Submission Guide

Pre-Submission Checklist

Complete every item before submitting. Missing any one of these is a common reason for desk rejection or delayed processing.

Manuscript

• Title: Concise, informative, no unnecessary jargon. Under 15 words is ideal.
• Abstract: States the question, method, data, and main finding. Respects journal word limit (typically 100-150 words for econ journals).
• JEL codes: 2-4 codes, primary code first. Check https://www.aeaweb.org/econlit/jelCodes.php for current classification.
• Keywords: 3-6 terms not already in the title.
• Introduction: Clearly states contribution in first two paragraphs. Includes a "roadmap" paragraph at the end.
• Literature review: Positions paper relative to 3-5 closest papers. Explains what this paper does that they do not.
• Identification section: Formal statement of assumptions, not just prose. Numbered assumptions preferred.
• Results: Main results first, robustness second. Do not bury the lead.
• Conclusion: No new results. Discuss limitations honestly. Suggest future work briefly.
• References: Every citation in text appears in references and vice versa. Use a bibliography manager (BibTeX/BibLaTeX).
• Anonymization: Remove all author-identifying information. Check PDF metadata, acknowledgments, file paths in code, dataset names that reveal institution.
• Page/word count: Within journal limits. Many journals have strict limits (e.g., AER Papers & Proceedings: 5 pages).
• Spell check and grammar: Run a final pass. Typos in the abstract signal carelessness.
• Agent review: Run the journal-referee agent for an adversarial review and the econometric-reviewer agent to audit tables against code output.

Tables

• Self-contained: Each table has a descriptive title and notes explaining all variables, sample, and significance stars.
• Significance stars: Use journal convention. Most econ journals: * p<0.10, ** p<0.05, *** p<0.01. Some journals (QJE) discourage stars entirely.
• Standard errors: Report in parentheses below coefficients. State clustering level in notes.
• Number of observations: Report N for every regression. Report N by group for DiD/panel.
• R-squared or fit measure: Report adjusted R-squared, within R-squared for FE models, or pseudo R-squared for nonlinear models.
• Decimal places: 2-3 significant digits. Do not report 8 decimal places from Stata/R output.
• Consistent formatting: Same variable names across all tables. Same order of controls.
• No vertical lines: Use horizontal rules only (booktabs style in LaTeX).

Figures

• Vector format: PDF or EPS for line plots and diagrams. High-resolution PNG (300+ DPI) only for heatmaps or photos.
• Readable in grayscale: Use shapes/patterns in addition to colors. At least 20% of readers print in black and white.
• Axis labels: Clear, with units. Font size readable when figure is scaled to journal column width.
• No chartjunk: Remove gridlines, unnecessary legends, 3D effects, excessive tick marks.
• Consistent style: All figures use the same font, color palette, and line weights.
• Source note: State data source and sample period below each figure.

Appendix and Online Appendix

• Appendix: Proofs, additional tables referenced in the main text, variable definitions.
• Online appendix: Supplementary results that support but are not essential to the main argument.
• Cross-references: Every appendix item is referenced from the main text. No orphan appendix tables.
• Separate file: Some journals require the online appendix as a separate PDF. Check submission guidelines.

Replication Package

• Data: All data files, or clear instructions for obtaining restricted-access data.
• Code: All scripts from raw data to final tables/figures. Master script that runs everything in order.
• README: Describes file structure, software requirements, runtime estimate, expected output.
• Seeds: All random number generator seeds set and documented.
• Versions: Software versions pinned (R/Python/Stata version, package versions).
• License: Data license and code license specified.
• Tested: Run the entire pipeline from scratch on a clean machine or container.

Cover Letter

• Editor name: Address to the specific editor, not "Dear Editor." Check the journal website for the handling editor or co-editors by field.
• One paragraph summary: State the paper's question, method, and main result.
• Contribution statement: Why this paper is a good fit for this specific journal.
• Conflicts of interest: Disclose any relevant relationships.
• Suggested referees: 3-5 names with affiliations and emails. Choose experts who will understand the method but are not close collaborators. Avoid suggesting people who are known to be hostile to the approach.
• Excluded referees: Optional but available at most journals. Use sparingly and only for genuine conflicts.

Journal-Specific Formatting

For per-journal tables covering spacing, abstract limits, stars conventions, submission systems, and special requirements across Economics (Top 5, AEJ, Field), Finance, Political Science, Sociology, Marketing, and Statistics journals, see: references/journal-profiles.md

Quick lookup:

• AER: 1.5-line spacing, 100-word abstract, Editorial Express
• Econometrica: Double spacing, numbered proof environments required, ecta.cls
• QJE: No significance stars — report exact p-values, ScholarOne
• JPE: University of Chicago Press style, ScholarOne
• JFE: Requires "Highlights" (3-5 bullets ≤ 85 chars each), Elsevier Editorial Manager
• APSR/AJPS: Structured abstract (Purpose / Methods / Findings / Value) required

Referee Response Strategy

Response Letter Structure

The response letter is the most important document in the revision. Structure: Opening (thank editor and referees) → summary of major changes (3-5 sentences) → point-by-point responses organized by referee, with Major and Minor sections. Quote each referee comment, then respond with specific page/section references to changes in the revised manuscript. Use tracked changes or color highlighting. For full response templates and revision routing, see references/referee-response-templates.md.

Tone and Framing

What to Concede vs Defend

Concede when:

• The referee is factually correct about an error
• The suggestion improves the paper without changing the core contribution
• Adding a robustness check is low-cost and reassuring
• The concern is shared by multiple referees (editor will weight this heavily)
• The requested analysis is standard for the method (e.g., pre-trends for DiD)

Defend when:

• Conceding would undermine the paper's core identification strategy
• The requested specification is econometrically inappropriate for the setting
• The referee misunderstands a key aspect of the method or data
• The suggestion would change the paper into a different paper entirely

Response Matrix

Track every referee comment in a table with columns: Ref | # | Comment Summary | Category | Action | Status | Location. Categories: Identification, Data, Inference, Exposition, Literature, Robustness. Rule: every Status cell must be filled before resubmission.

Method-Specific Referee Concerns

For per-method concern tables (IV, DiD, Structural Estimation, RDD, Matching), including typical phrasing and detailed response strategies, see: references/referee-tactics.md

Revision Management

Track Changes Workflow

# Tag each submission and generate diff PDF
git tag -a v1-submitted -m "First submission to AER"
git tag -a v2-submitted -m "Revised submission"
latexdiff old.tex new.tex > diff.tex && pdflatex diff.tex

Reference page numbers from the clean revised manuscript, not the diff. Editors expect a diff PDF alongside the clean revision.

Multi-Round Revision Strategy

After each round: wait 24-48 hours → read all reports → categorize (major/minor) → build response matrix → prioritize identification concerns → draft major responses → fill minor comments → co-author review → generate diff PDF → submit.

Editor Communication

Decision Types

When to Contact the Editor

• Before submission: Only if you have a genuine question about scope or formatting not answered by the guidelines.
• During review: Do not ask about status before the stated expected turnaround (usually 3-6 months). A brief polite inquiry is acceptable after.
• After R&R: Contact before deadline if you need an extension.
• After rejection: Only if the referee made a demonstrable factual error. "I disagree" is not grounds for appeal.

Submission Timing

Pre-Print and Archive Workflows

arXiv Submission

1. Create a flat submission folder with: paper.tex, paper.bbl (compiled bibliography), all figures as PDF
2. Adjust preamble: remove \usepackage{hyperref} if it causes issues, ensure \graphicspath is relative
3. Remove or inline any custom .sty files
4. Zip and upload to arxiv.org; select econ category (econ.EM for econometrics, econ.GN for general)

Working Paper Distribution

• SSRN: Post before journal submission — journals expect papers to circulate as working papers first
• NBER/CEPR: If affiliated, submit to the relevant working paper series
• RePEc: Register at ideas.repec.org/stepbystep.html for archival and citation tracking

Quarto to Journal Format

For Quarto users: quarto use template hchulkim/econ-paper-template provides AEA-format output (aea-pdf/aea-html). Always set keep-tex: true since journals require .tex source files.