Rejectomancy

sussura

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So I have a Schrodinger's cat story out there. It's been out a long time, and I know I should query, but part of me _likes_ the idea that there's still that possibility of future good news. The mag seems like it's taking a little longer coming out with a new issue than usual, and there's still someone in the queue longer than me (according to Duotrope at least).

I don't know if I have a question, exactly, but since I was bound to de-lurk here at some point, why not start now, right?

Sighhhhh. Eventually, I'm going to have to pull the trigger and query.

Also, hi everyone!
 

WordCount

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I received a rejection from The Washington Pastime the other day.

Here's the message I got back:

Dear Jacob Wilkens,

Thank you for submitting "An Angry Husband" to us for consideration. Unfortunately, we're going to have to pass on it at this time, as it's not quite what we're looking for.

I liked the beginning -- you started off with an attention grabbing sentence and used a very strong narrator. However, there is something holding it back for me. For some reason, I wasn't really in love with your ending, and that held back the story to me as a reader.

We appreciate your interest in The Washington Pastime, and sincerely hope you consider us for your future work.

Additionally, we encourage all writers to mark our response time on duotrope.com. Duotrope is a resource for writers to see the "True" turn-around time between submission and response for lit. journals and magazines.

All the best,

Mike Vidafar
Assistant Editor


----

Besides the fact he misspelled my name -which infuriated me for a slight second-, I loved this rejection. I'd even go as far to say I relish it. It truly is the best rejection I've ever gotten.

By the way, when editors tell you to send more stuff, are they implying that they would've accepted it, or came close to, and didn't because it didn't fit their personal parameters of interest. ( I took a risk, and sent a crime story to a mystery magazine.
 

zanzjan

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Finally, the Stupefying Stories matter has been resolved! Read my signature file if you want to find out the results. ;)

Congratulations! :hooray:

:Hug2: to everyone on the Rs and the tenacious crickets out there.
 

Mad Rabbits

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The Rs have started rolling in for my latest piece. Pretty bummed about the one I got from Allegory.

"A very interesting idea. Unfortunately, the treatment just didn't engage me, and in the end, I came away unconvinced."

In other words, it's boring and unbelievable. OUCH!
 

gettingby

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Doe Washington Pastime tell everyone they want to see future work from them?
 

Marzioli

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I received a rejection from The Washington Pastime the other day.
Wordcount, that's a pretty good rejection! Recently we've been noticing WP sending a lot of form rejections with the exact same criticism: "We noticed uneven prose." Hopefully they got that kink worked out. As for whether or not saying to submit more stuff is a good thing, it really depends on the market. I noticed more than half include that in their signature files, or as part of the form. You can check out a site like Wiki Rejections and compare it to the rejection tiers there. Or go through old AW posts and see what others have posted.

Zanjan, thank you!

Sussura, hi! Good luck with that query. I always prefer to know, myself. Sometimes submissions get lost. There's nothing worse than sitting on on a cricket-less bucket, thinking all the time that you're just waiting for a response when, through some error, they haven't even received it yet. Sometimes their response gets lost. Or sometimes, I imagine, they might have even accepted it and forgot to follow through. Regardless of the possibilities, giving them a polite kick in the backside (after the appropriate allotted time) will ultimately only benefit you in the long run.

Doe Washington Pastime tell everyone they want to see future work from them?
Standard form rejection ending: "We appreciate your interest in The Washington Pastime and hope that you will keep us in mind for future submissions." I'm not sure how higher tier rejections are worded.
 
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mhaynes

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The Rs have started rolling in for my latest piece. Pretty bummed about the one I got from Allegory.

"A very interesting idea. Unfortunately, the treatment just didn't engage me, and in the end, I came away unconvinced."

In other words, it's boring and unbelievable. OUCH!

As always, though, that's just one person's opinion. Someone else might be engaged and convinced. Hang in there!
 

WordCount

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Wordcount, that's a pretty good rejection! Recently we've been noticing WP sending a lot of form rejections with the exact same criticism: "We noticed uneven prose." Hopefully they got that kink worked out. As for whether or not saying to submit more stuff is a good thing, it really depends on the market. I noticed more than half include that in their signature files, or as part of the form. You can check out a site like Wiki Rejections and compare it to the rejection tiers there. Or go through old AW posts and see what others have posted.

Zanjan, thank you!

Sussura, hi! Good luck with that query. I always prefer to know, myself. Sometimes submissions get lost. There's nothing worse than sitting on on a cricket-less bucket, thinking all the time that you're just waiting for a response when, through some error, they haven't even received it yet. Sometimes their response gets lost. Or sometimes, I imagine, they might have even accepted it and forgot to follow through. Regardless of the possibilities, giving them a polite kick in the backside (after the appropriate allotted time) will ultimately only benefit you in the long run.

Standard form rejection ending: "We appreciate your interest in The Washington Pastime and hope that you will keep us in mind for future submissions." I'm not sure how higher tier rejections are worded.

Thanks, Marz. I've never gotten a personal rejection before, but it sure is nice to have one! Usually, I'll get something more along the lines of:
"Thank you for considering us, but it just doesn't fit our current needs."

^Is this code for "I don't like your story?" It sure sounds a lot like it to me.

I changed the ending, and I've sent it out again! No one's keeping me down.

I'm going to print this rejection out, and hang it on my wall!
 

Marzioli

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^Is this code for "I don't like your story?" It sure sounds a lot like it to me.
The standards used by an editor are a lot more complicated than one might realize. First and foremost, you have to have a professional level skill. If you pass that, you have to tell a fantastic story. If you pass that, you have to have a story that fits in with the mag/anthology/e-zine's genre/message/philosophy, or fits well with other stories they've already accepted, or doesn't sound too much like something they already took, or doesn't hit upon an idea that bothers them, or has a character they don't like. Many authors have been in a position where they have an editor tell them they loved a story, was very fond of the prose... but for some undisclosed reason they passed on it.
 

Marzioli

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32 day R from Clarkesworld. ow.
Oh no! But that's still an honor to be considered so long by the best paying genre pro-market and one of the toughest markets in general. Feel proud, Meret. I would! My longest was 5 or 6 days, and that was only because of a backlog. :D
 

sussura

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MeretSeger, so sorry to hear it - sounds like that story caught someone's attention though. I hope it finds a good home soon.
 

MeretSeger

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Yeah, ST...you know they take one a month out of hundreds, but as the days tick by, reality loses its grip.

And welcome, Sussura! This is a good place.
 

sussura

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Well, curiosity killed the cat, so to speak. At least, posting about it on a forum did. Today brought me a 140-day form rejection from IGMS. Pfft. Onwards, right?!
 

MeretSeger

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Well, curiosity killed the cat, so to speak. At least, posting about it on a forum did. Today brought me a 140-day form rejection from IGMS. Pfft. Onwards, right?!

I find myself engaging in odd superstitious behaviors. Rejectomancy is very well-named.
 

Marzioli

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Well, curiosity killed the cat, so to speak. At least, posting about it on a forum did. Today brought me a 140-day form rejection from IGMS. Pfft. Onwards, right?!
Best of luck on the next one. Keep it coming, Sussura. Now to find a place where it can be appreciated for what it is.
 

alexshvartsman

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Well, curiosity killed the cat, so to speak. At least, posting about it on a forum did. Today brought me a 140-day form rejection from IGMS. Pfft. Onwards, right?!

You do realize, of course, that until you posted about the Schrodinger Story it existed in the state where it was both accepted and rejected at the same time?
 

Mad Rabbits

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Commiserations on the Rs everyone...

And congrats Gettingby and WordCount on those personals... I agree, they are nice to have (or at least somewhat gratifying in place of an acceptance) :)
 

sussura

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You do realize, of course, that until you posted about the Schrodinger Story it existed in the state where it was both accepted and rejected at the same time?

Oh I realize. Admittedly, I was going to query... someday. Maybe. The nice thing was having it out there in that state - less distracting than staring at it here. I'm working on a novel revision, instead of my well intentioned R1S1 pledge, so it's mostly Find1S1.

Still.

Revised and going out again tomorrow.
 

SmallThing

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Well, curiosity killed the cat, so to speak. At least, posting about it on a forum did. Today brought me a 140-day form rejection from IGMS. Pfft. Onwards, right?!

Onwards, yes!

I'm about to start posting names and days out soon, if for no other reason than to bring the silence to an end. If I say it, they will reject, right?