Guidelines for Review Process
How do we keep the review process on time?

Index of Sample E-mail Letters:

  1. Reply to Author for Initial Submission
  2. Letter to Referee for 1st-Round Review
  3. Reminder for Upcoming Referee Report
  4. Reminder for Overdue Referee Report
  5. Thank Referee for 1st-Round Outcome
  6. Letter to Author for 1st-Round Outcome
  7. Reply to Author for 2nd-Round Submission
  8. Letter to Referee for 2nd-Round Review
  9. Thank Referee for 2nd-Round Outcome
  10. Letter to Author for 2nd-Round Outcome
  11. Formal Acceptance Letter to Author for IEL Journal's Final Preparation

 
 
 
 

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1.  Reply to Author for Initial Submission:

Dear XXXX,

Thank you very much for submitting your paper, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
to the <<name of the journal>>.  Your paper has been assigned with an ID of XXXX-XXXX.  Please refer to this ID whenever you communicate with
our Editorial Offices in the future.

Your paper will undergo the NORMAL REVIEW PROCESS of the Journal (see
http://www.icebnet.org/Review/ for details.)   The process normally
takes 2 to 6 months to complete depending on the number of rounds the
reviews need to take place.  For the 1st-round review, it will take approximately 8 weeks.
Please do expect slight delay if the review period overlaps with a long holiday or Summer/Winter break.

Once again, thank you very much for your submission to the XXXX.

Best wishes,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 
 




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2.  Letter to Referee for 1st-Round Review:

Dear XXXX,

How are you?  I am sure you are busy with many activities right now.
However, I hope you could help us review the attached manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
that has been submitted for publication in the <<name of the journal>>
(XXXX).  Please let me know whether you are able to
take on this task as well as whether you can return the attached “Review
Form?by MMM DD, YYYY or earlier.  This Form also is downloadable from
<http://www.icebnet.org/Journal-Review-Form.doc>.

Your prompt action will be greatly appreciated by me as well as the
authors who are very anxious to know the outcome of the review process.
If you have any difficulty in refereeing this manuscript or in meeting
the due date of completion, please contact me as soon as possible by
e-mail at <Your E-mail Address>, so that another referee can be
appointed.

For your information, XXXX is a refereed journal publishing articles
that will present data and theory to help social scientists, business
people, educators, and policy makers find answers to their questions.
You may visit
<<URL of the Journal>> for more
details about XXXX.  Please evaluate the quality and contents of the
manuscript according to the standards set forth by the Journal.  In
particular, please make sure that the paper addresses issues of value to
our broad-based audience, and that it cuts through the thick layers of
theory and verbosity for them and makes sense of it all in a clean,
cohesive manner.

On behalf of the Editorial Team of the XXXX, I thank you very much in
advance for your effort in this endeavor.

Best regards,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:  Manuscript and Review Form.
 
 



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3.  Reminder for Upcoming Referee Report:

Subject: REMINDER: JJJJ-XXXX-Review-YYY

Dear XXXX,

This is a friendly reminder that your referee report for the captioned paper will be due on MMM DD, YYYY.  Would you please send me the report on time or as earlier as possible?

Thank you very much for your kind assistance.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 
 



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4.  Reminder for Overdue Referee Report:

Subject: OVERDUE: JJJJ-XXXX-Review-YYY

Dear XXXX,

This is a friendly reminder that your referee report for the captioned paper was due on MMM DD, YYYY.  Would you please send me the report at your earliest convenience?

Thank you very much for your kind assistance.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 
 



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5.  Thank Referee for 1st-Round Outcome:

Dear XXXX,

I have received your referee report for the <<name of the journal>>.

On behalf of the XXXX's Editorial Board, I thank you very much for spending your precious time to complete the review.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 
 



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6.  Letter to Author for 1st-Round Outcome

(Acceptance Letter used only by Guest Editor:)

Dear XXXX,

Congratulation!!!  According to my record, your manuscript, entitled

"xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Paper Title xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,"

has been accepted for publication in the <<name of the journal>>.  For the pre-publication preparation, please read carefully the document of <<<name of document>>> at <<<URL of website>>> to access the resources you need for preparing the reference styles and the final complete package.  When you save your manuscript into an MS-Word file, please use your Paper ID (see the “Ref:?line above) as the file name.  For our production schedule, please submit your complete package to me within 14 calendar days.

Normally, the pre-publication process takes up to six months.  During this period, galley proofs will be sent to you for checking and corrections purposes.  The galley proofs must be returned to the production office within 7 calendar days.  Furthermore, you are responsible for any error in the published paper due to your oversight.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the <<name of the journal>>.  We look forward to receiving the electronic file of your final manuscript.

Best regards,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 

(Minor Revisions:)

Dear XXXX,

Your manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
has been subjected to a double-blind review process by XXXX reviewers who are experts in the related fields.  Enclosed please find the reports from these reviewers.

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, I am delighted to inform you that your manuscript has been ACCEPTED WITH MINOR REVISIONS for the <<name of the journal>>.

Please note that it is imperative for you to revise the manuscript according to reviewers' comments and guidelines.  Please use the TRACK CHANGES feature of MS-Word to make your revisions. To do so, please select the TRACK CHANGES option in the TOOLS menu. Choose HIGHLIGHT CHANGES then 'tick' the box next to TRACK CHANGES WHILE EDITING by one left click in the box, then choose OKAY. When you delete or add text, the 'TRACK CHANGES' then shows the changes in color and crosses out automatically your deletions with a color line leaving them highlighted so we can identify where your corrections have been made. Once you have revised the manuscript, please e-mail it in MSWORD format to me at <Your E-mail Address> on or before MMM DD, YYYY, with a cover letter outlining point-by-point the revisions you have made in regards to the reviewers' comments and guidelines.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the <<name of the journal>>.  I look forward to receiving the revised version of your manuscript.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:  Referees' reports.
 

(Major Revisions:)

Dear XXXX,

Your manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
has been subjected to a double-blind review process by XXXX reviewers who are experts in the related fields.  Enclosed please find the reports from these reviewers.

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, the manuscript requires MAJOR REVISIONS before it can be reconsidered for publication in the <<name of the journal>>.

If you decide to revise and re-submit the manuscript, please kindly use the TRACK CHANGES feature of MS-Word to make your revisions. To do so, please select the TRACK CHANGES option in the TOOLS menu. Choose HIGHLIGHT CHANGES then 'tick' the box next to TRACK CHANGES WHILE EDITING by one left click in the box, then choose OKAY. When you delete or add text, the 'TRACK CHANGES' then shows the changes in color and crosses out automatically your deletions with a color line leaving them highlighted so we can identify where your corrections have been made. Once you have revised the manuscript, please e-mail it in MSWORD format to me at <Your E-mail Address> on or before MMM DD, YYYY, with a cover letter outlining point-by-point the revisions you have made in regards to the reviewers' comments and guidelines.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the <<name of the journal>>.  I look forward to receiving the revised version of your manuscript.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:  Referees' reports.
 

(Reject:)

Dear XXXX,

Your manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
has been subjected to a double-blind review process by XXXX reviewers who are experts in the related fields.  Enclosed please find the reports from these reviewers.

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, your manuscript cannot be accepted for publication in the <<name of the journal>>.  The comments and guidelines of the reviewers would help you in refining the paper for other publication outlet.  Should you decide to resubmit it after the revision, please submit it directly to the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal, Professor XXXX, following the submission requirements described on the Journal's Website (see <<URL of the Journal>>).  Please kindly include a cover letter outlining point-by-point the revisions you have made in regards to the reviewers' comments and guidelines.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the XXXX.  Best wishes to your publication effort.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:  Referees' reports.
 
 







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7.  Reply to Author for 2st-Round Submission

Dear XXXX,

I have received your revised manuscript and will send it to proper referees as soon as possible.  For the this 2nd-round review, it will take approximately 8 weeks.  Please do expect slight delay if the review period overlaps with a long holiday or Summer/Winter break.

Thank you very much for your patience and cooperation during the review process

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 
 






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8.  Letter to Referee for 2nd-Round Review

Dear XXXX,

We have received a new version of manuscript that the author has revised according to your comments and guidelines.  Attached are the revised manuscript, the author’s responses to the review reports, and a blank Review Form.

Please review this revised manuscript according to your review report, and use the attached Review Form to re-evaluate the manuscript.  Could you please send me your referee report by MMM DD, YYYY or earlier so that we can make a final decision about the paper? We would like to know whether the authors have made the modifications that you suggested and whether the paper should be published in the Journal using this revised version.  Please use the space provided under “Confidential Remarks to the Editor?for this purpose.

Thank you very much for your time and effort in reviewing this manuscript.  I look forward to receiving your 2nd-round referee report soon.

Best regards,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:
1) Revised manuscript,
2) Author’s responses to the review reports, and
3) Blank Review Form.
 
 







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9.  Thank Referee for 2nd-Round Outcome

Dear XXXX,

I have received your 2nd-round referee report for the <<name of the journal>>.

On behalf of the XXXX's Editorial Board, I thank you very much for your tireless effort in completing the review precess.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 
 







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10.  Letter to Author for 2nd-Round Outcome

(Acceptance Letter used only by Guest Editor:)

Dear XXXX,

Congratulation!!!  According to my record, your manuscript, entitled

"xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Paper Title xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,"

has been accepted for publication in the <<name of the journal>>.  For the pre-publication preparation, please read carefully the document of <<<name of document>>> at <<<URL of website>>> to access the resources you need for preparing the reference styles and the final complete package.  When you save your manuscript into an MS-Word file, please use your Paper ID (see the “Ref:?line above) as the file name.  For our production schedule, please submit your complete package to me within 14 calendar days.

Normally, the pre-publication process takes up to six months.  During this period, galley proofs will be sent to you for checking and corrections purposes.  The galley proofs must be returned to the production office within 7 calendar days.  Furthermore, you are responsible for any error in the published paper due to your oversight.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the <<name of the journal>>.  We look forward to receiving the electronic file of your final manuscript.

Best regards,
Your Name
XXXX Editor
 

(Minor Revisions:)

Dear XXXX,

Your revised manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
has been subjected to a double-blind 2nd-round review process conducted by the original referees who reviewed your earlier manuscript.  Enclosed please find the referees' reports.

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, I am delighted to inform you that your manuscript has been ACCEPTED WITH MINOR REVISIONS for the <<name of the journal>>.

Please note that it is imperative for you to revise the manuscript according to reviewers' comments and guidelines.  Please use the TRACK CHANGES feature of MS-Word to make your revisions. To do so, please select the TRACK CHANGES  option in the TOOLS menu. Choose HIGHLIGHT CHANGES then 'tick' the box next to TRACK CHANGES WHILE EDITING by one left click in the box, then choose OKAY. When you delete or add text, the 'TRACK CHANGES' then shows the changes in color and crosses out automatically your deletions with a color line leaving them highlighted so we can identify where your corrections have been made. Once you have revised the manuscript, please e-mail it in MSWORD format to me at <Your E-mail Address> on or before MMM DD, YYYY, with a cover letter outlining point-by-point the revisions you have made in regards to the referees' comments and guidelines.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the <<name of the journal>>.  I look forward to receiving the revised version of your manuscript.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:  Referees' reports.

(Reject:)

Dear XXXX,

Your revised manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"
has been subjected to a double-blind 2nd-round review process conducted by the original referees who reviewed your earlier manuscript.  Enclosed please find the referees' reports.

Based on the referees' recommendations, your manuscript cannot be accepted for publication in the <<name of the journal>>.  The comments and guidelines of the referees would help you in refining the paper for other publication outlet.  Should you decide to resubmit it after the revision, please submit it directly to the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal, Professor XXXX, following the submission requirements described on the Journal's Website (see <<URL of the Journal>>).  Please kindly include a cover letter outlining point-by-point the revisions you have made in regards to the reviewers' comments and guidelines.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the XXXX.  Best wishes to your publication effort.

Sincerely,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

Enclosures:  Referees' reports.
 
 












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11.  Formal Acceptance Letter to Author for IEL Journal's Final Preparation

Dear XXXX:

Congratulation!!!  According to my record, your manuscript, entitled
"<<title of the paper>>,"

has been accepted for publication in the <<name of the journal>>.  For the pre-publication preparation, please read carefully the document of “IEL Final Preparation and Copyright Release? at http://www.icebnet.org/author/ to access the resources you need for preparing the reference styles and the final complete package.  When you save your manuscript into an MS-Word file, please use your Paper ID (see the “Ref:?line above) as the file name.  For our production schedule, please submit your complete package to the appropriate editor within 14 calendar days.  You may check the Tables of Contents of this Journal at http://www.icebnet.org/toc/ to see whether your manuscript will appear in the upcoming issues.

Normally, the pre-publication process takes up to six months.  During this period, galley proofs will be sent to you for checking and corrections purposes.  The galley proofs must be returned to IEL within 7 calendar days.  Furthermore, you are responsible for any error in the published paper due to your oversight.

Thank you very much for submitting your article to the <<name of the journal>>.  We look forward to receiving the electronic file of your final manuscript.

Best regards,
Your Name
XXXX Editor

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