Titles
Full title vs. Short Version of Title
Use the full form of a book work's title the first time. After that, you can use a shortened familiar or obvious form (e.g. Nightingale for “Ode to a Nightingale”).
Book Titles: Take the title of a book from the title page, not the cover, etc.
Subtitles: Use a colon and a space to separate title from subtitle unless the title ends in a question mark or exclamation point. Include other punctuation only if it is part of the title or subtitle.
Book Titles: Take the title of a book from the title page, not the cover, etc.
Subtitles: Use a colon and a space to separate title from subtitle unless the title ends in a question mark or exclamation point. Include other punctuation only if it is part of the title or subtitle.
CapitalizeCapitalize the first and last word and all “principal” words in the title or subtitle, including those that follow hyphens in compound words.
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Do Not Capitalize in Middle of Title
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Poetry with First Line as Title
When a poem’s title is the first line of the poem, reproduce the title exactly as it appears in the text.
Example: In E.E. Cumming’s poem “since feeling is first,” he concludes with a profound statement about death.
Example: In E.E. Cumming’s poem “since feeling is first,” he concludes with a profound statement about death.
Using Italics vs. Quotation Marks
As a general rule, for shorter works, use quotation marks. For longer works, italicize the title.
Italicize
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Quotation Marks
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Italics and Quotation Marks Don't Apply
There are also instances where you should not use either quotation marks or italics for a tile.
Type
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Example
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