I’m in the beautiful Colorado Springs where there is much to admire and appreciate (Pikes Peak, yeah!). But the rejections still come, no matter where you are.
I received a rejection for a story that has been generically rejected all around. This rejection came from Crazyhorse after almost five months. I am beginning to think this story needs some serious plastic surgery. The other rejection came from West Branch, which was fast (about a month). Completely generic as well. And this for a story that HAS received positive encouragement, so I don’t know. I like this story a lot. I don’t want to revise it. I also received a rejection from The Lifted Brow, which was sent (I could tell) to a bunch of other writers because I was blind-copied and I was addressed as, “Dear Writer.” That blows. I don’t think I’m going to submit to them again, especially since I received encouragement last year, but then was told to wait another year, and then now was told generically that they are booked for another year. I wish places like these would just tell you – STOP SUBMITTING TO US! And I would, seriously I would, and I wouldn’t waste my time or theirs.
Hey, Annam -
A quick note to apologise for the form letter you got from us – I know it’s not the best. The only thing I can say by way of explanation is that the Brow is a really small team, and sometimes for us, it’s a choice between (a) holding onto a story for a year and (b) considering stories in batches, which can also mean sending batched responses. Reading fiction is often the most fun part of the job, but it’s also something I at least have to squeeze in at the end of a 12hr work day. We know how it looks – I’m a writer myself, and both uncertainty from magazines and form letters are EXCRUCIATING – and we’re still trying to figure out a middle ground.
Anyway, please know that even though you feel like we’ve wasted your time, you certainly haven’t wasted ours.
R
Thanks, Ronnie, for the clarification. Your response is admirable and very much appreciated.