reading fees

I noticed that, too, back when I was subbing a couple of stories. I think they get so much stuff that they have to cut down on the volume somehow.

I'd rather support such publications by subscribing. I won't submit to anything with a reading fee, period. Yog's Law and all.

Maryn, with certain standards

Why pay a reading fee? There are plenty of people on AW and other forums that read for free. Most literary agents don't charge a reading fee, and some actively state that those that do are not the best ones to go for

Violets said:

Why pay a reading fee? There are plenty of people on AW and other forums that read for free. Most literary agents don't charge a reading fee, and some actively state that those that do are not the best ones to go for

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Violets, they call them 'reading fees' but it's not for beta reading or critiquing, it's a cost for submitting your work for publication. I don't know if they're charging for someone's time spent reading submissions, if they're charging for the submissions software, or something else. One journal I looked at said it was for printing and making copies for their editors, and didn't charge if you submitted hard copy via snail mail.

Honestly, it seems to me that those things are operating costs that should be covered by revenues from subscriptions, advertising, etc., and should not be passed on to prospective authors.

Of course, it could be that their trying to discourage or slow down submissions. Some journals are buried in material.

jeffo20 said:

One journal I looked at said it was for printing and making copies for their editors, and didn't charge if you submitted hard copy via snail mail.

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I've also seen the opposite - where there's no charge for e-submissions, but they do charge for snail mail. The "free hard copy" really doesn't make sense, just considering handling costs - mailroom, distribution - and they'd still have to make copies; whereas email can be distributed in seconds at no cost, and the editors can then print or not depending on their own preferences.

Thinning the slush by selecting for those willing to pay money strikes me as a very odd choice, and possibly counter-productive if you want quality submissions

shadowwalker said:

The "free hard copy" really doesn't make sense, just considering handling costs - mailroom, distribution - and they'd still have to make copies; whereas email can be distributed in seconds at no cost, and the editors can then print or not depending on their own preferences.

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I agree with you. I thought maybe I screwed that up and had it backwards, but I just found one of the journals that said this:

Please note there is a fee of $3 to submit electronically. This is used to cover costs such as printing.

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veinglory said:

Thinning the slush by selecting for those willing to pay money strikes me as a very odd choice, and possibly counter-productive if you want quality submissions

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I agree with you completely. Maybe they get hit with a per use charge or something; maybe they don't want starving artists.