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ENC 1102: Finding Literary Criticism & More (Dale Mabry): As you go along

Selected websites and library resources for researching works of literature.

Manage what you are finding

  Save your results

  • Notice links to save or email results, capture permalinks, and more.
  • If you email:
    • You may be able add a subject line or notes to remember why you're saving the item.
    • Create a folder for that assignment and move to it any pertinent emails.
Whichever method you choose, saving your results, while keeping track of where you found them, will help you as you write your assignment.

  Save anything that looks promising

  • You can go back to it and really engage with it later.
  • When you start writing you can sift through and decide what to keep, or not.
  • It is common, and often helpful, to gather more sources than you may end up using.

  Use citation help

  • Look for the citation tool in a library database. It could be a link labeled cite or citation help.
  • The citation tool will give you example citations in APA, MLA, and other popular formats.
  • Also refer to this Citation Guide

  Notice other helpful tools

For example, some databases provide translations and audio recordings of articles.

  Note new search terms

  • Read over what you find.
  • A quick way to do this:
    • Scan the Details, Summary, or Abstract on the screen after you click the title.
  • Why it helps:
    • Gives you additional keywords or search terms to try.
    • Helps you think about your topic and start writing your paper in your head.
  • Notice linked Subject terms, which are usually underneath the Abstract, Summary, or Details of an item. They may lead to other useful sources.

  Notice links to similar or related results

  • Some databases will display, on the results screen, links to other resources that are related to your search.
  • They might say something like "More like this" or "Find similar results".

  Filter your results by Subject

By using the Subject filter on your results list, you can reduce the number of possible sources to review, leaving those that cover your desired subjects .

  Evaluate what you are finding