It's nice of him to choose option #4 and personally respond to strong stories he liked. Maybe it's just me, but I get rejection #3 a lot more than the fourth option.
For me, postal submissions still seem to yield more personal rejections than the online submission managers. (Personal as in it's definitely a note tailored to your specific story instead of a tiered form). I guess going through the mail creates a distance that is eliminated through online submissions, where it's so much easier for writers to immediately respond, ask questions, etc.
McSweeney's tells some people they are "encouraged" to submit again-- is that their version of Tier 2? I was happy about it, but since it's been over six months since I sent my last submission, and no reply is forthcoming, I'm not feeling optimistic about my chances there.
I've received the second-tier rejection from One Story and a couple other places, but most of mine are just Tier 1, which has me tearing my hair out.
Except when I submit to science fiction mags. They -- and I'm talking about some fairly well-known, well-paying ones -- seem far more likely to send personal responses. Either that or my writing is just too weird for the literary folks.
It's nice of him to choose option #4 and personally respond to strong stories he liked. Maybe it's just me, but I get rejection #3 a lot more than the fourth option.
ReplyDeleteFor me, postal submissions still seem to yield more personal rejections than the online submission managers. (Personal as in it's definitely a note tailored to your specific story instead of a tiered form). I guess going through the mail creates a distance that is eliminated through online submissions, where it's so much easier for writers to immediately respond, ask questions, etc.
McSweeney's tells some people they are "encouraged" to submit again-- is that their version of Tier 2? I was happy about it, but since it's been over six months since I sent my last submission, and no reply is forthcoming, I'm not feeling optimistic about my chances there.
ReplyDeleteI've received the second-tier rejection from One Story and a couple other places, but most of mine are just Tier 1, which has me tearing my hair out.
Except when I submit to science fiction mags. They -- and I'm talking about some fairly well-known, well-paying ones -- seem far more likely to send personal responses. Either that or my writing is just too weird for the literary folks.