Template
What editors actually read in a submission cover letter
Your manuscript is ready and the submission system is asking for a cover letter addressed to an editor you have never met.
- Typical length
- One page, and rarely more than 400 words. Editors read many of these a day, and length works against you.
- Usual tense
- Present tense for what the paper does and argues, past tense for what the study did.
- First person
- Standard and expected — the letter is a direct address from you to the editor, so “we report” is the natural construction.
- Citations
- Only when you name a specific article in the journal to establish fit. The letter has no reference list.
- What not to include
- Do not restate the abstract, do not exaggerate novelty, and do not mention that the paper was rejected elsewhere unless the journal asks about prior submissions.
- Check the author guidelines
- Required declaration wording, whether reviewer suggestions are invited, and whether the letter is pasted into a form field rather than uploaded.
THE SKELETON
Section by section
Each block gives you the heading, what it has to accomplish, and the questions that fill it.
1
Heading and Salutation
Date, journal name, and the editor by name and title. Getting the name right is a small signal that you looked at the journal at all.
- Who is the current editor-in-chief or the relevant handling editor?
- Does the journal have section editors you should address instead?
- Is the journal name spelled and capitalized exactly as the journal writes it?
2
Opening Statement
One sentence naming the manuscript title, the article type, and the journal. Editors triage on this line, so it carries no throat-clearing.
- What is the exact title as it appears on the manuscript?
- Which article category are you submitting under — original research, review, short report?
- Are you responding to a special issue or a call for papers?
3
Fit With the Journal
Two or three sentences on why this journal and not another. Reference the journal’s scope or recent work it has published, specifically.
- Which part of the aims-and-scope statement does your paper answer to?
- Which recent article in this journal does yours speak to?
- Who is the journal’s readership, and why does this matter to them?
4 · about a third of the letter
The Contribution
The heart of the letter: what the study did, what it found, and why that is new. Three or four sentences, written for an editor who is not a specialist in your subfield.
- What is the main finding, stated with its magnitude or substance?
- What did the field believe or not know before this paper?
- Why now — what makes the timing right?
- Can a non-specialist editor follow every sentence?
5
Declarations
The statements the journal requires: originality, not under consideration elsewhere, author agreement, conflicts of interest, funding, ethics approval, and data availability.
- Which declarations does this journal’s author guidance list as mandatory?
- Have all co-authors seen and approved the submitted version?
- Is any part of this work published elsewhere, including as a preprint or conference paper?
- Which funder and grant number must be acknowledged?
6
Reviewer Suggestions and Exclusions
Where the journal invites them, name suggested reviewers with affiliations and a line on their expertise, and any you ask to be excluded.
- Who works on this problem without a conflict of interest with you?
- Have you avoided recent co-authors, colleagues, and advisors?
- If you request an exclusion, is the stated reason professional rather than personal?
7
Closing and Signature
A brief closing, your name, affiliation, and the corresponding author’s contact details. No pressure, no thanks in advance.
- Is the corresponding author’s email one you will still read in six months?
- Have you included an ORCID identifier if the journal uses them?
- Does the letter fit on one page?
SENTENCE STARTERS
Phrasing you can adapt
Lift these and change the specifics. Academic phrasing is a shared convention, not something each writer has to reinvent.
I am writing to submit our manuscript, “…,” for consideration as an original research article in …
Please find enclosed our manuscript, “…,” submitted for the special issue on …
On behalf of my co-authors, I am pleased to submit …
We would like to submit the enclosed manuscript for publication in …
This work speaks directly to the journal’s interest in …
It builds on the discussion opened by Author (Year) in your … issue.
Given the journal’s readership of …, we believe the findings will be of practical use.
The study addresses a question your recent editorial identified as unresolved.
This manuscript is original, has not been published previously, and is not under consideration elsewhere.
All authors have read and approved the submitted version.
The authors declare no competing interests.
The study was approved by … (reference …), and all participants gave informed consent.
Questions about the journal cover letter
Do editors really read cover letters?
Many do, particularly at the desk-rejection stage, where the letter is the fastest route to deciding whether a paper is in scope. Some journals treat it as a formality, but you cannot tell which from outside.
Should the letter repeat the abstract?
No. The editor has the abstract. The letter should say what the abstract cannot: why this journal, why now, and what the paper changes.
Can I suggest reviewers, and does it help?
Where the journal invites suggestions, yes — you know the small set of people who work on your problem. Avoid anyone with a conflict of interest; editors check, and a stacked list damages your credibility.
What if I am submitting to a second journal after rejection?
Write a fresh letter aimed at the new journal’s scope. You are not obliged to disclose the earlier rejection unless asked, but you should make sure the letter no longer argues fit with the previous venue.
Related templates
Response to Reviewers
You received a revise-and-resubmit decision and now have to answer every comment in a way that gets the paper accepted.
Conference Abstract
A call for papers closes soon and you need to describe work that may not be finished, in a form a review panel will score against a rubric.
Abstract Template
You have a finished paper and 250 words to make an editor, a reviewer, and a search engine understand it.
An outline is a start
Plan mode is the rest
Copyeditor’s Plan mode turns a structure like this into sections you produce one at a time, with citations landing in the bibliography as you go.
