Sunday, December 11, 2016

How to Write a Manuscript Submission Cover Letter

The communication of our research findings is a foundational pillar to our careers as scientists. One of the most common ways we scientists share information is by publishing papers in peer-reviewed journals. This primary method of information dissemination allows us to share our research findings both to our colleagues as well as the public at large. When preparing a manuscript for submission to a journal for peer review and subsequent publication, a lot of work goes into preparing a variety of documents. One of the important documents is a cover letter to the editor. This letter represents a significant hurdle for new and young researchers because it is often unclear what a cover letter should actually look like, and what information should be included. In this week's post I want to go over what a good cover letter could look like and how you can write your own. I say this is what it could look like because there is certainly a lot of room for interpretation and personal style, and there are many correct ways to do it. Here I am just going to cover one potential way to tackle the problem.