Author demographics: try searching an author's name in Google Images or LinkedIn for clues.
Longform, first-person journalism, try Search Everything; type your topic into one search box and Personal Narrative into another, and limit to Source Type >> Magazines.
Fiction: try WorldCat (you can get fancy with Advanced Search and limiters).Start early, and the library may be able to get you books we don't own.
Poetry: try Poets.org; use Advanced Search, or Browse Poems & Poets >> Themes or Occasions.
To search for authors of literary works by demographic category (gender, race, nationality, etc.), try Literature Resource Center's Person Search.
Alternative media: Try Films on Demand in addition to/instead of YouTube.
Academic Search Premier is the library's most popular database because it includes multi-disciplinary coverage,full-text access to journal articles and other scholarly materials not typically available through web searches.
A collection of core scholarly journals in arts, humanities, general science and social sciences dating back to the late 17th century (journals are always included from volume 1, issue 1 up to 1-5 years ago). JSTOR is great for historical research but not for current research.
REMEMBER!
Limit to peer-reviewed journals in Academic Search Premier by checking the box in the left sidebar
Most journals in JSTOR are peer-reviewed, but if you have any doubt, try looking up the journal title in the library's Journal Finder.
Use the Cite button in the databases to generate an MLA citation, but it's up to you to make sure that it's crafted correctly -- Purdue OWL's MLA guide can help.
A YouTube alternative: over 20,000 quality documentary films and film clips from the BBC, Ken Burns, A&E, and other companies, in a wide range of subject areas.