An end-of-text list of citation sources has one general function:

• to (metaphorically) provide investigative information to the target audience.

More specifically, an end-of text list of citation sources is where the writer (of a particular instance of writing) places the detailed information necessary to trace an in-text citation back to its source.

Entries for In-Text Citations

Typically, the detailed information for an entry (to support an in-text citation) will minimally include the :

• Name of the writer/writers (from whom the information was borrowed)
• Name of the original source (the publication from which the information was borrowed)
• Year (and, as needed, volume and issue—or month) of the original source (the publication from which the information was borrowed)
• Name of the publisher (the company which published the original source)
• Name of the city where the publisher (of the original source) has an office to receive correspondence regarding the original source.

Other information often included in the entry for a source of information (recorded by others) includes:

• Page numbers (where the borrowed information is located in the original source)
• Names of the editor/editors (of the original source) if the original publication is a collection of essays/articles
• Titles of the essay/article (from which the information was borrowed) if the original source is a collection of essays/articles
• Names of the translators (as needed)

Beyond Entries for In-Text Citations

Typically, the writer (of a particular instance of writing) gathers general information (recorded by others) from several sources,

• yet that general information might not appear (in the particular instance of writing) as an in-text citation.

To give credit to whom credit is due (for the general information recorded by others),

• writers include an entry (in an end-of-text list of citation sources) for each of the sources of general information (recorded by others).

These entries (metaphorically) serve as a further act of disclosure which benefits both the writer and the target audience.

Appropriate Formatting of Entries

The appropriate format of the entries in an end-of-text list of citation sources (for a particular instance of writing) is usually governed by the discourse conventions of:

• the audience forum, or
• the discourse community of the target audience.

Appropriate Formatting of the Whole List

An end-of-text list of citation sources often begins at the top of a new page.

• The outfitter suggests inserting a page break to begin your list at the top of a new page.

An end-of-text list of citation sources begins with a title. Common titles for this list are:

• Works Cited
• References
• Bibliography