Citations

Citations allow you to reference sources in your document and automatically generate a formatted bibliography. Autype uses the CSL-JSON standard for citation data.

Defining citations

The top-level citations array contains citation entries in CSL-JSON format. Each entry represents a single source (book, article, webpage, etc.).

{
  "citations": [
    {
      "id": "smith2023",
      "type": "book",
      "title": "Modern Document Automation",
      "author": [
        { "family": "Smith", "given": "John" }
      ],
      "issued": { "date-parts": [[2023]] },
      "publisher": "Tech Press",
      "publisher-place": "New York"
    },
    {
      "id": "doe2024",
      "type": "article-journal",
      "title": "Advances in PDF Generation",
      "author": [
        { "family": "Doe", "given": "Jane" },
        { "family": "Miller", "given": "Bob" }
      ],
      "issued": { "date-parts": [[2024, 3]] },
      "container-title": "Journal of Document Engineering",
      "volume": "12",
      "issue": "3",
      "page": "45-67",
      "DOI": "10.1234/jde.2024.001"
    }
  ]
}

The citations array supports up to 1000 entries.

CSL-JSON item properties

Every citation entry requires id and type. All other fields are optional.

Required fields

Property	Type	Description
`id`	string	Unique identifier for the citation (e.g., `"smith2023"`). Used to reference the citation in text. Max: 100 chars.
`type`	string	Item type. See supported types below.

Names (authors, editors, etc.)

Name fields accept an array of name objects:

{
  "author": [
    { "family": "Smith", "given": "John" },
    { "family": "van Beethoven", "given": "Ludwig", "non-dropping-particle": "van" },
    { "literal": "World Health Organization" }
  ]
}

Property	Type	Description
`family`	string	Family name / surname. Max: 200 chars.
`given`	string	Given name / first name. Max: 200 chars.
`dropping-particle`	string	Particle dropped when sorting (e.g., “de” in some styles). Max: 50 chars.
`non-dropping-particle`	string	Particle kept when sorting (e.g., “van”). Max: 50 chars.
`suffix`	string	Name suffix (e.g., “Jr.”, “III”). Max: 50 chars.
`literal`	string	Literal name string for institutional authors. Max: 500 chars.

Available name fields: author, editor, translator, collection-editor, composer, container-author, director, editorial-director, illustrator, interviewer, original-author, recipient, reviewed-author

Dates

Date fields use the CSL-JSON date format:

{
  "issued": { "date-parts": [[2024, 3, 15]] },
  "accessed": { "date-parts": [[2024, 6, 1]] }
}

Property	Type	Description
`date-parts`	array	Array of date arrays: `[[year, month, day]]`. Month and day are optional.
`literal`	string	Literal date string (e.g., `"Spring 2024"`). Max: 200 chars.
`raw`	string	Raw date string for parsing. Max: 200 chars.
`season`	string \| number	Season identifier.
`circa`	boolean \| string	Approximate date flag.

Available date fields: issued, accessed, event-date, original-date, submitted

Titles

Property	Type	Description
`title`	string	Title of the work. Max: 1000 chars.
`title-short`	string	Short title. Max: 500 chars.
`container-title`	string	Title of the container (journal, book, etc.). Max: 500 chars.
`container-title-short`	string	Short container title. Max: 200 chars.
`collection-title`	string	Title of the collection/series. Max: 500 chars.
`original-title`	string	Original title (for translations). Max: 500 chars.
`reviewed-title`	string	Title of the reviewed work. Max: 500 chars.

Numbers

Property	Type	Description
`volume`	string \| number	Volume number.
`issue`	string \| number	Issue number.
`page`	string	Page range (e.g., `"45-67"`). Max: 100 chars.
`page-first`	string \| number	First page.
`number-of-pages`	string \| number	Total pages.
`edition`	string \| number	Edition number.
`version`	string \| number	Version number.
`chapter-number`	string \| number	Chapter number.

Identifiers

Property	Type	Description
`DOI`	string	Digital Object Identifier. Max: 200 chars.
`ISBN`	string	International Standard Book Number. Max: 50 chars.
`ISSN`	string	International Standard Serial Number. Max: 50 chars.
`PMID`	string	PubMed ID. Max: 50 chars.
`PMCID`	string	PubMed Central ID. Max: 50 chars.
`URL`	string	Web URL. Max: 2000 chars.

Publisher

Property	Type	Description
`publisher`	string	Publisher name. Max: 500 chars.
`publisher-place`	string	Place of publication. Max: 200 chars.

Other fields

Property	Type	Description
`abstract`	string	Abstract text. Max: 5000 chars.
`language`	string	Language of the work. Max: 50 chars.
`genre`	string	Genre or type description. Max: 200 chars.
`keyword`	string	Keywords. Max: 500 chars.
`note`	string	Additional notes. Max: 2000 chars.
`event`	string	Event name (for conference papers). Max: 500 chars.
`event-place`	string	Event location. Max: 200 chars.

Supported item types

All supported CSL-JSON item types

article, article-journal, article-magazine, article-newspaper, bill, book, broadcast, chapter, classic, collection, dataset, document, entry, entry-dictionary, entry-encyclopedia, event, figure, graphic, hearing, interview, legal_case, legislation, manuscript, map, motion_picture, musical_score, pamphlet, paper-conference, patent, performance, periodical, personal_communication, post, post-weblog, regulation, report, review, review-book, software, song, speech, standard, thesis, treaty, webpage

Using citations in sections

To cite a source in your text content, use the @[citeKey] syntax where citeKey matches the id of a citation entry.

Basic citation

{ "type": "text", "text": "Document automation is evolving rapidly @[smith2023]." }

The @[citeKey] reference is replaced with the formatted in-text citation according to the configured citationStyle (e.g., (Smith, 2023) for APA7, [1] for IEEE).

Citation with locators

Add a locator after the cite key, separated by a comma:

{ "type": "text", "text": "See @[smith2023, p. 42] for details." }
{ "type": "text", "text": "Discussed in @[doe2024, pp. 10-15]." }
{ "type": "text", "text": "See @[smith2023, ch. 3] and @[doe2024, sec. 2.1]." }
{ "type": "text", "text": "In @[smith2023, vol. 2, p. 42, note=\"emphasis added\"]." }

Locator	Syntax	Example
Page	`p. 42` or `page 42`	`@[smith2023, p. 42]`
Pages	`pp. 42-45` or `pages 42-45`	`@[smith2023, pp. 42-45]`
Chapter	`ch. 3` or `chapter 3`	`@[smith2023, ch. 3]`
Section	`sec. 2.1` or `section 2.1`	`@[smith2023, sec. 2.1]`
Volume	`vol. 2` or `volume 2`	`@[smith2023, vol. 2]`
Note	`note="text"`	`@[smith2023, note="emphasis added"]`

Multiple locators can be combined: @[smith2023, vol. 2, p. 42]

Suppress author / author only

Syntax	Description	Rendered (APA7)
`@[smith2023]`	Normal citation	(Smith, 2023)
`@[-smith2023]`	Suppress author (prefix `-`)	(2023)
`@[smith2023!]`	Author only (suffix `!`)	Smith

{ "type": "text", "text": "@[smith2023!] argues that automation is key @[-smith2023, p. 42]." }

This renders as: “Smith argues that automation is key (2023, p. 42).”

Multiple citations

Place multiple @[...] references next to each other:

{ "type": "text", "text": "Multiple sources support this claim @[smith2023] @[doe2024]." }

The @[citeKey] syntax works in all text content: headings, paragraphs (text, text2), list items, and table cells. It also works inside formatted text like **bold @[smith2023] text**.

When using ?strict=true on the render endpoint, any @[citeKey] reference to a citation that is not defined in the citations array will cause a validation error. Without strict mode, undefined citations produce warnings but do not block rendering.

Citation styles

The citation formatting style is configured via defaults.citationStyle:

{
  "defaults": {
    "citationStyle": "apa7"
  }
}

Style	In-text format	Description
`apa7`	(Smith, 2023)	APA 7th Edition
`harvard`	(Smith 2023)	Harvard style
`ieee`	[1]	IEEE numbered style
`chicago`	(Smith 2023, 42)	Chicago author-date
`mla`	(Smith 42)	MLA style
`vancouver`	(1)	Vancouver numbered style

Bibliography element

To render the formatted bibliography, add a bibliography element to a section:

{
  "type": "bibliography",
  "title": "References",
  "fontFamily": "Times New Roman",
  "fontSize": 18
}

Properties

Property	Type	Required	Default	Description
`type`	string	Yes	—	Must be `"bibliography"`
`id`	string	No	—	Optional unique identifier. Max: 100 chars.
`title`	string	No	—	Title displayed above the bibliography (e.g., `"References"`, `"Bibliography"`). Max: 200 chars.
`fontFamily`	string	No	—	Font family for the title. Max: 100 chars.
`fontSize`	number	No	—	Font size for the title in pt (6–72).
`spacing`	object	No	—	Spacing override with `before` and `after` in pt (0–100).

Defaults for citations

Bibliography style

Customize the bibliography appearance via defaults.styles.bibliography:

{
  "defaults": {
    "citationStyle": "apa7",
    "styles": {
      "bibliography": {
        "fontFamily": "Times New Roman",
        "fontSize": 11,
        "fontWeight": "normal",
        "color": "#000000",
        "hangingIndent": 1.27,
        "lineSpacing": 1.5,
        "entrySpacing": 6
      }
    }
  }
}

Property	Type	Default	Description
`fontFamily`	string	—	Font family for bibliography entries. Max: 100 chars.
`fontSize`	number	—	Font size in pt (6–72).
`fontWeight`	string	—	Font weight: `"normal"` or `"bold"`
`color`	string	—	Text color in hex format (`#RGB` or `#RRGGBB`).
`hangingIndent`	number	—	Hanging indent for entries in cm (0–5).
`lineSpacing`	number	—	Line spacing within entries (1–3).
`entrySpacing`	number	—	Space between entries in pt (0–50).

Complete example

{
  "document": { "type": "pdf", "size": "A4" },
  "citations": [
    {
      "id": "smith2023",
      "type": "book",
      "title": "Modern Document Automation",
      "author": [{ "family": "Smith", "given": "John" }],
      "issued": { "date-parts": [[2023]] },
      "publisher": "Tech Press"
    },
    {
      "id": "doe2024",
      "type": "article-journal",
      "title": "Advances in PDF Generation",
      "author": [{ "family": "Doe", "given": "Jane" }],
      "issued": { "date-parts": [[2024, 3]] },
      "container-title": "Journal of Document Engineering",
      "volume": "12",
      "page": "45-67"
    }
  ],
  "defaults": {
    "citationStyle": "apa7",
    "styles": {
      "bibliography": {
        "fontSize": 10,
        "hangingIndent": 1.27
      }
    }
  },
  "sections": [
    {
      "type": "flow",
      "content": [
        { "type": "h1", "text": "Introduction" },
        { "type": "text", "text": "@[smith2023!] describes how document automation is evolving rapidly @[-smith2023]. Recent advances in PDF generation @[doe2024, pp. 50-67] have made it possible to produce high-quality documents at scale." },
        { "type": "text", "text": "Both approaches @[smith2023] @[doe2024] demonstrate significant improvements over traditional methods." },
        { "type": "pageBreak" },
        { "type": "bibliography", "title": "References" }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

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Defining citations

CSL-JSON item properties

Required fields

Names (authors, editors, etc.)

Dates

Titles

Numbers

Identifiers

Publisher

Other fields

Supported item types

Using citations in sections

Basic citation

Citation with locators

Suppress author / author only

Multiple citations

Citation styles

Bibliography element

Properties

Defaults for citations

Bibliography style

Complete example

​Defining citations

​CSL-JSON item properties

​Required fields

​Names (authors, editors, etc.)

​Dates

​Titles

​Numbers

​Identifiers

​Publisher

​Other fields

​Supported item types

​Using citations in sections

​Basic citation

​Citation with locators

​Suppress author / author only

​Multiple citations

​Citation styles

​Bibliography element

​Properties

​Defaults for citations

​Bibliography style

​Complete example

Defining citations

CSL-JSON item properties

Required fields

Names (authors, editors, etc.)

Dates

Titles

Numbers

Identifiers

Publisher

Other fields

Supported item types

Using citations in sections

Basic citation

Citation with locators

Suppress author / author only

Multiple citations

Citation styles

Bibliography element

Properties

Defaults for citations

Bibliography style

Complete example