收到審稿人的意見(review letter)，卻感到煩惱不知道該怎麼回信嗎？本文整理出幾個重點，先是詳細介紹期刊投稿流程，再來是針對審稿人意見該怎麼回信，甚至是該如何處理拒稿信，後面還有附上審稿人意見回函的範本哦！
文章重點
- 期刊投稿流程
- 如何回覆審稿人意見?
- 如何處理拒稿信
- 審稿人意見回函中建議使用的句型
- 審稿人意見回函範本
- 審稿人意見回函檢查清單
- 其他參考資源
期刊投稿流程
投稿期刊就像是打棒球，想成功擊出全壘打，有幾個因素需要考量。揮棒多了，最終你能找到對的角度揮出屬於全壘打。不斷嘗試的過程中，挫折感是不可避免的，如果能學會處理拒稿信的技巧，我們相信能處變不驚。這篇將介紹論文審核流程並告訴你什麼時候該如何申訴拒稿信。有一些關於投稿的事情，要先說在前頭:
壞消息
第一次投稿就成功被接收就像是想要在世界盃打出全壘打卻還不知道該如何握球棒一樣的困難，雖然不是完全不無可能，只是機率非常低，最好的情況就是只需要更動部分內文就能被接收。
再者，有些國際知名期刊不管投稿論文寫得多好，還是一樣拒絕了高達90%的投稿論文，有些論文甚至不會送到審稿人手裡，直接被期刊編輯拒絕，因為他們可能認為論文不符合現在的需要或該研究與其方法並沒有令人信服。
好消息
即使投稿過程很繁瑣，我們還是可以從中改善並提高投稿成功機率。在另一篇文章中：如何提高論文發表機率， 我們強調跟隨期刊的作者須知、呈現發展完整的實驗設計並將研究結果與研究議題互相響應來引起讀者興趣。除此之外，你也可以寫一篇完整的投稿信，能成功地說服期刊編輯將該論文轉交給審稿者進行下一步的審核。
成功過了期刊編輯這一關，你就上一壘了!一旦到這一步，能否被接收就是看審稿人意見與你的回函表現了。
投稿後，接下來?
在解釋如何寫審稿人意見回函之前，你得先知道投稿之後，接下來會發生在投稿流程中的關鍵決策與行動。
如圖所示，想從本壘奔到一壘你該做以下這些事情
- 準備揮棒 當投稿論文之後，你就站上本壘準備打擊了，假設你有成功揮出這一棒，也就是沒有直接被拒絕，那接下來你會遇到….
- 上一壘： 期刊編輯收到之後，期刊編輯會做出第一個關鍵性的決定，而考量因素有:
- 是否論文符合該期刊的範圍與宗旨?
- 是否能引起讀者興趣?
- 是否期刊近期已經刊登了類似論文 (因此不想重複)?
- 是否有詳細遵照期刊的作者須知?
- 研究方法中是否有缺漏?
- 論文是否大致上能夠理解 (沒有重大文法與風格錯誤)?
如果期刊編輯認為你沒有達到要求，那編輯會跳過審稿者直接拒絕。這時你有兩條路可以選:
– 提交論文到另外一個期刊；
– 或是提出申訴希望重新再次提交投稿論文。[這一個方法比較不推薦。如果你重寫了論文，那應該要重新投稿。]
- 奔二壘：期刊編輯滿意你的論文，論文將會被送去同行評審。這些審稿人都是該領域的資深研究員，他們會仔細檢視論文是否有秉持著學術規範做好每一個程序。假設你的英文程度已經妨礙到他們理解論文內文，那審稿人也可能針對技術性寫作做評論。審稿者可能考量的關鍵因素如下:
- 研究方法是否有重大瑕疵?
- 研究是否不完整?
- 研究結論是否支持研究結果?
如果評審認為投稿論文低於要求 (尤其是被認為不夠完整或論證不足)，則會退稿。這時你有兩種選擇:
– 提交論文到另外一個期刊
– 提出申訴希望重新再次提交投稿論文。[這一個方法比較不推薦。如果你重寫了論文，那應該要重新投稿。]
另外一種最常見的情況是評審喜歡論文但有一些問題待解決，那評審則會推薦期刊在收到你對評審問題的回覆後再做進一步的接收考量(更多資訊參考以下”如何回覆評審意見”)。
- 滑三壘：這時候就是期刊已經收到且相當滿意你對評審問題的回覆，也相信你的論文已經準備好可以發表了。期刊接著可能還有一些問題但應該只是要求你小更動論文內文。除非有重大瑕疵，例如發現你偽造數據等，否則論文將會順利發表。
- 回本壘得分：期刊編輯已經準備刊登你的論文，你也完全配合刊登前的所有修改與行政處理事項。
如何回覆審稿人意見?
當期刊的回覆不是單純的拒稿時，大部分都會再加上審稿人意見希望作者澄清與內文修正。評審意見來自期刊編輯與評審，一般正面的審稿人意見有兩種形式:
- 期刊對你的論文感到興趣，而且評審希望你做些增刪來優化論文。收到這樣的信就代表你已經離發表不遠了。
- 你可能收到一封拒稿的信但裡面卻寫著期刊會重新審核論文如果論文有重新做實質上的修改，包括增加新的數據。用棒球來做比喻的話，就是成功擊出並上了一壘但還不能上二壘，這時候你可以修改你的論文並進行追加實驗來滿足期刊要求。
不論你前面的表現如何，期刊接受率都會根據你如何回覆這些評審意見來決定。當你回信時，要謹記幾點
| Dos | Dont’s |
| Thank the editor and reviewers for the time they spent reviewing your manuscript. Similarly, maintain a respectful and deferential tone throughout. Remember, you want them to like you and your work. Don’t give them unnecessary reasons for tossing your manuscript into the reject pile. | Don’t insult your editors or reviewers. Be respectful. Take care not to use phrases that suggest the editor or review made a mistake. (See list of useful phrases further below.) |
| Answer all questions asked by the editor and reviewers. Also make sure to respond to all comments, including those that might be a general thank you or praise. | Don’t ignore a question or comment. Failure to address every point will prolong the process and decreases the chance of a speedy acceptance. |
| If you can’t respond to a question or comment, then explain why not. This way, you are addressing the issue even if you can’t provide a specific answer or solution. | Don’t justify your failure to sufficiently conduct a study by stating economic or other personal limitations. You won’t sway editors or reviewers if they feel your research is lacking, regardless of the circumstances. However, if you need to restate the SCOPE of your study so that your findings are complete as presented, do so. |
| Copy the full text of reviewer comments and include relevant responses under each section of the original text (as shown in the template below). Formatting is important. Use bullets, different fonts, bold or italics to help distinguish your replies from the reviewers’ comments. | Don’t partially address or rephrase an editor’s comment or question to suit your needs. If they asked you a tough question, you’ll need to tackle it sufficiently to satisfy them. |
| If your original submission contained the appropriate answers to the reviewer’s questions, specify the sections that address the queries. | Don’t let your frustrations influence the tone of your writing if you feel that a reviewer asked you about a point that you believe has already been addressed in your paper. (See list of useful phrases further below.) |
| If you added new visual aids or other supplementary materials to your revised paper, make sure to point those out clearly in the letter by referencing relevant page and line numbers, figure numbers, etc. | Don’t info dump in a disorganized manner. Formatting your rebuttal letter will reduce miscommunication and help the reviewers and editors quickly find the information they requested. |
| If the journal gives you a deadline for your response, be timely. | |
| Be concise in your responses. | Don’t veer off on a tangent to discuss matters not requested by the journal. |
如何處理拒稿信
不幸的是，被拒稿是十之八九的事情，有時候真的不是你的錯，更糟糕的是有些拒稿申訴信會被丟進”slush pile”堆積而且只有在重新投稿之後才會被重新審核。
身為一名研究員， 請考量是否申訴信是否值得你花時間和重寫論文所必須花費的資源，你也可以等個幾周讓期刊審核你的申訴信。同時，建議謹慎檢視期刊給予的評審意見後修改論文並投稿到另一間期刊。
如果你決定要申請要求重新審核論文，以下幾點請謹記：
| Dos | Dont’s |
| Thank the editor and reviewers for the time they spent reviewing your manuscript. Similarly, maintain a respectful and deferential tone throughout your letter. Remember, you want them to like you and your work. Don’t give them unnecessary reasons for tossing your manuscript into the rejection pile. | Don’t get emotional and insult your editors or reviewers. Be respectful and diplomatic in tone since antagonizing editors will not help your case! (See list of useful phrases). Similarly, don’t respond to a rejection letter right away. Rather, take a break and re-examine the letter with fresh, objective eyes. |
| If the rejection is not based on faulty experimental procedures, it’s likely that editors felt your paper would not appeal to its readers. If this is your situation, make sure to carefully and clearly explain how your research would greatly advance current understandings of the subject matter AND be useful to a wide audience. | Don’t take the rejection personally. Remember that a journal has a publication calendar and strategy. Additionally, your research might overlap with work previously accepted by another author, or the journal might feel it wants to move into a new direction based on reader feedback. |
| If your manuscript was declined because of major shortcomings (experimental design or incomplete analysis, for example), explain how you would fix these problems. | Don’t rewrite your manuscript and resubmit as an appeal since your likelihood of successfully appealing is low. If you make substantial changes (like including significant new data), you may you might wish to make a new submission instead. |
| If you feel any or all of the peer reviewers were biased or made technical errors in their assessment, you will need specific and clear evidence to make your case. | In blind review processes, don’t try to guess who your reviewers are. Rather, focus on the reviewers’ specific comments and how those remarks clearly imply a biased opinion or a technical misunderstanding of your work. |
| Focus on the journal’s comments and address them objectively. And like the rebuttal letter, copy the full text of reviewer comments and include relevant responses under each section of the original text (as shown in the template below). | Don’t go off on a tangent by emphasizing things like your reputation or other information that have no bearing on the actual substantive merits and suitability of your paper for the journal. |
審稿人意見回函中建議使用的句型
以下是幾個可以幫助你在回信時解說你如何修改論文的句型
開頭
- Thank you for providing these insights.
- Thank you for your suggestion.
- That is an interesting query.
- This is an interesting perspective.
- We agree with you.
- We agree with your assessment.
- You have raised an important question.
- You have asked an interesting question.
同意審稿人或期刊編輯意見
- We agree with you and have incorporated this suggestion throughout our paper.
- We have reflected this comment by… (p. #, lines #-#).
- We have incorporated your comments by… (p. #, lines #-#).
- We agree that…
- We have now [X] (p. #, lines #-#) and [Y] (p. #, lines #-#). We think these changes now better [Z]. We hope that you agree.
不同意審稿人或期刊編輯意見
- You have raised an important point; however, we believe that [X] would be outside the scope of our paper because…
- This is a valid assessment of…; however, we believe that [X] would be more appropriate because…
- We agree that…; however, due to [X], we believe that…
- In our revisions, we have attempted to [X] (p. #, lines #-#); however, we have retained some of our arguments because…
- We acknowledge that [X] has certain limitations; however,…
解釋澄清
- We have clarified that… means… (p. #, lines #-#) throughout the paper.
- We have redrafted the [X] section (p. #, lines #-#) to establish a clearer focus.
- We have revised the text (p. #, lines #-#) to reflect…
- We removed [X] (from p. #, lines #-#) and hope that the deletion clarifies the points we attempted to make.
- We have replaced the term [X] throughout the paper with [Y] to use more precise terms.
- We have rewritten [X] (p. #, lines #-#) to be more in line with your comments. We hope that the edited section clarifies…
- We have elaborated on [X] (p. #, lines #-#) and expanded our consideration of [Y]. We hope these revisions provide a more [balanced][thorough] discussion.
額外的資訊與解釋
- We have included a new Figure # (p. #) to further illustrate…
- We have added a new Table # (p. #), which outlines…
- We have supplemented the [X] section with explanations of [Y] (p. #, lines #-#).
- There are multiple reasons/approaches to…, including [our scenario]. We have included an acknowledgment regarding this point in the [X] section (p. #, lines #-#).
- We have not done… However, we believe that [doing X] (p. #, lines #-#) would address this issue because…
- We have not done…; however, our sense is that…
回答多題 (當你的一個回覆能回答許多問題時)
- Please see point # above. [e.g., “Please see point 2(a) above.”]
審稿人意見回函範本
[點擊本文右上方的附檔下載審稿人意見回函範本與建議句型]
[Journal Editor’s First and Last Name][, Graduate Degree (if any)]
TIP: It’s customary to include any graduate degrees in the addressee’s name.
e.g., John Smith, MD or Carolyn Daniels, MPH
e.g., Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor, Co-Editors-in-Chief
[Journal Address]
[Submission Date: Month Day, Year]
Dear Dr./Mr./Ms. [Editor’s last name]:
TIP: When the editor’s name is not known, use the relevant title employed by the journal, such as “Dear Managing Editor:” or “Dear Editor-in-Chief:”. Using a person’s name is best, however. Also, websites may be outdated, so call the journal to confirm to whom you should address your cover letter when in doubt.
TIP: Use “Ms.” and never “Mrs.” or “Miss” in formal business letters.
TIP: Never use “Dear Sirs:” or any similar expression. Many editors will find this insulting, especially given that many of them are female!
注意：建議使用 “Dr./Mr./Ms.” 而非 “Dear Sirs:”
Thank you for inviting us to submit a revised draft of our manuscript entitled, “[TITLE]” to [JOURNAL]. We also appreciate the time and effort you and each of the reviewers have dedicated to providing insightful feedback on ways to strengthen our paper. Thus, it is with great pleasure that we resubmit our article for further consideration. We have incorporated changes that reflect the detailed suggestions you have graciously provided. We also hope that our edits and the responses we provide below satisfactorily address all the issues and concerns you and the reviewers have noted.
To facilitate your review of our revisions, the following is a point-by-point response to the questions and comments delivered in your letter dated _____.
Editor’s Suggestions:
- [Editor general comment]
- RESPONSE: [Brief response thanking editor or expressing delight at the feedback, where appropriate.]
- [First editor comment]
- RESPONSE: [General opinion of comment (e.g., “You raise an important question.”)][Response discussing changes or providing clarifications and explanations.]
- [Second editor comment]
- RESPONSE: [General opinion of comment (e.g., “You make a fair assessment.”)][Response discussing changes or providing clarifications and explanations.]
Reviewer 1 Comments:
- [Reviewer 1 general comment]
- RESPONSE: [Show appreciation for time and energy reviewer committed and the value of their comments.]
- [First reviewer 1 comment]
- RESPONSE: [General opinion of comment (e.g., “Thank you for this suggestion.”)] [Response discussing changes or providing clarifications and explanations.]
- [Second reviewer 1 comment]
- RESPONSE: [General opinion of comment (e.g., “Thank you for this suggestion.”)] [Response discussing changes or providing clarifications and explanations.]
Reviewer 2 Comments:
- [Reviewer 2 general comment]
- [Show appreciation for time and energy reviewer committed and the value of their comments.]
- [First reviewer 2 comment]
- RESPONSE: [General opinion of comment (e.g., “Thank you for this suggestion.”)] [Response discussing changes or providing clarifications and explanations.]
- [Second reviewer 2 comment]
- RESPONSE: [General opinion of comment (e.g., “Thank you for this suggestion.”)] [Response discussing changes or providing clarifications and explanations.]
CONCLUDING REMARKS: Again, thank you for giving us the opportunity to strengthen our manuscript with your valuable comments and queries. We have worked hard to incorporate your feedback and hope that these revisions persuade you to accept our submission.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
Corresponding Author
Institution Title
Institution/Affiliation Name
[Institution Address]
[Your e-mail address]
[Tel: (include relevant country/area code)]
[Fax: (include relevant country/area code)]
Additional Contact [should the corresponding author not be available]
Institution Title
Institution/Affiliation Name
[Institution Address]
[Your e-mail address]
[Tel: (include relevant country/area code)]
[Fax: (include relevant country/area code)]
審稿人意見回函檢查清單
寫作修改面向
- Make a list of changes you mention in your letter and make sure you’ve made all the changes in your draft!
- Make sure you’ve thanked the editor and reviewers for their time.
- Make sure you are sending the right version of your manuscript
- Did you copy and paste ALL the original comments from the editor and reviewers? Did you answer or address ALL those comments?
- Did you include page and line references, where appropriate?
- Did you include all new figures and other visual aids (and mention them in the rebuttal letter)?
寫作規格
- Set the font to Arial or Times New Roman, size 12 point.
- Single-space all text.
- Use one line space between body paragraphs.
- Do not indent paragraphs.
- Keep all text left justified.
- Use spelling and grammar check software. If needed, use professional proofreading and editing services（使用學術論文英文編修服務） such as Wordvice to review your letter for clarity and concision.
- Double-check the spelling of the editor’s and reviewers’ names.
其他參考資源
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3242570/
- How to handle rejection letters
- Nature blog on writing a rebuttal letter
- Nature blog on writing an appeal letter
- Elsevier blog on top three tips for responding to reviewer feedback
- Further explanation of how reviewers view your research paper.
- Sample rebuttal letters
需要英文編修，就找Wordvice。
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