The following is an actual cover letter for an article I submitted in hard copy; some of the longer established journals (e.g. PMLA) still require hard copy submission. A cover letter should include the main components of a business letter, and it should be very short and to the point. You may describe - briefly - how the article came about (i.e. based on work for a course, or based on a thesis chapter, etc.). Be sure to mention your article's title - if the journal requires the article itself to be stripped of identifying details, the cover letter is your papertrail that confirms the article as yours.

Mark McCutcheon
[address - institutional, if possible]
[phone]
[email - institutional, if possible]

Dr Keith Negus, Co-ordinating editor (Articles)
Popular Music
Dept. of Media and Communications
Goldsmiths College
University of London
London SE14 6NW
United Kingdom

April 27, 2004

Dear Dr Negus,

Enclosed please find three copies of my essay '"Let the Bass Kick, All I'm Offering is the Truth": Techno, Science Fiction, and the Critique of Economic Rationalization' for submission to Popular Music.

The essay, including end matter, comprises 3240 words (12 pages in total); three copies each of the two photographs to which the essay refers are also enclosed. Please note that I have tried to document some of the 'underground' cultural productions studied herein - e.g. white label records, dance party performances, online forum postings - with as close adherence as their available data permit to your journal's citation specifications.

Thank you for considering this submission to your journal. I look forward to your reply.

With my best regards,

[signature]

Mark McCutcheon, PhD Candidate
School of English and Theatre Studies
University of Guelph