What our journal submission support covers ¶
Journal submission support helps researchers get a finished manuscript ready for a specific journal and through peer review. An editor in your field helps you shortlist suitable journals, formats the manuscript to the author guidelines, reviews your cover letter and coaches your point-by-point response to reviewers when revisions come back.
This service focuses on the submission package and process. If the language of the paper itself needs work, pair it with manuscript editing or English editing first. Our guide on how to publish a research paper sets out the full process if you are preparing your first submission.
Your editor is matched to your field, so they know its leading journals, its reporting conventions and what reviewers in your area tend to question. That matters most for the parts of a submission that are easy to get wrong: scope, article type and the declarations each journal expects.
Choosing a journal: using journal finder tools well ¶
Read three recent articles from each shortlisted journal. If yours would look out of place beside them, keep looking.
Publisher tools such as Springer Nature's Journal Suggester, Elsevier's JournalFinder and Wiley's Journal Finder match your title and abstract to journals in their own portfolios. They are a useful start, but each one only suggests its own publisher's titles. Your editor helps you look wider and check each option against the points that matter.
- Scope: the aims and scope page and articles the journal has published recently
- Article types: whether your paper fits as an original article, brief report or review
- Indexing: listing in databases your field relies on, such as Web of Science, Scopus or MEDLINE
- Open access: article processing charges and any funder requirements
- Legitimacy: warning signs of predatory journals, using checklists such as Think. Check. Submit.
You make the final choice. We give you a reasoned shortlist and explain the trade-offs.
Journal Submission & Response to Reviewers
Send your file today and get a quote with a matched editor.
Cover letter for journal submission ¶
A cover letter is short and practical. It tells the editor what you are submitting, why it fits the journal and what they need to know about ethics and competing interests. Many journals also ask you to confirm the work is not under consideration elsewhere.
Cover letter template
Dear Dr [Editor's surname],
Please consider our manuscript, "[Title]", for publication as a [article type] in [Journal].
[One or two sentences on the research question and main finding.] [One sentence on why this matters to the journal's readers.]
This manuscript has not been published and is not under consideration elsewhere. All authors have approved the submission and declare [no competing interests / the following interests].
Sincerely,
[Corresponding author, affiliation, email]
Send us your draft letter and your editor will comment on clarity, fit with the journal's scope and anything the guidelines ask you to state.
Response to reviewers and resubmission support ¶
A major or minor revision decision is an invitation to resubmit. The response letter matters as much as the revised paper. Reviewers want to see each comment answered, a clear note of what changed and where, and a calm, evidence-based reply where you disagree.
- Copy every reviewer comment into a table or numbered list.
- Reply to each one directly, starting with what you did.
- Give page and line numbers for every change.
- Where you disagree, explain why with evidence or citations, and thank the reviewer for raising the point.
Your editor reviews your response letter and revised manuscript, comments on tone, completeness and consistency between the two, and checks the revised file still meets the author guidelines. Our guide on how to respond to reviewer comments includes a template and examples.
How it works, turnaround and integrity ¶
- Send your manuscript with the target journal or your shortlist, the author guidelines link and any decision letter.
- Get matched with an editor who knows your field's journals and conventions.
- Receive your files with Track Changes and margin comments, plus notes on the cover letter or response letter.
- Ask follow-up questions about any comment before you submit.
Turnaround runs from 24 hours to 7 days depending on length; see our pricing page. No editor can promise acceptance, because that decision belongs to the journal's editors and reviewers. You remain the author and are responsible for the content, data and declarations, in line with COPE guidance. Some journals and institutions ask authors to acknowledge editing help, so please check their policies and read our academic integrity policy.