What a way to start the day. I got a rejection from The Dabbling Mom on a reprint! They only pay $5 on reprints, but my article got the no-go. Oh, well, I'll send it somewhere else. Much good luck with all your subs.
I just got a Google Alert on this thread and wanted to say, "Don't feel bad about the rejection". It was nothing personal. I don't recall your specific reprint, but sometimes rejections are simply because the piece didn't fit or the timing was off and had nothing whatsoever to do with writing skills.
Just so you know, I still get rejections, too. I may be an editor of a paying publication but as a freelance writer, I get rejected all the time. It's the nature of the beast.
Rejections hurt but they make us stronger and the more you develop "thick skin" for the industry, the less it will hurt but it will always hurt. I think it hurts because writers put part of their soul into their work, even if it's a how to article about something that wasn't actually personal.
Also, we pay $5 to $10 for reprints and $20 to $40 on originals. I know it's not a lot but we are a free online publication who earns revenue from ads and it's our ads that pay the writers.
Have a blessed day.
Edited to say: I cannot believe it took Google this long to send me an alert on this thread!