Literature Research

Evans Library Easy Instruction

What is your assignment?• Know the requirements!• Do you need peer reviewed sources?• Does your topic match your professors’ assignment?• Read the poem, short story, or novel you are writing

about.• If it is not defined for you, choose the area where you

will focus your research.

Find Good Resources • Use the databases Literature Resource Center and

JSTOR to find articles for your paper. (lib.fit.edu>databases tab>search by database title)• Look at the abstract to make sure the article

addresses your topic.• Use the reference page to find other articles you might

use.• Use articles NOT reviews.• If you have trouble locating articles on a specific work,

try using something more general like the theme or genre.

Cite Your Sources • Part of good research is giving proper credit to the

sources you used.• Make sure citations are complete. • Use a style guide to double check the accuracy of your

citations.• Use RefWorks or another citation management

software to format your citations and store your research.

Questions?