Write a journal submission cover letter for my manuscript
A concise cover letter to the editor that states the contribution, fit with the journal, and required declarations.
The prompt
Write a cover letter to accompany my manuscript submission.
Journal and editor (if known): [NAME]
Manuscript title and article type: [e.g. "original research", "brief report"]
Abstract or main findings: [PASTE]
Why this journal: [aims and scope, recent related papers in it, readership]
What is new compared with prior work: [1-3 points]
Declarations: [conflicts of interest, funding, preprint, data availability, ethics approval, prior submission history]
Suggested or excluded reviewers (optional): [NAMES and reasons]
Requirements:
- One page maximum, four short paragraphs: what the paper is, what it finds, why it matters to this journal's readers, and the declarations.
- Lead with the contribution, not with background. Avoid overstatement ("first ever", "paradigm-shifting") unless clearly supported.
- Tie fit to the journal's stated scope, not flattery.
- Include the standard statement that the work is original and not under consideration elsewhere only if I confirm it is true.
Return the letter, then a checklist of anything the journal typically requires in cover letters that I have not provided, marked [CONFIRM].
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Email & Workplace Communication prompts
What to fill in
- NAME
- e.g. "original research", "brief report"
- PASTE
- aims and scope, recent related papers in it, readership
- NAMES and reasons
- CONFIRM
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the RTF structure (Role, Task, Format). RTF tells the model who to be, what to do and what shape the answer should take. It is the quickest structure that still gives noticeably better results than a bare request.
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