Rejectomancy

squeaky pram

oldie turned newbie
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
255
Reaction score
25
Location
UK
Hi. Can I play here, too?

Three rejections last week on three different stories. Ouch. I'm getting much better at taking this stuff in stride, but, you know, still...

Wouldn't bother me as much (at least I think it wouldn't) if I were getting personal or encouraging rejections, but they are all the standard no-go form.

Don't know if its my writing or the market that has changed. Maybe both. But when I was getting stories published in the '90s (before I quit) it seemed a lot easier. I guess I had no idea how lucky I was. As they say in these parts, I didn't know I was born!
 

alexshvartsman

Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 27, 2010
Messages
2,049
Reaction score
156
Location
Brooklyn, NY
Wouldn't bother me as much (at least I think it wouldn't) if I were getting personal or encouraging rejections, but they are all the standard no-go form.

Some of the best fiction markets make it a practice not to provide personal rejections. This has more to do with their volume of submissions than anything else. So you shouldn't be discouraged by a form rejection from, say, Clarkesworld or Lightspeed.
 

gettingby

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 1, 2008
Messages
2,748
Reaction score
170
squeaky pram - If you write literary, I think it is normal to get form rejections. I have gotten about 80 rejections this year, and all but three have been forms. And even the personals weren't that personal. The only good part about getting personals is that you can remind them they saw something in your earlier work. The important thing is that you are sending stuff out! Selling fiction is not an easy road for anyone.
 

Brynn

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 21, 2012
Messages
125
Reaction score
12
50-day form R from DSF. :( Had my hopes up.
 

johemedel

...should be writing.
Registered
Joined
Jul 17, 2012
Messages
42
Reaction score
0
50-day form R from DSF. :( Had my hopes up.

That is a bummer :(

35 day form R (I think) from Plasma Frequency for a piece I forgot I'd submitted. The form said "look forward to more" but I'm unsure as to whether or not that's standard for all of their Rs.
 

Marzioli

Could be worse!
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 26, 2011
Messages
969
Reaction score
59
Location
Salem, OR
The form said "look forward to more" but I'm unsure as to whether or not that's standard for all of their Rs.
Unless they changed their forms, it's a legitimate compliment. My last response from them just said they lost interest after 3 pages and good luck (with the implication, "you'll need it!"). :D

Edit: Big oops moment! I submitted something to Lightspeed that I had already submitted to Nightmare and got zinged for it. For some reason I didn't even think of the connection between those markets, only that it was a place I had yet to submit this particular story to. I'll definitely need to be more mindful in the future. ::Egg on my face emoticon::
 
Last edited:

Brynn

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 21, 2012
Messages
125
Reaction score
12
Big oops moment! I submitted something to Lightspeed that I had already submitted to Nightmare and got zinged for it.

Aww. That sucks, man, I'm sorry to hear that.
 

squeaky pram

oldie turned newbie
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
255
Reaction score
25
Location
UK
Some of the best fiction markets make it a practice not to provide personal rejections. This has more to do with their volume of submissions than anything else.

Yes, that's true. I'm just comparing the responses that I'm receiving now with those I received back in the '90s when I was last submitting (and publishing). One thing that has changed is that many literary journals now allow simultaneous subs, which I assume can only mean higher volume.

For me, a process that seemed easy and welcoming in the '90s has become more difficult. Again, could be the marketplace, or it could be that my writing style has become out of fashion, or both. Or it's just that I was extremely lucky before.

Anyway... second guessing is probably not the most productive occupation I can find for myself. So, onward! :)
 

Sai

Book lover/Spy
Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 11, 2007
Messages
2,392
Reaction score
394
Location
Back home
Website
www.kuri-ousity.com
Edit: Big oops moment! I submitted something to Lightspeed that I had already submitted to Nightmare and got zinged for it. For some reason I didn't even think of the connection between those markets, only that it was a place I had yet to submit this particular story to. I'll definitely need to be more mindful in the future. ::Egg on my face emoticon::

Man, JJA is everywhere. I'm always paranoid that I'm going to send him a story that I had already sent him through another market.
 

Eliza C

We’ll see what happens from here…
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 21, 2010
Messages
944
Reaction score
77
Anyway... second guessing is probably not the most productive occupation I can find for myself. So, onward! :)

Best attitude to have, for sure! Besides, three stories is a very small sample size to draw any conclusions. And at least you have your old credits to list in your bio.
 

Project Deadlight

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 30, 2011
Messages
857
Reaction score
43
Location
The Shire of Warwick
Hey Squeaky! Nice to see you up this part of town!

No news my end. Had a DSF R the other day for my cave story. Off to Interz@ne next. Other than that ITS FAR TOO QUIET!
 

Aggy B.

Not as sweet as you think
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 28, 2008
Messages
11,882
Reaction score
1,557
Location
Just north of the Deep South
21 day R from Clockwork Phoenix. He said the style was right, but the story didn't hook him in the end. Oh, well.
 

akaSylvia

Doesn't Bite
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 10, 2007
Messages
196
Reaction score
9
Location
Malaga, Spain
Website
www.intrigue.co.uk
I'm trying to be better about reporting now that Duotrope stats are limited.

This week I've had

37 days Unstuck
27 days Stupefying Stories
15 days Strange Horizons
 
Last edited:

ShadowFox

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 4, 2008
Messages
298
Reaction score
24
Quick form reject from Clarkesworld and DSF, quick personal from Aurora Wolf... kind of funny in an "ouch" way. AW prefer more PG content... ironically I thought the story I sent was pretty safe but obviously not.
 

ShadowFox

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 4, 2008
Messages
298
Reaction score
24
20 day form reject from Ellery Queen, 1 day form reject Electric Velocipede.
 

O'Dandelo

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 5, 2011
Messages
509
Reaction score
29
Location
The lost city of Atlanta
Sorry about all the Rs, folks. I got a 20-day R from Clockwork Phoenix, one of the "Your style suits what I like in Clockwork Phoenix, but ultimately the piece didn't hook me" ones.
 

gettingby

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 1, 2008
Messages
2,748
Reaction score
170
70-day form rejection from Ninth Letter. This was one of my best, maybe even my best. Breaking into the literary market is proving to be very hard, and I might be at me breaking point. I just can't get any short story published.
 

zanzjan

killin' all teh werds
Staff member
Moderator
Kind Benefactor
VPX
VPXI
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 5, 2010
Messages
9,728
Reaction score
3,208
Location
home home homityhomehome
Three rejections last week on three different stories. Ouch. I'm getting much better at taking this stuff in stride, but, you know, still..

Ouch! And Welcome!

The important thing is that you are sending stuff out! Selling fiction is not an easy road for anyone.

Exactly this.

Man, JJA is everywhere. I'm always paranoid that I'm going to send him a story that I had already sent him through another market.

I ran into him several Worldcons back and introduced myself and said, "You're my most frequent rejector!" Shook his hand, but he looked like he was worried I was going to slug him.

1 day personal rejection from Scovil, Galen & Ghosh for The Steampunk Novel query. At least they were quick. :)

Also ouch?

77 day R from Wastelands 2 anthology.

Feel weird not to be reporting this on Duotrope.

Yeah. I got my rejection for the last thing I'd reported there (168 days from tor.com) and when I sent it out again, I figured, I wasn't going to be able to update it after the New Year, so why bother? Felt weird and sad.

70-day form rejection from Ninth Letter. This was one of my best, maybe even my best. Breaking into the literary market is proving to be very hard, and I might be at me breaking point. I just can't get any short story published.

Literary is hugely difficult. Which stinks, but will make it all the sweeter when you sell one. And a story is only your best until you write a better one. Stick to it if you can, and good luck!