Cover Letter

 

1. 什么是Cover letter?

Cover Letter, 即投稿信，是论文投递时与论文一起发送给编辑的信件，其目的是让编辑在阅读你的论文之前，简单了解你文章的基本情况。Cover letter是编辑对论文的第一印象，也是初步评判你论文是否可以被期刊接收的重要依据（如果编辑看完Cover letter之后一点兴趣也没有，就没有下文了），因此Cover letter的撰写是非常重要的。如何用简明扼要的语言抓住编辑的心是Cover letter撰写时最关键的一点！

 

2. Cover letter应该包含哪些内容？

完整的Cover letter一般包含以下内容：

A. 期刊编辑的姓名（不知道编辑是谁的情况下直接用Dear editor）;

B. 投稿文章的标题

C. 投稿文章的类型（Letter, communications, article, review还是comments）

D. 文章简介，包括：(1)研究背景；(2)论文的重要发现；(3)论文可以发表在期刊上的原因：引发读者兴趣的地方，与期刊的契合之处等等

E. 稿件出版道德规范的免责说明（这个部分很多期刊在网站上投稿时会进行确认，cover letter里面可以不出现）以及对稿件有无特殊处理要求（一般指屏蔽某些竞争者成为审稿人）

F. 作者信息：一般为通讯作者姓名，所属机构，通讯地址，联系电话，邮箱等

G. 推荐审稿人名单（注：目前很多杂志社已经将这一部分挪到了投稿网站系统上，Cover letter中可以不再列出）

 

3. Cover Letter的具体写法示例：

A. 论文通讯作者的信息，可以放到前面也可以放到后面，这个主要看个人习惯：

i) 放到最前面时，一般采用如下格式：

底下紧接Dear Editor...

 

ii) 放到后面的话，紧接作者署名的后面，可以简单地用下面的格式：

 

B. Cover letter第一段

Dear editor（如果确切知道编辑名称，可以直接写其名字）,

We are submitting a manuscript entitled “论文标题” for your consideration for publication as a communication in 期刊名.

 

Cover Letter的第一段就是要简明扼要地告诉编辑：你要干什么？

 

类似的，还有：

Dear editor,

Please find enclosed our manuscript entitled “论文标题” which we would like to submit for publication as a communication in 期刊名.

 

标准的，一般还需要在第一段进行投稿的道德规范免责说明：

The work described has not been submitted elsewhere for publication, in whole or in part, and all the authors listed have approved the manuscript that is enclosed.

 

C. Cover letter第二段

第二段开始是整个cover letter的核心部分，要告诉editor这篇文章的亮点在哪里，有何创新之处，为什么适合于发表在这个期刊上，有哪些点可以吸引到期刊的读者等等。

备注：这个部分确实很重要，但是很难给大家列出一个很恰当的实例，容我三思，准备一下，下次再推出

 

D. Cover letter最后

1) 屏蔽竞争对手成为审稿人

例句：Due to a direct competition and conflict of interest, we request that Drs. XXX of Harvard Univ., and YY of Yale Univ. not be considered as reviewers.

 

2）推荐审稿人：一般找论文参考文献的作者，也可以推荐你在学术会议上认识的相关领域的朋友等。

The following is a list of possible reviewers for your consideration:
1) Name A E-mail: ××××@××××
2) Name B E-mail: ××××@××××

 

3）按照信件的格式进行署名,一般如：

Sincerely yours, Best wishes, Best regards, XXX. 在署名前也可以加上一些客套话（不是必须的），如：

We deeply appreciate your consideration of our manuscript, and we look forward to receiving comments from the reviewers. If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact me at the address below.

 

SCI 论文投稿时需要递送一封 Cover letter。你曾经有没有过这样的经历：刚提笔准备写第一句话就陷入沉思——称呼怎么写？或许有的作者认为直接写 Dear editors 就可以了，不用和老外说套话。也有不少作者犹豫写 Dear Mr.+ 编辑名字，可是不知道编辑是谁，怎么写名字呢？ 2007 年离开哈佛大学回国开始从事专业 SCI 论文修改编辑的张科宏老师是这样建议的： Cover letter 不要用匿名的称呼，不太礼貌。

最好的写法是：Dear Dr. + 编辑名字 或者 Dear Prof. + 编辑名字。 在杂志主页通常都会有主编介绍，查阅一下 Editorial board 就能找到。万一主页实在找不到，还可以 google 搜索，不要嫌麻烦。记得我 2004 年在哈佛大学做助理教授，在杂志上看到 Wiley 正在招聘中国区编辑主任，广告上写把申请材料用电子邮件发送到人事部门，我费了很大功夫找到了人事部门负责人的名字，申请台头写的是他的名字，结果几天后就接到他亲自打来的电话。称呼是笼统的或是具体到个人的，都可能会给阅信人对作者的态度 / 诚意留下截然不同的印象。 此外，写 cover letter 时还有一些细节值得注意。

Tips 1 ：作者在自称时一定要用 I，不能用 We。尽管一篇文章的作者可能有很多位，但 cover letter 是 corresponding author 写给杂志主编的投稿信。如果 corresponding author 只有一位，那么在自称和落款的时候只需要写一个人，不必把所有作者写进去。

Tips 2：在提到投稿杂志时，一定要明确写出杂志的全称，杂志名要加斜体，这是国际书写规范，千万不能用 your journal 这样极不准确的说法。

Tips 3：撰写内容方面，通常 Guide for authors 提出要求，诸如申明没有一稿多投、申明没有利益冲突等等。当然，有些杂志不会特别要求作者把文章研究的大致内容写进 cover letter，但如果作者可以主动地把文章亮点（如创新点）挖掘并在 cover letter 里精炼地呈现出来，将更有利于主编 / 审稿人审稿。

 

SCI论文投稿Cover Letter的写作和中文投稿有很大的不同，Cover Letter的撰写对于新手而言不知该写什么，而对于老手往往又被忽视，Cover Letter重要吗？可有可无吗？ 下面我将从科学网转载系列有关Cover Letter的帖子，但愿对于新手、老手都有所帮助：
#1 Cover Letter实用指南(zz)

1、 什么是Cover Letter？
指的是投稿信

2、cover letter的内容主要包括那些？
应该简述所投稿件的核心内容、主要发现和意义，拟投期刊，对稿件处理有无特殊要求等（如“not to review” list）。另外，请附上主要作者的中文姓名、通讯地址、电话、传真和e-mail地址。此外有的杂志要求推荐几位审稿人及其联系方式。以及谁已经阅读过该文（当然是牛人）。
我投的那个杂志是要求说明你论文研究的意义，以及与这个杂志的相关性，另外还有的可能要写明你没有一搞多投等。此外临床实验要求写明符合伦理学要求。

3、 如何写cover letter？
各个杂志的具体要求是不一样的，在杂志的guide for authors一般会有要求。如果没有具体的要求，大家可按照通用要求处理。

4、常用模板：
（1）
Cover letter
Dear Mr. **
1. The work described has not been submitted elsewhere for publication, in whole or in part, and all the authors listed have approved the manuscript that is enclosed.

2. I have read and have abided by the statement of ethical standards for manuscripts submitted to Neuroscience.

kind regards.
Your sincerely,
通讯作者

（2）
Dear Dr. 主编name:
We submit our manuscript entitled " 文章title" to 杂志名for publication. 接着简单介绍你文章的主要创新点和意义，不易过多，但要突出新意和关键点。 All authors have seen the manuscript and approved to submit to your journal.
Thank you very much for your attention and consideration.

Sincerely yours,
通讯作者

（3）
Dear Dr. 主编name:
We submit our manuscript entitled " 文章title" to 杂志名for publication. 接着简单介绍你文章的主要创新点和意义，不易过多，但要突出新意和关键点。 All authors have seen the manuscript and approved to submit to your journal.
Thank you very much for your attention and consideration.

Sincerely yours,
通讯作者

（4）
Dr. ***
Editor-in-Chief, ***
(add address) January 22, 2003

Dear Dr. **,

Enclosed herewith please find 3 copies of a MS by: ‘***. *** and ***’ entitled: “**********”, which we would like to submit for publication in the ‘******'.

Looking forward to your decision,
With kind personal regards,
Sincerely yours,

*****
Professor of ***

（5）
Dear Prof. Gil:
This is a manuscript by**and **entitled “.......”. It is submitted to be considered for publication as a “...” in your journal. This paper is new. Neither the entire paper nor any part of its content has been published or has been accepted elsewhere. It is not being submitted to any other journal.
We believe the paper may be of particular interest to the readers of your journal as it ........
Correspondence should be addressed to **at the following address, phone and fax number, and email address:
...
Thanks very much for your attention to our paper.
Sincerely yours,
**

5、 例文：下面例文都来自丁香园战友，在此一并感谢。
（一）
Date: Sep 15, 2003
Dear Editors:

On behalf of my co-authors, I am submitting the enclosed material “ TITLE ” for possible publication in JOURNAL.

We certify that we have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the appropriateness of the experimental design and method, and the collection, analysis, and interpretation of the data.

We have reviewed the final version of the manuscript and approve it for publication. To the best of our knowledge and belief, this manuscript has not been published in whole or in part nor is it being considered for publication elsewhere.

Best Regards.

Yours Sincerely,

NAME,ADRESS,EMAIL,FAX

（二）
Dear Dr Regino Perez-Polo：
Enclosed are a manuscript by su jian, yang kun, chen zhihua．Su jian titled“Hypothermia after Acute Ischemic Stroke
”．It is submitted to be considered for publication as a“review" in your journal．This paper is～?Neither the entire paper nor any part of its content has been published or has been accepted elsewhere ．It is not being submitted to any other journal．
We believe the paper may be of particular interest to the readers of your journal.
Correspondence and phone calls about the paper should be directed to Su jian at the following address，phone and fax number，and e-mail address：

Su jian
Institute:,
Adress:
Tel：
Fax:
E-mail：
Thanks very much for your attention to our paper．
Sincerely yours，
Su jian

（三）
Dear Editor,

We would like to submit the enclosed manuscript entitled "GDNF Acutely Modulates Neuronal Excitability and A-type Potassium Channels in Midbrain Dopaminergic Neurons", which we wish to be considered for publication in Nature Neuroscience.

GDNF has long been thought to be a potent neurotrophic factor for the survival of midbrain dopaminergic neurons, which are degenerated in Parkinson’s disease. In this paper, we report an unexpected, acute effect of GDNF on A-type potassium channels, leading to a potentiation of neuronal excitability, in the dopaminergic neurons in culture as well as in adult brain slices. Further, we show that GDNF regulates the K+ channels through a mechanism that involves activation of MAP kinase. Thus, this study has revealed, for the first time, an acute modulation of ion channels by GDNF. Our findings challenge the classic view of GDNF as a long-term survival factor for midbrain dopaminergic neurons, and suggest that the normal function of GDNF is to regulate neuronal excitability, and consequently dopamine release. These results may also have implications in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease.

Due to a direct competition and conflict of interest, we request that Drs. XXX of Harvard Univ., and YY of Yale Univ. not be considered as reviewers. With thanks for your consideration, I am

Sincerely yours,

（四）
Dear **.
We would like to submit the enclosed manuscript entitled " *** ", which we wish to be considered for publication in **journal.
We believe that two aspects of this manuscript will make it interesting to general readers of **journal. First, ***. Second, ***. Further, ***.
Thank you very much your considering our manuscript for potential publication. I'm looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Best wishes.

（五）
To: SOLA Chief Editor
Division of Geoenvironmental Sciences
University of Tsukuba
Tsukuba 305-8572, JAPAN
E-Mail: sola@sakura.cc.tsukuba.ac.jp
Dear Sirs,
I am sending herewith a copy of the manuscript, which I would like to submit to SOLA, the Electronic Journal of the Meteorological Society of Japan.
The paper is entitled:
Energy Spectrum Proportional to the Squared Phase Speed of
Rossby Modes in the General Circulation of the Atmosphere
by H. L. Tanaka, Yasushi Watarai, and Takahiro Kanda.
Copy of the Abstract:
In this study, energy spectrum of the large-scale atmospheric motions is examined in the framework of the 3D normal mode decomposition. The horizontal scale of disturbance is measured by the phase speed of a Rossby mode c. According to the analysis result for the barotropic component of the atmosphere, we obtain a characteristic energy spectrum with distinct slopes for the turbulence and wave regimes separated by the spherical Rhines speed. In order to explain the observational finding that the energy spectrum is proportional to c^2, we put forward a hypothesis based on the criterion of Rossby wave breaking such that the local meridional gradient of potential vorticity becomes negative, dq/dy < 0, somewhere in the domain. With a constant m describing a total mass of the atmosphere for unit area, we have shown that the barotropic energy spectrum of the general circulation E can be represented as E=mc^2.
Corresponding Author:
Dr. Hiroshi L. Tanaka
Division of Geoenvironmental Sciences
University of Tsukuba
Tsukuba 305-8572, JAPAN
Tel: +81-29-853-4502 +81-29-853-4502
Fax: +81-29-853-6879
E-Mail: tanaka@sakura.cc.tsukuba.ac.jp
I hereby certify that this paper consists of original, unpublished work which is not under consideration for publication elsewhere.
Desired Editors in Charge:
Kimoto, Masahide University of Tokyo
Mak, Mankin University of Illinois
Five Potential Reviewers:
Name-1, e-mail address-1
Name-2, e-mail address-2
Name-3, e-mail address-3
Name-4, e-mail address-4
Name-5, e-mail address-5
The original manuscript and figures will be transferred, following the instruction by the Editorial Committee when the paper is accepted. I hope your favorable consideration for publication to SOLA.
Sincerely,
Hiroshi L. Tanaka
Attachment: PDF file of the manuscript.
转自http://opticalcommunication.blogbus.com/logs/4114204.html