Guides

Personal communication

Citing interviews, emails, and other personal communications not publicly available.

Personal communication

Personal Communication (14.111)

References to conversations (whether face-to-face or by telephone, video, or the like) and to letters, email or text messages, and direct or private messages shared through social media and received by the author are usually run in to the text or given in a note. They are rarely listed in a bibliography. Most such information can be referred to simply as a conversation, message, or the like; the medium may be mentioned if relevant.

Rule for Notes
#. Interviewee’s First and Last Names, means of communication with the author, date of communication Month, Day, Year.

Example Note

  1. Jane E. Correspondent, email message to author, April 23, 2024.
  2. Sr. Anna Gonzalez, interview with the author, August 2018.

Example Shortened Note

  1. Gonzalez, interview.

Generate a personal communication citation

Fill in the fields below to build a note for conversations, emails, texts, or other private communications (CMOS 14.111).

Note (CMOS 14.111)

The generated note will appear here.

Bibliography

Personal communications are usually not listed in a bibliography.