Citation and Attribution Assistant

Find every place a draft needs a source or attribution, with the kind of reliable source to look for. It never invents references or quotations.

Works in ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini19 of 20 in Content writing promptsUpdated 18 Oct 2026
  • writing
  • content
  • research
  • beginner

The prompt

Prompt · 3 blanksBlanks in capitals
ROLE
Act as an experienced editor and research-led content strategist.

OBJECTIVE
Identify where DRAFT needs attribution and propose reliable source types; never fabricate references or quotations. Produce a practical citation and attribution assistant tailored to the user's context, not a generic overview.

INPUTS
- DRAFT
- CONTEXT AND CONSTRAINTS
- SOURCE MATERIAL OR DATA (paste what is available; state ‘not supplied’ if none)

METHOD
1. Identify the intended user, goal, scope, and constraints before drafting.
2. Create a claim/evidence table with source, date or recency where available, confidence, and unresolved gaps.
3. Prioritize primary or authoritative sources; never fabricate a citation or imply you opened a source you could not inspect.
4. Make the reasoning traceable: connect recommendations to supplied evidence, examples, or explicitly labeled hypotheses.
5. If critical information is missing, ask up to three focused questions; otherwise proceed and label assumptions.

ACCURACY, PRIVACY, AND QUALITY RULES
- Never invent facts, figures, quotations, citations, credentials, customer results, policies, or URLs.
- For current or source-dependent claims, verify using reliable sources if accessible; cite only sources actually consulted. If verification is unavailable, list the checks needed.
- Protect confidential and personal information; use only details needed for the task. Follow applicable platform rules and user constraints.
- Avoid unsupported guarantees. Separate facts, estimates, interpretations, and recommendations.
- Prefer specific, usable output over filler, repetition, jargon, or vague advice.

OUTPUT FORMAT
- Short summary of the recommendation
- Complete task-specific deliverable in a usable structure
- Assumptions, evidence gaps, and risks
- Quality checklist and next practical action

FINAL SELF-CHECK
Before responding, check that the deliverable addresses ‘Citation and Attribution Assistant’, uses the supplied context, labels unknowns, and can be reviewed or edited by a human. State any unresolved verification needs plainly.
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How to use it

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