Q: How do I best respond to positive feedback from reviewers?

Hello Annie – Welcome to the forum! And this time, we respond with a bit more seriousness. :-)

Straight away, what a great position to be in! I don’t think we’ve heard of too many such stories, whether in the forum, on the site, or even outside. So, congrats for that – even if it’s a bit preemptive. And we say that because you haven’t said anything about the other comments. But the vibe does seem to be overall positive, and hopefully, you are one step closer to publication. :-) [Our smiley count for this response might just end up rivalling the positive comments for your paper. :-)]

Anyway, coming to your query in greater earnest, you could say thanks for a couple of comments, but it might get repetitive after some. [In which case, you could then begin by replying with smileys. :-)] More seriously, for some, you could respond with some inputs or insights from your side. Obviously, the reviewers are from your field, and the fact that they have responded positively means that you all may have more knowledge and information to share with each other around the topic. But don’t force it. Where you feel you can’t add anything, you can leave it be.

For the other comments, we have provided some resources below that you may find useful.

• How to respond to comments by peer reviewers
• Using peer review comments in a constructive way

And here’s another researcher query on similar lines: Should I thank the editor and reviewers for accepting my paper?

Finally, if all continues to be positive, this may make a great story for our Researchers and Their Stories section. Know more about the section here and do consider writing about this experience (or some other), of course, after submitting the revised manuscript. :-)

All the best to take this toward publication!