Submission Process

Melinda Moore · Mar 20, 2013

For those of you submitting short stories, especially if you are just starting out, you might find this blog post by Daniel Scott, the Executive Editor at The Colored Lens, helpful. He was kind enough to guest blog for me today on my website. Hook, Line and Sinker.

Shadow_Ferret · Mar 20, 2013

Nice and informative.

Guess I can see where I'm failing -- I never could fish!

I wonder why they always say 3rd person is the easiest to write. For me its the hardest. I always get back remarks that I'm too distant from the main character. Oh well.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 20, 2013

Shadow_Ferret said:
Nice and informative.

Guess I can see where I'm failing -- I never could fish[/]!

I wonder why they always say 3rd person is the easiest to write. For me its the hardest. I always get back remarks that I'm too distant from the main character. Oh well.

I can tell you that from an editor's standpoint, first person is infinitely harder to write well.

In the average slush pile I've seen, from one to three percent of the third person limited stories are publishable, if not be me, then by another editor at a different magazine. Another ten percent or so is very well written, but is missing something, be it story or character. Even with these missing elements, it's still well-written.

This just isn't true with first person stories. Maybe one percent is well-written, and I'm lucky if more than one tenth of one percent is publishable.

In a very real way, first person is much easier for a new writer to write, but infinitely harder for them to write well enough to sell.

This is why so many editors and agents caution new writers against first person. Editors, agents, and readers LOVE well-written first person, but finding such stories is darned near impossible.

One good way to determine whether you should even try writing first person is by what you most love reading. If you greatly prefer reading first person stories, if you love it so much that you actively search it out over third person, if you read anything and every thing you can find that's written in first person, then writing in first person might be a good idea.

But if you prefer reading third person, if most of your reading is third person, then you'll have a much, much better chance of selling if you also write in third person.

Melinda Moore · Mar 20, 2013

I'm glad you found it helpful

I can't seem to be able to land my story at the end...I'd better go buy a net

vombatidae · Apr 10, 2013

Thanks for linking it. It's a good piece and I liked the fishing analogy.

The part about 2nd person stories reminded me of Lorrie Moore's "Self Help", which is composed almost entirely of 2nd person short stories (and pretty good overall) but I agree that that is territory best left alone for most of us.

Melinda Moore · Apr 12, 2013

Glad you enjoyed it! I've tried writing in second person. In a way, it's kinda fun, but I can see why it mostly doesn't work.

King Neptune · Apr 12, 2013

There isn't anything new or different there, but it is nice to read that editors actually read things. Sometimes I suspect that they use the stair or flowerpot method. It's more a matter of having the right story in the right place at the right time.

WriterBN · Apr 14, 2013

Melinda Moore said:
Glad you enjoyed it! I've tried writing in second person. In a way, it's kinda fun, but I can see why it mostly doesn't work.

It's fun to experiment with. I did this a couple of years ago for a flash fiction piece (http://voices.yahoo.com/corrigendum-8423359.html).

Melinda Moore · Apr 17, 2013

WriterBN said:
It's fun to experiment with. I did this a couple of years ago for a flash fiction piece (http://voices.yahoo.com/corrigendum-8423359.html).

I have your story up to read...just haven't gotten to it

To go along with how to hook an editor, Dawn Lloyd the Editor in Chief at the Colored Lens guest blogged for me today about writing cover letters. I particularly like when she talks about whether editors remember you from one submission to the next. Please enjoy!

http://enchantedspark.com/wordpress1/2013/04/17/communicating-with-editors/

blacbird · Apr 17, 2013

The submission process is pretty simple, in my experience:

I send.

They reject, or ignore, according to their preference.

caw

Rufus Leeking · Apr 18, 2013

blacbird said:
The submission process is pretty simple, in my experience:

I send.

They reject, or ignore, according to their preference.

caw

true that- but lots of places use different color paper for the preprinted rejection notes, and once you get a pile of them, it can be pretty.

Melinda Moore · Apr 18, 2013

Rufus Leeking said:
true that- but lots of places use different color paper for the preprinted rejection notes, and once you get a pile of them, it can be pretty.

Turn them into origami

WriterBN · Apr 20, 2013

Rejection notes? You guys are lucky. All I got was e-mails

ecrider · Apr 20, 2013

Submission process is mostly rejection sometimes they will send you a form letter other times they may send a personal note. Has anyone been accepted in literary magazines or e-zines?

Jamesaritchie · Apr 20, 2013

ecrider said:
Submission process is mostly rejection sometimes they will send you a form letter other times they may send a personal note. Has anyone been accepted in literary magazines or e-zines?

I've been accepted in many magazines, some literary, but I very seldom submit anything to e-magazines. They just haven't paid enough. This is starting to change, so I'm going to start targeting more of them.

Though, come to think of it, I did place a poem in Miller's Pond several years ago. I think that was the only e-publication I tried until just recently.

blacbird · Apr 20, 2013

ecrider said:
Submission process is mostly rejection sometimes they will send you a form letter other times they may send a personal note.

50+% of the time they will send you nothing. And that percentage is rising steadily.

caw

Paul · Apr 20, 2013

posting for fut ref. (PFFR)

Melinda Moore · Apr 21, 2013

blacbird said:
50+% of the time they will send you nothing. And that percentage is rising steadily.

caw

I send out personal rejections. We take literary and genre stories. It's more of an exercise because you have to write using specific pictures, but it's a $30 prize. Photo Flare. The main thread for the contest is over in paid markets...just wanted to let you know I send out rejections...and even acceptances

Jamesaritchie · Apr 21, 2013

blacbird said:
50+% of the time they will send you nothing. And that percentage is rising steadily.

caw

I receive an acceptance or a rejection e-mail/letters at almost every magazine I submit stories to. Probably 99% of them. I often receive a rejection letter from magazines that say they don't respond unless they accept the story.

I'm not sure why this is, unless it's that I almost never receive form rejections. I've found that if the editor likes the story and likes the writing, I get a nice rejection letter, even if he doesn't think the story is right for his magazine.

Submission Process

Court Jester