Formatting references can be mechanical, dreary, and repetitious, but also crucial: journals are known to reject manuscripts even before peer review simply because the references are incorrectly formatted. Even such a simple piece of information as the initials of the authors being cited can be presented in at least four different ways, involving different combinations of spaces and periods: Watson J.D. and Crick F.H.C. or Watson JD and Crick FHC or Watson J. D. and Crick F. H. C. or Watson J D and Crick F H C. Or take the name of the journal: To be given in full or abbreviated? In title case or sentence case? In italics or roman?

If you have ever been exasperated by a journal’s insistence that you follow its style exactly in formatting references, this webinar shows you how to manage this task more efficiently by drawing your attention to the minutiae of reference formatting and pinpointing the differences between seemingly identical styles. In just 60 minutes, you'll learn how to deconstruct a given system of referencing by breaking it down into four key aspects.

If you are a new copyeditor, an experienced editor who's unfamiliar with citations and references, or seeking to add humanities work to sciences work or vice versa, this webinar is for you. Once you watch it, you will no longer find references intimidating. And if you would rather focus on text and offload reference editing to someone else, all you need to do is to ask them to watch this webinar instead.

Yateendra Joshi (he/him) has been copyediting technical documents, mainly research papers in the biological sciences, for more than 35 years; has designed a range of products from business cards and letterheads to journals and books; and is a member of the editorial board, Information Design Journal, the Netherlands. Yateen was certified as a Diplomate editor by BELS, the Board of Editors in the Life Sciences, St. Paul, MN, for displaying exceptional editorial proficiency. He writes often on topics related to copyediting and contributes regularly to Editage Insights on topics related to academic writing. Yateen also conducts training programs for researchers and academics and occasionally for copy editors; is a council member of EASE (European Association of Science Editors) and a member of the board of directors, BELS; and has delivered several webinars as part of virtual conferences organized by ACES, the Society for Editing and Editors Canada. Yateen has also written on referencing styles for Science Editor, published by the Council of Science Editors, and for Medical Writing, published by the European Medical Writers Association.

This webinar originally aired on June 12, 2025.