Lots of Runners-UP No Beauty Queens

I've had a bad week as far as submissions go. Since last weekend I've received five rejections to short stories I've submitted. One story even got two rejections in the same weekend.  To add insult to injury, I just received another rejection this morning.

What's frustrating is that for the story that was rejected twice, both were personal rejections. One publisher said he almost passed it on for further consideration. The other publisher said he almost passed it on for further consideration for the entertainment value alone. I consider that encouraging since this was intended as a humor story without any serious implications.

 I find even more discouraging the experiences of a 950 word piece of dark horror I submitted. I thought I found the perfect publication for it. A week later they e-mailed me back saying they passed it onto stage two. The next week they said it was going on to stage three. I thought for sure the piece would sell, but got a personal rejection with comments from two people.

One person said she didn't understand the relationship between two of the characters. The other said he had seen five or six similar stories in the last two years. One thing I need to say about this story is it is about a man who makes a deal with the Devil to save his sick daughter. I've heard a lot of editors frown on this plot but everyone in my crit group who read this story liked it a lot.

So what, do I put a nametag on my character saying HI!  MY NAME IS SATAN  ?  Do I change the character of the Devil to the Medicine Fairy?  Or maybe I should take it on faith that if this story can almost make it to publication for one magazine, there’s another that will accept it.

Just for grins, I looked at the recent feed on Duotrope for the publishers that rejected my stories.  They all had a string of sometimes twenty or more rejections before the occasional acceptance came up.  I guess I should feel fortunate to have my three acceptances.   The problem is, three acceptances in minor publications are not enough.  I’ like the alcoholic who can’t stop at one drink.  I want that forth sale, and then I’m sure I will want that fifth and so on.

I guess there’s nothing to do but try again.  I already have the 950 word story submitted to yet another publication.  I am scouting markets for the other.  Write more stories, better stories, and hope.

Ever since high school I’d spend many an evening reading Asimov’s.  It’s one of the few publications that have stayed constant through the decades of change in the publishing industry.  As you can probably guess, it’s always been a dream of mine to be published there.

The only problem is, I’ve never submitted a story there.  Obviously my dream has no chance of being fulfilled unless I summon the courage to take the chance. Just for grins, I read the stats on Duotrope.  Their acceptance ratio is roughly one in three hundred.  That also ignores the fact any story submitted has to compete with scores of well-established authors.

For some reason a case of insanity overcame me tonight and I submitted my recently completed novella Beneath Europa to Asimov’s.  Considering the level of competition, I feel like I’m marching the story off on a suicide mission.  On the other hand, I suppose in a few weeks  I won’t have to spend the rest of my life asking myself what would have happened had I sent this to Asimov’s.   I guess what I’m asking is for someone to tell me I’m not crazy for even thinking I have a chance.  Or, if you do think I am crazy at least tell me in a kindly way.  J

I think I may have picked up on a trend that more editors respond to submissions on Saturday or Sunday evenings than any other time.  After noticing this, an idea occurred to me.  Maybe most of the editors of small publishers have day jobs and do most of their publication related activities on weekends.  Does this, and as an aspiring writer I hate to say this, humanize them just a little bit?

Nothing personal against all the publishers on this site, but you are the bad guys to me.  I send you guys stories I have worked on for weeks and you won't even buy them for a stinking twenty dollars. You send out gobs of form rejections instead but I still have to kiss your butts because pleasing you is the only hope I have to ever fulfill my dream of becoming a full time writer.

But what if you guys are in a similar situation?  Maybe you are working forty hour jobs as technical writers, English teachers, and editors for other publications but dream of owning your own full time publication is really in your hearts.  Just like I'm working my forty hour week, trying to raise two teenagers, mow the lawn, keep the cars running and writing on the weekends because this is the only time I can find to chase my dream, you are spending your weekends sorting through sludge piles in hopes of finding those stories that will lift your token payment publication to the big time.  Then you, too, can quit your day jobs and do what you really want to do with your lives as well.

Somebody pinch me, because I can't believe I'm really saying this. Good luck with the pursuit of your dreams.

I've been told every writer needs a blog. Since I'm now fifty years old (okay, fifty-one) I figure it 's time to get started. Besides, writing is such an emitional experience for me it might be theraputic to express myself somewhere.

When I was in high school, one of my goals was to become the next Isaac Asimov. I figure I still have a chance to reach that goal if I live to be a hundred and twenty, get a Ph.D. in Biochemestry, write twenty hours a day and become a pompous arrogant ass. Failing that, the best writer I can become is myself.
This is my third attempt at keeping a blog going. I've tried twice before.  The first time I made a few posts and then dropped the idea.  I tried again a little more than a month ago but something happened and I couldn't sign in no matter how hard I tried. I think the host company changed something and I didn't catch it.  Anyway, here goes.