Ask Jerry
Footnotes or End Notes or none?
Asked by C. Richard Johnson on April 21, 2023
In writing a novel and quoting scripture where do you put the references? I don't want them cluttering up the text so I have been putting them in footnotes (in MS Word). However I notice that you don't do any such thing at all.
I wanted the references shown so that I could use Bible translations that grab attention while assuring people familiar with the Bible that these really were scripture.
Jerry's Answer
Personally, Richard, I don't want anything to jar the reader out of the fictional construct. Credit for the Bible verses I use appear on the copyright page, citing the translations. I believe people familiar with the Bible will assume you are familiar with it too. :)
You can also mention your practice on your Acknowledgments page or a note to readers at the end,