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Cover Letter Writing For Paper Submissio

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105 views

Cover Letter Writing For Paper Submissio

Uploaded by

Haroon Rashid
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Writing Cover Letter for Paper

Submission to a Journal

Ruzbeh Babaee (PhD.)


Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, UPM
What is Cover Letter?

• a letter sent with, and explaining the contents


of, another document or a parcel of goods.

• The cover letter is the journal editor’s first


encounter with your manuscript.
Why should I Submit a Cover Letter?

• Journal editor are busy people and receive


thousands of submissions every year. Make it
easy for them to do their job by writing a
short, concise and convincing cover letter
preparing them to read your paper.
The Function of Cover Letter

• It is through your cover letter that you state


the importance of your manuscript.

• It is through cover letter that you distinguish


your paper from the many other papers that
the journal editor has to read.
Some Tips for Writing a Cover Letter
• Never submit a manuscript to a journal without including a cover letter.

• When submitting the paper to the journal, the cover letter can be
uploaded as a Word file or simply copy and paste the text into a dedicated
area.

• Specify the name and title of the Editor-in-Chief of the journal and the
journal’s name before submitting your paper.

• Read the journal’s Author Guideline before making your cover letter.
Remember that every journal is different. For instance, Nature has highly
specific guidelines regarding the information that must be included in
cover letter; authors should state in a cover letter the number of words of
a text in the paper and the letter should contain100 words.
Conti…
• In the cover letter , you should state what type of
manuscript you are submitting. For instance, some journals
refer to “original articles” while others refer to “regular
papers”. Check this information in the Author Guidelines.

• Pay special attention to grammar, spelling and neatness of


your cover letter.

• The overall professionalism of your cover letter will help the


journal editor to view your paper as a high-level manuscript
even before he/she reads or scans the paper itself.
Develop an Outline for the Cover Letter

• An introduction stating the title of the manuscript and the journal to which you are
submitting.

• The reason why your study is important and relevant to the journal’s readership or field.

• The question your research answers.

• Your major experimental results and overall findings.

• The most important conclusions that can be drawn from your research.

• A statement that the manuscript has not been published and is not under consideration
for publication in any other journal.

• A statement that all authors approved the manuscript and its submission to the journal.

• Any other details that will encourage the editor to send your manuscript for review.
Write the Body of the Cover Letter

• Open your cover letter with a sentence or two


explaining why you are writing, the title of your
manuscript, and the title of the journal:

Example: “I am writing to submit our manuscript


entitled, “Taking antioxidants plus zinc reduces the
risk of advanced age-related macular degeneration
for high-risk patients,” for consideration for
publication in Archives of Ophthalmology.”
Conti…
• Briefly state the background for the problem.

• The focus of the paragraph is to explain why your research was needed
and clearly state the question your research answers.

• Clearly and concisely explain your results, findings, and conclusions.

• You can also include a sentence or two that links your findings to the
interests of the journal’s readership, if appropriate. It may be helpful to
review your abstract to stay focused on your most important results and
conclusions.

Example: “Because our findings could be applied in the clinic right away,
they are likely to be of great interest to the vision scientists, researchers,
and trainees who read your journal.”
Conti…
• As you write this explanation, think in terms of “how will my
manuscript benefit the journal?”

• The journal editor’s goal is to publish important, novel


findings that are within the journal’s scope and of interest to
its readership.

• Your goal is to show the editor how your manuscript meets


these criteria. Such manuscripts will be highly referenced,
which will increase the impact factor of the journal.

• Without exaggerating, explain the novelty, relevance, and


interest of your findings to researchers who read that journal.
Conti…
• After describing your research and findings, include a
paragraph with any journal-required statements. This
paragraph should also include statements about exclusivity
and author approval for submission.

Example: “This manuscript describes original work and is not


under consideration by any other journal. All authors
approved the manuscript and this submission.”
Conti…
• In your last paragraph, thank the editor for his or her
consideration.

Example: “Thank you for receiving our manuscript


and considering it for review. We appreciate your
time and look forward to your response.”
Basic Elements
• Make sure your cover letter includes the following basic letter
elements:

• Date

• Addressee name and mailing address.

• Salutation (such as “Dear Dr. Smith:” or “Dear Editor:”).

• Body of the letter.

• Closing (such as “Kind regards,” or “Thank you,”).

• Signature block (author’s signature, typed name and highest degree,


institution, and mailing address).
Revise the Cover Letter

• As you revise the cover letter, ask yourself if the impact,


novelty, and relevance of your findings are clear.

• Rewrite any sentences that are very long, do not make


your point clearly, or are cluttered with too many details.

• Cover letters should not exceed one page unless


absolutely necessary.

• If you write a cover letter that is longer than one page,


think carefully about how it can be shortened.
Conti…
• Eliminate unnecessary or redundant phrases like “in
order to” and “may have the potential to.”

• Make sure the letter is written in plain English.

• Remove any jargon and define all abbreviations at


first use.

• Proofread for spelling and grammar errors.


Conti…
Avoid the following:

• Statements that exaggerate or overstate results

• Conclusions that are not supported by the data reported in


the manuscript.

• Sentences repeated word-for-word from the manuscript text.

• Too many technical details.


Sample cover letter for submission of a paper to a journal

[Your Name]
[Your Affiliation]
[Your Address]

[Date]

Dear Dr. [Editor name]:


I/We wish to submit a new manuscript entitled “[title of article]” for consideration by the [journal
name].
I/We confirm that this work is original and has not been published elsewhere nor is it currently
under consideration for publication elsewhere.
In this paper, I/we report on _______. This is significant because __________. The paper should
be of interest to readers in the areas of __________.
[Please explain in your own words the significance and novelty of the work, the problem that is
being addressed, and why the manuscript belongs in this journal. Do not simply insert your
abstract into your cover letter! Briefly describe the research you are reporting in your paper, why
it is important, and why you think the readership of the journal would be interested in it.]
Please address all correspondence concerning this manuscript to me at [email address].
Thank you for your consideration of this manuscript.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Date

Dear editor,
We hereby submit a manuscript entitled ……… by…………… to be considered for
publication as an original article/a research article/ a review/ a case report in
……………. There are three files in all: the main manuscript file, Figures file
(containing 4 figures), and tables file (containing 2 figures).
The article demonstrates/ shows/ reveals……….. We believe these findings well
be of interest to the readers of your journal.
We declare that this manuscript is original, has not been published before and
is not currently being considered for publication elsewhere.
We wish to confirm that there are no known conflicts of interest associated
with this publication. The manuscript has been read and approved by all
named authors.
We hope you find our manuscript suitable for publication and look forward to
hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Your name,
Your affiliation
Thank You

[email protected]
https://upm.academia.edu/RuzbehBabaee

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