So I recently graduated from University and wanted to keep up my research skills by answering questions on Ask Historians. I however no longer have access to my universities library database and I am unsure where to find material I can cite. I have tried google scholar but thats usually only good for finding titles and dose not typically have the full articles. I have tried my local library but I live in a small town and our library has limited resources. I also can’t afford to go and buy every book that might be useful. Suggestions?
As u/DrOverhard mentioned, you can usually contact the authors directly. Everyone* loves hearing from people who want to read their work and they'll be happy to share with you!
(*Maybe there are some fusspots who hate fun, but most people will be happy.)
You could also check if the author has a page on Academia.edu and/or researchgate.net, since they sometimes post the full texts of articles there (sometimes even full books too).
Another option is here on reddit, r/Scholars, where you can ask people with library access to find books or articles for you.
Does your university library have any resources for alumni? Your local library might also be able to get books from a bigger library. (My university/local libraries aren't very helpful, but maybe you'll have better luck with yours.)
Sorry in advance if this doesn’t meet the standards of the sub! If you directly contact the author of an article you want to read, they will frequently send it to you.
Academia is moving more and more toward open access for publications- assisted by the pandemic. JSTOR (which you’ll probably be familiar with from your uni days) also runs some free access to journals and articles. I like their daily twitter posting. Speaking of Twitter, that’s another great place. Not just following academics and authors you admire, but also institutions’ outreach wings and journals in your specialty. Most recent articles are often in front of the pay wall for an initial period to generate interest.
You can also follow blogs from reputable sources that will keep you up to date on the trends in your field/interests. I research global imperial history, so for me getting weekly emailed updates from this blog helps me keep abreast of the historiography across many different publishings. Or something like this for more general fun reads.