IMO, footnotes are for things that are parenthetical to the text and endnotes are for things which are more reference in nature. I’d be one who doesn’t see them as mutually exclusive.
#Footnote vs. endnote format how to
If you do separate the footnotes (author commentary) from endnotes (references), how to you denote the difference in the text? Or are y’all saying that endnotes don’t need to be noted in the main text at all? Reply ReplyĪll I have to say is “Locality of reference”. The foot-notes should be used fo side comments. In the end-notes we can see the chapter references. I really agree with Sam and Justine above, use both. Here in Brazil, some of the “popular” tech/science books, like Gladwell1s Blink and Johnson’s Emergence, they simply forget to link the end-notes to the place they reference. So, why not have them both? Each one serving a different purpose. But when I have to check on references to extend what was said in the chapter, there’s no better than all of url’s listed at the end of each chapter. It comes to my mind when I read a book with funny and very smart footnotes how good is to have them in the context of the same page.
Well my attempts at Ascii art were spectacularly munged. Maybe if you had some sparkline style graphic next to them If they are citing references or giving background detail then endnotes.Įndnotes: “its hard to know what the hell the author is referring to, and you have to jump back and guess where the note came from.” If they are commenting or expanding on the text then footnotes. It depends on what the content of them is. I was not even estranged by his naughty footnotes.”. Churchill himself said “I rode triumphantly through it from end to end and enjoyed it all…. As a matter of fact, footnotes provided me with a nice break from the main text. I was not bothered by the footnotes at all. When I was reading it I remember commenting to myself that what Gibbon had written was actually a very long flattened hypertext document. If you have a chance, just have a look inside Edward Gibbon’s “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire”. And if you must go for endnotes, please don’t restart the numbering for each chapter: it’s hard enough finding the relevant endnote, without also having to work out which chapter I’m in. Annotated references/bibliography at the end. Why not both? Footnotes for relevant asides, and an indication of reference. But I’m 0 for 3, I mean 2.Īny thoughts on David Foster Wallace’s or David Egger’s approach to footnoting? Reply Ssp: It wouldn’t be so embarrassing that I can’t add, if I could spell. (PS: your ‘survey of 10 books’ above doesn’t quite add up to 10) Reply If you are having so many footnotes or so much text in them that it breaks your pages, it’s most likely that re-thinking those to not break the layout will also improve your text.
Just try reading a few texts to compare the approaches.
If you are writing for your readers, the order of preference should be If they’re just referencing a source I prefer them in an endnote. Although I do like footnotes when they are used sparingly and when they add value to the message. Replyīoth are fine but my personal preference is endnotes. Perhaps it’s a preference of function/usability over style. Given a choice I will go for footnotes for the reasons outlined above. But a few weeks before the book wrapped up, they changed the template and… endnotes! I had to cut and rework as those comments made little sense, and weren’t funny, when put at the back of the book. In fact I wrote the first book expecting footnotes, and had some good jokes in there that worked if they were on the same page. It’s a funny story – there was a day I was passionately in favor of footnotes. It takes a struggle to check for the end notes, and with nice page layout models footnotes might even make the page look interesting. Help me plan my Amtrak Writers Residencyĥ2 Responses to “Footnotes vs.5 Things I Learned From My Amtrak Writer’s Residency.Which is more dangerous: writing badly or reading poorly?.