Rejectomancy

mhaynes

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I do have a piece under review at Asimov's, so I'm eager to see what comes of that.

Good luck with it!

Please tell me that the automatic submission systems don't show how many time the author has checked on their status. Because wowza. I'd keep me under review just to see how many times I'm capable of checking.

Heh. That would be a perfectly evil thing to do. I can imagine the Duotrope admins getting a chuckle or two out of how often I check my subs...
 

Marzioli

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Heh. That would be a perfectly evil thing to do. I can imagine the Duotrope admins getting a chuckle or two out of how often I check my subs...
They'd laugh at us both! I'm guilty of checking once a day, six to fifteen at a time. :p
 

alexshvartsman

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So many news today... it's as though the editors don't even know I'm on vacation :)

Form R from PodCastle. 21-day personal R from Shimmer. A higher-tier form from F&SF (that's 2 high-tier forms in a row. Getting closer?).

Also one bit of good news -- my story made it to the final round at Allegory and they'll be making their decisions in just a few days, so not a long wait on this.
 

Lillie

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Please tell me that the automatic submission systems don't show how many time the author has checked on their status. Because wowza. I'd keep me under review just to see how many times I'm capable of checking.

:D
That made me laugh.

(((Hugs))) for everyone with rejections, and good luck to everyone with crickets.
 

Marzioli

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Also one bit of good news -- my story made it to the final round at Allegory and they'll be making their decisions in just a few days, so not a long wait on this.
Awesome news. Good luck! How long has your sub been out? I've had one there for 46 days without a single peep or confirmation.


Also, I just did an obsessive compulsive search of my submissions. If I read the stats correctly, I'm due for a tidal wave of potential rejections / responses in the next few days. Hopefully one will squeak past the slush and grant me reprieve. Unfortunately, all of them are pro-pay, so that's unlikely.
 
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cara

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Did they say "too insane"?

Hugs on the R. I just find it's best not to read into why a mag rejected the content of a story unless they spell it out. It can drive you batty. ;)
Yeah XD It was a horror and apparently mine wasn't sane enough for an American audience. I don't mind really :) I didn't think I'd get in, but wanted to sub anyway XD Thanks!!
 

Lillie

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Seriously? Too insane?

I am much impressed.

:)
 

alexshvartsman

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Awesome news. Good luck! How long has your sub been out? I've had one there for 46 days without a single peep or confirmation.

Mine's been there for only 30 days and they said the end of submission period is Feb 29, at which point they'll make the final decisions. At 46 days you might consider querying, so you can sneak in before the issue deadline in case something has gone wrong and they lost your sub.
 

defcon6000

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Nothing but crickets then--BAM! R's from DSF, Buzzy, and Shadows & Tall Trees (same piece that DSF R'ed).
 

Marzioli

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I guess this wave of rejection is going to trickle in after all. Got one from Flash Fiction Online, an one from Apex.
 
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V1c

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*hugs* to those in this thread.

I've only got a few out (just sent another today), but should have some Rs or something trickling in soon.
 

O'Dandelo

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Sorry, defcon and marzioli.

Speaking of Shadows & Tall Trees, he closes submissions today, I believe. I wish I had something ready to send him.
 

fihr

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Commiserations, Defcon and Marzioli.

Painful to receive several R's in one go.

I have only three crickets. Which isn't a bad thing. (Gives me time to recover between R's.)
 

pangalactic

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Hugs everyone :(

I'm going to ask something only tangentially related to Rejectomancy. Advance apologies if this shouldn't be here, but I wanted to ask some advice from those of you who've had rewrite requests, and those of you with editing experience.

I'm currently in the process of editing a chapbook of flash fiction for my university. I've had a submission that I like, as far as the story goes, but I really don't like the execution of it; the writer has tried far too hard to dress the story up in flowery language and 'interesting' syntax, and it just falls down completely. If the story was done justice by the writing, though, I'd love to buy it. I have no idea how to phrase this to the writer. Thoughts?
 

Mad Rabbits

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I got a nice personal rejection today from Medulla Review. This story has now accumulated three personal Rs so I'm thinking, perhaps foolishly, that it might get placed somewhere eventually.

The editor's comment about the story left me perplexed, but that's another story...
 

alexshvartsman

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I'm currently in the process of editing a chapbook of flash fiction for my university. I've had a submission that I like, as far as the story goes, but I really don't like the execution of it; the writer has tried far too hard to dress the story up in flowery language and 'interesting' syntax, and it just falls down completely. If the story was done justice by the writing, though, I'd love to buy it. I have no idea how to phrase this to the writer. Thoughts?

Chris,

I would tell him EXACTLY what you wrote above, possibly with a few examples/quotes from his MS to give him a good idea of what kind of changes you want. Then let the author do a rewrite, if he wants to. It's important to remember that

a) its HIS story. Don't rewrite it for him; make suggestions that would help you buy it and let him decide if he wants to follow them

b) you're under no obligation to buy the story. If you're still uncertain about it after the rewrite don't be guilted into offering an undeserved acceptance.
 

Marzioli

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I've had a submission that I like, as far as the story goes, but I really don't like the execution of it; the writer has tried far too hard to dress the story up in flowery language and 'interesting' syntax, and it just falls down completely. If the story was done justice by the writing, though, I'd love to buy it. I have no idea how to phrase this to the writer. Thoughts?
Start with what you liked, and then launch into what you didn't (i.e. "it's verbose," "unnecessarily cluttered," "too wordy," or however you want to describe it). Mention that you'd like to buy the story IF the author does a rewrite. And if you really want the story included, maybe offer an example of the problem and how it can be fixed. If they're interested in the sale, they'll change it. If not, they get no sale.
 

alexshvartsman

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Nothing but crickets then--BAM! R's from DSF, Buzzy, and Shadows & Tall Trees (same piece that DSF R'ed).

Hugs and sorry about all the R's!

How long did your Buzzy R take? I have a story there I care about most, out of all of my current subs... :)
 

alexshvartsman

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11 days. I'm kinda wondering what stories does Buzzy even likes. I know they've bought a few contemporary fantasies, but what else?

The one I sold to them is a light urban fantasy adventure. The one I have in their queue is a sequel (same world, same main character) though it's completely readable on its own (think Sherlock Holmes stories). It's been with them for 48 days now, but then I see a 100+ day rejection on Duotrope today, so I definitely shouldn't be relaxing yet.

This is the world/character I plan on writing my first novel about, so I really care about this story's chances.
 

Marzioli

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I read in an interview with their site owners that Buzzy Mag was openly searching for spec-fic from a Christian perspective. That might indicate they're not open to blatantly horrific or nihilistic story-lines. Or, I suppose, it could simply mean that, as opposed to Clarke's World, they are open to stories based on, "some vestigial belief in Judeo-Christian mythology." On a side note, I found this throw away line about their editorial staff very interesting: "The magazine’s team of experienced editors, who are professional genre authors themselves, will work with the writers to perfect the works." If they're experienced editors and genre professionals, why don't they state that on the website. I think it might boost their appeal to potential authors.

As for me, I sent them a magical realism short, VERY light on the spec-fic. Can't say that its rejection will mean they're not open to that subgenre though.
 
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defcon6000

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The one I sold to them is a light urban fantasy adventure. The one I have in their queue is a sequel (same world, same main character) though it's completely readable on its own (think Sherlock Holmes stories). It's been with them for 48 days now, but then I see a 100+ day rejection on Duotrope today, so I definitely shouldn't be relaxing yet.

This is the world/character I plan on writing my first novel about, so I really care about this story's chances.
Good luck with it! Out of curiosity, is the story that's published with them from a Christian perspective?

I read in an interview with their site owners that Buzzy Mag was openly searching for spec-fic from a Christian perspective. That might indicate they're not open to blatantly horrific or nihilistic story-lines. Or, I suppose, it could simply mean that, as opposed to Clarke's World, they are open to stories based on, "some vestigial belief in Judeo-Christian mythology." On a side note, I found this throw away line about their editorial staff very interesting: "The magazine’s team of experienced editors, who are professional genre authors themselves, will work with the writers to perfect the works." If they're experienced editors and genre professionals, why don't they state that on the website. I think it might boost their appeal to potential authors.

As for me, I sent them a magical realism short, VERY light on the spec-fic. Can't say that its rejection will mean they're not open to that subgenre though.
Huh. Very interesting. Thanks for sharing, Marzioli. :) I wouldn't have guessed that since they say it no where in their guidelines that they take stories with Christian perspectives. The stuff I've sent them so far is horror: 1 horror-humor, 1 detective horror, 1 Lovecraftian horror with ambiguous ending.

So I'm starting to wonder if they dislike horror. :tongue