Service

Sample: Reply to Reviewers, Before and After Editing

A real reply-to-reviewers letter, shown before and after editing, so you can see what changes and why before you send yours.

20K+
Paper edited
365 days
Availability
18 years
Helping academics

Most authors have never seen a good reply-to-reviewers letter. You write yours alone, at the end of a long revision, trying to sound confident but not defensive, and you have nothing to compare it against.

This page exists so you have something to compare it against.

What the sample shows

A genuine reply letter in two versions — as the author wrote it, and as it read after editing — with the reasoning for each change. Names and identifying details are removed.

  • How to open without apologising for the paper
  • Structuring point-by-point so an editor can follow it without hunting
  • Saying exactly what changed in the manuscript, and where
  • Disagreeing with a reviewer while keeping them on side
  • Handling a comment based on a misreading of your work
  • Closing without over-promising

The three things that go wrong most often

Sounding defensive. Editors read hundreds of these. A letter that argues rather than answers stands out for the wrong reason.

Vague change descriptions. “We have revised the manuscript accordingly” tells an editor nothing and forces them to go looking. Say what you changed and give the location.

Silently ignoring a comment. Every point needs a response, even if the response is that you have chosen not to make that change and here is why.

You are allowed to disagree

Reviewers are sometimes wrong, and sometimes they have misread something. Editors know this. A well-argued disagreement strengthens your position — the skill is in making the misreading look understandable rather than making the reviewer look careless. The sample shows one worked example of exactly that.

If you would rather not do it alone

We edit reply letters alongside the revised manuscript, so that what the letter promises and what the paper does are recognisably the same thing. That matters more than the prose: editors check.

Not sure what you need?

Send us the reviewer comments and your draft reply. We will tell you honestly whether it needs work — sometimes the answer is that it is already fine.

Related services:

Response letters to reviewers. Journal paper editing.

Testimonials

Kind words of Happy Clients

The Uni-edit team worked hard to complete the editorial work in a week. I believe all the Academic scholars ever work with Uni-edit will recommend it certainly.
Associate Professor Hung-Bin Lee
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Da-Yeh University
The main reason I would keep sending my papers to Uni-edit and recommend Uni-edit to other professors is they allow me to focus on improving the research content and do not need to worry about the language writing in English.
Chang-Wei Huang
The Department of Civil Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University

Clients most
asked questions

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How long does editing usually take?

Most standard editing is completed in five days, including weekends. Timing depends on file condition, service level, complexity and current capacity, and the delivery date is confirmed in your detailed quotation.

I think my English is poor. Do I need the rewriting service?

If you think your paper needs rewriting, please ask customer service in your email. We will determine if rewriting is required and inform you before editing your paper. Generally, if more than 20% of sentences need rewriting (the whole sentence needs correction) then you must use the rewriting service. For rewriting, you do need to choose a Level. We will do the best editing job possible.

Who will edit my paper?

To achieve a consistently high quality service, Uni-edit uses two editor roles on your conference or journal paper. The first Editor is qualified in your general area of expertise. The second Editor is also qualified in your general area and has exceptional English and editing skills. All Editors are professionally trained. Our Senior Editor takes overall responsibility for the quality of every edit. Authors are often surprised how the Editors seem to understand the content of the research, even if it is very technical or mathematical.

I used generative AI to help write my paper. Is that a problem?

No, and it helps us if you tell us. Many journals now ask authors to declare how generative AI was used, and the wording each publisher expects is different. Let customer service know when you submit, and your editors will read the manuscript with that in mind and help you word the declaration your target journal asks for. Where AI drafted substantial passages, the Rewrite service is usually the right choice, because those passages need more than sentence-level correction. Telling us early is far easier than answering a reviewer's question later.

For a journal paper, Level 2 or Level 3 editing?

For a journal submission, Level 3 is the safer choice. Both levels put two editors on your paper, but Level 3 goes beyond language: it refines paragraph and document structure, strengthens how your argument is formed, and improves flow and consistency. That is what reviewers comment on when the science is sound but the writing gets in the way. Level 2 suits a manuscript that is already well structured and mainly needs the language corrected. If you drafted with generative AI, ask about the Rewrite service, because AI-drafted passages usually need more than sentence-level correction.

Do you check figures and tables?

Yes, our editing is not only about correct English grammar. Our English editing is about supporting you to get your paper published and help the readers understand your research. Therefore, we check figure captions and labels; information in tables and we check that text descriptions match equations. We also check the text descriptions match graphs and charts.

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