented thusly:
1. Timothy Writer, My Book (Victoria: PMD Publications, 2015), http://www.ebooks.com/Writer/Mybook.
You can then shorten subsequent notes citing the same text to include only the author surname, source title and page number (if quoting directly):
2. Writer, My Book, 34.
The Chicago style author–date system uses citations with the name and date of publication for a source included in parentheses:
Ebooks are the coming thing (Writer 2015).
If you have mentioned author’s name in the text, don’t duplicate this in the parentheses. If you’re quoting a source directly, moreover, you should also include page number(s):
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According to Timothy Writer (2015, 97), ebooks are ‘the coming thing’.
Bibliography
Regardless of the version of Chicago referencing you’re using, make sure to sort the bibliography alphabetically and include full detail for every source.
The format for an ebook in the footnotes and bibliography system is:
Surname, First Name. Title. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Format/URL.
So Timothy Writer’s My Book (downloaded for Kindle) would appear as:
Writer, Timothy. My Book. Victoria: PMD Publications, 2015. Kindle Edition.
The position of the date changes slightly for the author–date system:
Surname, First Name. Year of Publication. Title. City of Publication: Publisher. Format/URL.
Consequently, the reference list entry in this case would appear as follows:
Writer, Timothy. 2015. My Book. Victoria: PMD Publications. Kindle Edition.
If you need more help polishing your references, try sending a 500-word sample to be proofread for free today.
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