Here's a write-in comment about another of Narrative Magazine's story of the week, from one of the mice. I've added links:
wtf?
Maybe it's because the writer is pretty (see photo above) and has an impressive bio.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Summary of the Week?
wtf?
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8 comments:
She ain't that pretty...
whoa there rejection queef! stay off the looks. I can see your not too savvy about how publishing works...here's a hint: you can only take cheap shots at other writers when a) you are known and b) said cheap shots are about the writing, not the person.
unless of course you want your name in read ink on the blacklist, then fire away.
or if you have the self control of a 4 year old, be a snark anonynonynonymously
Your obsession with Narrative Magazine is getting old. You aren't getting continually rejected by them because you aren't paying their ridiculous "contest" fees, so why every other post about Narrative?
Are they scammers targeting struggling underpublished writers? Very likely.
Do they publish so much dreck it undercuts their mission statement? Yes. I set up a fako account so I could check it out for myself and they definitely do. But that's their prerogative. Every literary magazine has some aesthetic they adhere to. At Narrative, they seem to value plot and story arc more than the writing or characters. You could just as easily harp on Ploughshares for constantly publishing stories with no plot, or at most an idiotic one. They care ONLY about the writing.
And I don't think the looters story is that bad. It needs a good thorough editing to reduce it by a third. It's possible the author over-wrote it on purpose to make it a match with Narrative. Who hasn't dumbed-down or crapped-up a story to sell it?
And another thing, her bio is not all that and a bag of chips. She seems like a typical mid-career working writer.
Guess you told me.
BTW, this was actually a letter from someone else complaining about NM. I'm posting it because that's what I do.
Maybe you'll send me a rejection or two to share instead, which would keep me out of trouble.
This site is more and more like a McCain/Palin rally every day. Instead of hearing about Bill Ayers, we hear about Narrative Magazine. And like the person who shouts out something inflammatory at the rally, we get the yahoo above insulting the looks of someone whose photo you post (an invitation to the yahoos, I might add, since we all know how the Darin Strauss photo episode went down). Well, it's ugly and counterproductive. (Oh, and as for Ploughshares...I find it odd that they care "only about the writing" since each issue has a different editor. Hm. I wonder how that works.) I take it that Writer, Rejected isn't a Republican, but I wouldn't be suprised if a photo surfaced of him/her shooting editors from a helicopter. (I await Writer, Rejected's 4-star quip: "I guess you told me" or some such clever comeback. Or, more likely, this will prompt Writer, Rejected to write a post about this comment, because, A) it's the perfect opportunity to play the victim card, and B) it lends itself to good art.)
And yes: It's "surprised," not "suprised." I know.
I think everyone needs to go get a drink and chill out. Perhaps it's pre-election jitters. So it seems that Narrative magazine publishes sub-par drek, and it seems it's not news to many. Personally, if I don't like a blog, I don't bother clicking on it or reading it. This blog I like, therefore I read. It. And I like WR too, or at least I like being able to say I communicate regularly with a third-gendered dude. It's good for looking inclusive when I'm out campaigning. Cheers.
I know this post is a months late and it was a bit of a non-subject to begin with, but I have to second the wtf. I looked up this story and read most of it and... I don't care about 'subjective' that was just bad. Plain and simple, it was dull and uninspired, not even up to middle aged lady workshop level.
How did this even happen? This must have come from somewhere more sketchy than just someone being impressed by a pretty face and a nice bio.
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