A Few Words on Cover Letters
Greetings again. I hope you’re doing well.
Here at Texas A&M University, I’m in the midst of teaching a 3-week intensive course in research writing. I’ve given this course every summer since 2008. This year, the attendees include researchers from Bangladesh, Mexico, Nigeria, and Sri Lanka.
Whenever I give this course, I revise my presentations somewhat. This year, among other things, I’m expanding the content on cover letters. Here are some items that I plan to say about cover letters:
A cover letter is a letter that accompanies and introduces something being sent. For a journal article, it is a letter submitted with the manuscript. Purposes include identifying the manuscript and noting that it follows the journal’s requirements.
If relevant, a cover letter also may identify the category of article or say what part of the journal the article is intended for. In addition, it may provide context, explain why the findings are valuable, and say why the research is suited for this journal.
Providing context and explaining importance can be especially useful when submitting a manuscript to a fairly general journal. At such a journal, the editor who decides whether to send the article for peer review might not be an expert on your research topic.
Recent resources for writing cover letters include
Do you have suggestions or questions regarding cover letters? Or do you have additional resources to recommend? If so, please post a comment.
Until the next post—
Barbara