Research Papers Tips: APA and MLA

Isn't it reassuring to know as a writer that there are abundant resource tools out on the internet to help you with writing your papers and offering you valuable tips for doing so? Depending on the type of document you need to produce, you are certain to find helpful tips on the construction of your text either through the use of the APA or the MLA.

APA

What is APA? APA is American Psychological Association and is a magnificent citing style guide for writing in the fields of business, psychology, nursing, criminology, economics and sociology. APA sets the ground rules for communications about organizing content properly, different writing styles, proper means of citing references and the preparation of manuscripts for publication purposes. Writers elect to use APA primarily because it provides a set style of writing that is easily recognized and followed by the readers. When the formatting is of a simpler more familiar nature it is drastically easier for the reader to give full attention and focus to the writer's ideas since familiarity breeds comfort. When the reader can follow the content without feeling confused or distracted it is much easier to remain interested in the reading material; this is what APA provides. APA offers tutorials and workshops online to acquaint the writer with its features and instruct them on its use.

MLA

What is MLA? MLA is Modern Language Association and is a style of writing used primarily in liberal arts and humanities. It is generally used for academic writing in settings such as high schools and colleges. MLA style offers the writer many tips and regulations on first page format, section headings, citations in text as well as work cited pages and proper formatting of both short and very long quotations. Additionally it puts emphasis on proper formatting including but certainly not limited to paper size, spacing, fonts, margins, headers, endnotes and more. Each section offers a thorough explanation of each feature and then provides samples of how your paper should look. This sample feature is especially helpful to the writer since it offers you an actual visual of the expected appearance of the paper you are writing. This writing sample is beneficial to the writer because it will also provide examples of step by step procedures for adding words or omitting words from content. Tutorials are also available online for training purposes.

It is important to know that there are many different format requirements in each of these two styles so it is crucial that the writer select the proper guide for use when writing a term, essay or research paper.