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Citations

Opus provides robust citation management for academic writing.

Quick Start

Insert a citation by typing /cite or pressing Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + C. This opens the citation picker where you can search your connected sources.

Citations appear in your text as:

According to recent research [@smith2024], the effect is significant.

Connecting Citation Sources

Opus supports multiple citation sources. Configure them in Settings > Citations.

Zotero

  1. Go to Settings > Citations > Zotero
  2. Click Connect to Zotero
  3. Authorize Opus to access your library
  4. Your Zotero references are now searchable

Zotero Groups

Opus can access both your personal library and any Zotero groups you're a member of.

BibTeX Files

  1. Go to Settings > Citations > BibTeX
  2. Upload your .bib file or drag it into the upload area
  3. References are imported and indexed

You can upload multiple BibTeX files. They're merged into a single searchable library.

Paperpile

  1. Go to Settings > Citations > Paperpile
  2. Click Connect to Paperpile
  3. Authorize the connection
  4. Your Paperpile library is now available

DOI Lookup

You can always insert citations by DOI without any setup:

  1. Open the citation picker (/cite)
  2. Paste a DOI (e.g., 10.1234/example.2024)
  3. Opus fetches the reference metadata automatically

Citation Syntax

Basic Citation

[@smith2024]

Renders as: (Smith, 2024)

Multiple Citations

[@smith2024; @jones2023; @doe2022]

Renders as: (Smith, 2024; Jones, 2023; Doe, 2022)

Page Numbers

[@smith2024, p. 42]
[@smith2024, pp. 42-47]

Renders as: (Smith, 2024, p. 42)

Chapter/Section

[@smith2024, chap. 3]
[@smith2024, sec. 2.1]

Suppress Author

Use - to suppress the author name:

Smith [-@smith2024] argues that...

Renders as: Smith (2024) argues that...

Author Only

Use @ without brackets for author-date:

@smith2024 argues that...

Renders as: Smith (2024) argues that...

Narrative Citations

As @smith2024 demonstrated...
According to @smith2024 [p. 15]...

Bibliography

The bibliography is automatically generated at the end of your document. You can customize its placement by adding:

## References

::: {#refs}
:::

The {#refs} div marks where the bibliography should appear.

Citation Styles

Opus supports thousands of citation styles via CSL (Citation Style Language).

Changing Styles

  1. Go to Settings > Citations > Style
  2. Search for your desired style (e.g., "APA", "Chicago", "IEEE")
  3. Select the style
  4. Your document updates automatically

Common Styles

  • APA 7th Edition - Psychology, social sciences
  • Chicago (Author-Date) - General academic
  • Chicago (Notes) - Humanities
  • IEEE - Engineering, computer science
  • Vancouver - Medicine, biomedical
  • MLA 9th Edition - Literature, arts
  • Harvard - General academic (UK)

Custom Styles

If your journal requires a specific style:

  1. Find the CSL file (check Zotero Style Repository)
  2. Upload it in Settings > Citations > Custom Styles

Managing References

Viewing Your Library

Click the Citations icon in the sidebar to browse all imported references.

Editing References

  1. Find the reference in your library
  2. Click to open details
  3. Edit fields as needed
  4. Changes sync to your citations

Unused References

Opus tracks which references are actually cited. You can:

  • View unused references
  • Remove unused references from your library
  • Export only cited references

Best Practices

  1. Cite as you write - Insert citations when you make claims
  2. Use DOI lookup - Quick way to add single references
  3. Keep Zotero synced - Your library stays current
  4. Check your style - Verify it matches journal requirements
  5. Review the bibliography - Look for errors before submitting

Troubleshooting

Citation Not Found

If a citation key shows as [@unknown]:

  • Check the key spelling matches your source
  • Ensure the source is connected and synced
  • Try re-importing the BibTeX file

Wrong Format

If citations render incorrectly:

  • Verify the correct CSL style is selected
  • Check for incomplete reference metadata
  • Some styles require specific fields (e.g., DOI, URL)

Next Steps