Preparing a journal submission: a language and formatting checklist

Editors reject papers before review for avoidable reasons: wrong format, too many words, unclear English. Work through this list before you submit.

Read the author guidelines

Every journal publishes them. Note:

• the word limit, and what it includes (abstract, references, figure legends);
• the structure, such as Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion;
• the abstract format and length, structured or unstructured;
• spelling (UK or US) and the referencing style;
• rules for figures, tables and supplementary material.

Check the language

• One idea per sentence. Long sentences hide your findings.
• Consistent terms. If you call it "the intervention group" once, do not call it "the treated cohort" later.
• Define abbreviations at first use, in the abstract and again in the main text.
• Tense: past tense for what you did and found, present tense for what is generally known and what your findings mean.
• Hedge appropriately. "Suggests" and "may" for interpretation; "showed" for what you measured.

Check the structure

• Does the introduction end with a clear aim or question?
• Could another researcher repeat your methods from what you wrote?
• Do the results report findings without interpreting them?
• Does the discussion answer the question you asked in the introduction?

Check the references

• Every in-text citation is in the reference list, and the other way round.
• The format matches the journal's style exactly.
• DOIs are included if the journal asks for them.

Write a short cover letter

Say what you found, why it matters to this journal's readers, and confirm the paper is not under consideration elsewhere.

Our journal submission language editing works on the language; your data, methods and conclusions stay yours. We do not guarantee acceptance, which depends on your research and the journal's reviewers.