Some students, in a panic, try to use “et al.” for two authors. Do not do this. “Et al.” is Latin for “and others,” and when you have only one “other,” it’s just “and.” Using “et al.” for two authors is like ordering a “large” coffee and getting a thimble. It’s wrong, and the barista will judge you.
Surprising fact: The MLA Handbook (9th edition) is exactly 396 pages long. That’s longer than most romance novels, and with less kissing. But they devote a whole section to what happens when you have two authors, because even they know that collaboration is messy.
Finally, let’s talk about the number one reason people fail at this: forgetting the period after the first author’s first name. Forgetting it is like leaving the house without your pants. The sentence looks top-heavy and scandalous. Austen, Jane and Stephen King is wrong. Austen, Jane, and Stephen King is right. That little comma is your academic belt.
And if you’re citing a website with two authors? Same rules. Last names, “and,” page number if it has one (most web pages don’t, so just leave the number out). The Works Cited entry gets the URL at the end, but no “https://” because MLA hates visual clutter. Just simple, clean, devastatingly correct.
So go forth, brave scholar. Cite those two authors with the swagger of a peacock wearing a graduation robe. You now possess the knowledge that separates the essay masters from the citation peasants. And remember: if you ever feel lost, just whisper “last name comma first name, and normal name,” and the formatting ghosts will guide you home.
