How to Prepare a Journal Article for Submission

To prepare a journal article for submission, choose a journal that fits your work, follow its author guidelines exactly and assemble every required file and declaration before you upload. Many papers are rejected at the editor's desk for avoidable reasons.

This guide is for graduate students and early-career researchers turning a thesis chapter, DNP project or study into a manuscript. It covers journal choice, formatting, files, the cover letter, ethics and authorship, the online system and what to expect after submission.

Choosing the Right Journal

Fit matters more than prestige. A strong paper sent to the wrong journal is often returned within days without review.

• Read the aims and scope, and recent issues, to check your topic and design fit.
• Look at article types and word limits; a practice project may suit a brief report or quality improvement section.
• Consider the audience: clinicians, researchers, educators or policymakers.
• Check open access options and any article processing charges.
• Note typical review times if your timeline matters.

Be wary of journals that solicit by email, promise very fast acceptance or are vague about peer review and fees. Checking whether a journal is indexed in the databases you use, listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals where it is open access, and a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics helps you avoid predatory publishers.

Turning a Thesis or Project into an Article

A thesis chapter is not an article. Journals want a single clear contribution in far fewer words, so most of the work is cutting and refocusing.

Check whether your thesis is publicly available in a repository; most journals accept articles derived from theses, but some ask you to disclose it.

Following the Author Guidelines

Every journal publishes instructions for authors. Read them in full and make a checklist; editors notice quickly when they have been ignored.

• Article type, word limit and what counts towards it.
• Abstract format and length, and number of keywords.
• Heading structure and section order.
• Reference style, such as APA 7th, Vancouver or the journal's own.
• Limits on tables, figures and references.
• Line numbering, spacing and file type.
• Rules for anonymizing the manuscript for blind review.

Title, Abstract and Keywords

Editors and reviewers decide quickly, often from the title and abstract alone, whether a paper is worth their time. Give these elements more care than their length suggests.

• Make the title specific: name the topic, population and, where useful, the design.
• Avoid questions, puns and undefined abbreviations in the title unless the journal's style encourages them.
• Write the abstract last, in the journal's exact format, with your main figures.
• Choose keywords that add search terms not already in the title, using controlled vocabulary such as MeSH where relevant.

Check that every number in the abstract matches the results section and tables. Inconsistencies here are among the first things a reviewer notices.

Reporting Guidelines

Many health and science journals require a reporting guideline checklist, with page numbers showing where each item appears. Using it while writing, not after, saves rework.

The EQUATOR Network maintains a library of reporting guidelines if your design is not listed here.

Ethics, Authorship and Declarations

Submission systems ask for several statements. Prepare them in advance so the upload is not delayed.

• Ethics: name the approving body and reference number, or state the basis for exemption or a quality improvement determination, and how consent was handled.
• Authorship: many journals follow ICMJE criteria, which require substantial contribution to the work, drafting or critical revision, approval of the final version and accountability for the work. Others who helped go in the acknowledgments.
• Contributions: some journals ask for a contributor statement, often using the CRediT roles.
• Conflicts of interest and funding: declare all relevant interests and sources of support.
• Data availability: state whether and how data can be accessed.
• Use of AI tools: follow the journal's policy on disclosure.

Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal at a time is not permitted. Most journals also expect each author to have an ORCID identifier.

Writing the Cover Letter

A cover letter is short, usually a page or less. It tells the editor what you found, why it matters to their readers and confirms the required statements.

The study and names are illustrative. Keep the letter specific to the journal; a generic letter suggests the paper was sent to many journals in turn.

Using the Submission System

1. Create an account and link your ORCID.
2. Enter author names, affiliations and the corresponding author.
3. Paste the title, abstract and keywords, checking for formatting errors.
4. Upload files in the order and format requested.
5. Complete declarations and any checklist questions.
6. Suggest or exclude reviewers if invited, with genuine reasons.
7. Review the generated proof PDF carefully before approving.

What Happens After Submission

Review times vary widely between journals. Our guide on responding to peer reviewers explains how to write a response letter that addresses every comment.

Common Submission Mistakes

• Sending a thesis chapter almost unchanged.
• Ignoring the word limit or reference style.
• Leaving author names in an anonymized manuscript or file properties.
• Missing ethics, funding or conflict statements.
• Figures at too low a resolution or in the wrong format.
• An abstract that does not match the results.
• Choosing a journal from an unsolicited email without checking it.

How IvyDrafts Helps Prepare Journal Submissions

Send your manuscript, the target journal, its author guidelines and any co-author comments. A graduate manuscript editor checks structure, word count, references, reporting items and anonymization against the guidelines, edits for clarity, and drafts a custom cover letter for you to adapt.

We never add data, results or authors, and we do not submit on your behalf. Free revisions within the scope of your original request are included, and your identity is never shared with the editor.