Hi. This is Karen McKee, retired scientist and author, with another video about scientific
writing.
You've finished writing and proofreading your paper and are ready to submit the manuscript
to a journal.
Along with the manuscript, you need to submit a cover letter to the editor.
But you may be wondering what to put in that letter.
Novice authors often write ineffective cover letters that basically say, here's my paper
on topic x, which I'm submitting for publication.
A better cover letter would take the opportunity to explain why the paper is important and
of interest to readers.
In fact, a good cover letter can help you convince the journal editor that your paper
should be seriously considered and sent out for review.
So, let's take a look at how to write a good cover letter.
First, check the journal's instructions for authors to see if a cover letter is required.
If so, carefully follow the instructions and include all the requested information.
Some journals do not want a cover letter and instead ask the author to answer a series
of questions.
We'll take a look at both options.
But first, the cover letter.
I'm going to use a letter based on a hypothetical study.
First, don't address your letter to whom it may concern or some other generic salutation.
Instead, find the name of the editor on the journal's website and use it.
Next, state that you are submitting an original research paper (or some other article type
such as a review) along with the title of the paper and the name of the journal.
Here, you can see I've made up a name for a hypothetical paper about response of two
plant species to rising sea level.
In the next sentence or two, briefly summarize your main finding and why it's important.
Here, the author stated the outcome of the study, that the two species responded similarly,
and that this is important because it relates to how vulnerable the ecosystem will be to
submergence as sea-level rises.
In the next paragraph, you can explain your approach and describe the results in a bit
more detail.
In this case, the author described what type of study and a bit about the design and methods.
This hypothetical example is a bit generic, so you might want to provide some specifics
here, such as where the field experiment was conducted.
If you've used a novel method, you might want to emphasize its advantages here and why it
is superior to methods used by other workers.
Next, you want to explicitly explain why the journal would be interested in your paper.
Here, you want to point out that your study topic falls within the scope of the journal
and that your findings will be of interest to the readership.
Give specific reasons why readers will want to read your paper.
In this hypothetical example, the author mentioned that the paper will help readers understand
the complexities of predicting how climate change will affect coastal ecosystems.
Also, that the study will inform resource managers and others involved in restoration
of such systems.
The last sentence in that paragraph indicates that the study data will be freely available,
something that more journals are requiring or at least encouraging authors to do.
Here, you would indicate your willingness and give the specifics of such a database.
You may also mention the length of your paper and whether it conforms to the journal guidelines.
Finally, it''s a good idea to include a statement that the work has not been published previously
and is not under consideration elsewhere.
You would end the letter by giving your name and contact information as well as those of
your co-authors.
Before we move on, let me emphasize a few dos and don'ts.
Don't copy and paste your abstract into the cover letter.
Instead, use your own words to explain your work, the question your study addresses, and
why the journal is the right choice for its publication.
Avoid jargon and acronyms as much as possible.
The editor may not be a specialist in your particular field, and you don't want her wondering
what a particular term means.
Some people advise keeping cover letters short, no longer than one page.
That's a generally good rule of thumb, but you may need to do a bit more explaining than
I've shown in this example.
Follow your target journal's instructions about what information to include in your
letter.
It's best to draft your letter in a word processing program, even if the journal provides an online
box to type the letter.
This approach will allow you to carefully proofread your letter before submission.
You certainly don't want any grammatical or punctuation errors, and you also don't want
to misstate or overstate your study's findings.
Also, by preparing a word document, you will have a copy of your cover letter that can
be used as a template for future letters.
As I mentioned earlier, some journals do not want cover letters and instead ask a series
of questions.
Let's take a look at an example from one of my submissions.
When I submitted this paper for consideration by Global Change Biology, I had to answer
four questions and there was a limit of 50 words per answer.
The first question was, What is the scientific question you are addressing?
Here, you need to focus on your main research question and to include as much relevant information
as possible.
My answer was, Will climate- or disturbance-induced fluctuations in salt marsh-mangrove dominance
alter vulnerability of a subtropical, coastal wetland to sea-level rise?
If you have addressed multiple questions, either pick the most important one or try
to incorporate them all into one overarching question.
The next question asks what is the key finding that answers this question?
In this case, I said that both marsh and mangrove as well as mixed stands of both plant types
were equal in their rates of accretion and elevation gain.
Then I explained that the significance of this finding was that climate or disturbance
driven shifts in vegetation would not likely alter vulnerability of these wetlands to sea-level
rise.
The third question asks why this work is important and timely?
Here, you want to put your work into a broader perspective or explain why it advances the
field of study.
I was able to explain that mangroves are expanding and replacing salt marsh, not only at our
study site, but globally.
Then I described how such information was needed to predict coastal submergence and
for restoration planning, particularly where vegetation shifts due to climate change are
occurring.
The final question asks the author to explain how the paper falls within the scope of Global
Change Biology.
I was able to list both biological and global aspects of our paper, which showed it was
relevant for publication in this particular journal.
Other journals that use this approach would likely ask similar questions relevant to their
topic.
They may also ask you to provide a list of recent papers on your topic to assist editors
in selecting reviewers.
Here, you want to select papers by colleagues who are knowledgeable and able to fairly review
your manuscript.
It takes a bit of time and thought to write a good cover letter or to address questions
about why your paper is important.
But many editors use this information to screen submissions.
So, it's worthwhile to take your time and write an effective and convincing letter.
Thanks for watching and please leave a comment if you have a question.