There are many stages in the life of an article from its initial commission or submission to its final publication. From my perspective as a Reviews editor, I will aim to briefly describe the editorial processes in Nature Research and how to work with them. Whilst the research question and the quality of the data are key to a great paper, there are certain tools and techniques that can be used to communicate your research effectively and give you the best chance of acceptance in high-impact journals like Nature. I will provide some of these tips and practical solutions for making the most of manuscript preparation, submission and peer review.