Advice please: do I wait forever?

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Lizardmaker

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A major, pro-paying zine has had my story for 350 days. I did receive an acknowledgment of the submission. They do send out rejections (daily, according to Duotrope's data). Weeks ago I tried the email address dedicated to status queries, but got no response.

Obviously, I would like to make this sale, but when do I give up? Once, another zine kept my story for almost two years and then offered to buy it long after I'd officially withdrawn it, which they'd simply ignored. I'd already sold it elsewhere for far less money.

Suggestions for my current conundrum, please? Thanks!
 

Jamesaritchie

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I don't think there's ever a reason to withdraw a story from a top mag. Yes, some take a long time, but so what? Spend your time writing and submitting new stories, not worrying about those already in submission.
"Submit and forget" is teh best rule, as long as it is a magazine that sends out rejections.

I had one large magazine take a little more than two years before responding. When I received teh acceptance, I had to look in my records to make sure there wasn't a mistake because I didn't even remember writing a story with that title.

It turned out to be one of my most lucrative, and most important, sales. It not only paid well for a short story, a thousand dollars, but it reprints sold quickly, and it opened many doors.

Keep writing and submitting stories, not thinking about this one. Do this, and it won't be long before you have so many stories in circulation that you won't care how long it takes to hear back from any one story. You may even forget you wrote some of them.
 

Phaeal

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Could mean it's been passed on to a second reader, like the editor. That's what resulted in some of my long waits.

I'd say give it another six months, then inquire.
 

stormie

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I've had stories accepted or rejected over a year later also. It's hard to wait, but as others have said, keep on writing other stories and submitting to other magazines.

As Phael said, it could also mean it went on to a second reader or up to the fiction editor, as happens with Woman's World magazine.
 
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