Q: How to write to the journal editor inquiring about the status of my paper

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I submitted a paper to a science journal and 3 months later I got result which requires 'Major Revision'. Then I wholly revised my paper according to reviewers’ comments and re-submitted it. As 3 months have past after re-submission, and the status remains “Awaiting Reviewer Scores” for more than 1 month, I am going to send an inquiry to the journal. Would you advise the points that I should take care of in writing email? Or, would it be too early to send an inquiry?

Asked on 23 Aug, 2016

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Generally, a revised manuscript is sent to the same reviewers who reviewed it earlier. So the review of a revised manuscript should ideally not take too long, as the reviewers are already familiar with the paper. Since the status for your revised submission has beein showing “Awaiting reviewer scores” for more than a month, I think you can write to the editor inquiring when the reviews are expected to come in.

You can use the following template:

Dear [Name of Editor],

Thank you for considering my submission titled [title of manuscript] for publication in your journal. I received the first decision (Major Revision) on [date]. I had resubmitted the revised manuscript on [date]. However, the status has been showing “Awaiting reviewer scores” since [date]. I was wondering by when I would be able to see the next status change. Are you expecting the completed reviews this month?

Sincerely,

[Your name]