Says the writer who received this rejection: "I like the use of the word 'develop'; I do not like their use of 'traditional relationships.'" I personally am stumped by the very last sentence: 'In your writ in endeavors'--huh?
Dear writer:
Thank you for submitting material to The Saturday Evening Post. We regret that we are unable to develop it for publication at this time. Often because of the sheer volume of freelance submissions we receive, we are forced to reject well-written and informative articles and queries.
You may have noticed that the Post has gone through a transition. We purchase very few outside articles and stories, but are increasing our fiction somewhat. Include one or two published clips with your query. We prefer typed manuscripts between 1,000 and 2,000 words in length. We generally buy all rights.
Although we seldom publish new fiction, our readers enjoy upbeat stories that stress traditional relationships and family values. A light, humorous touch is appreciated. We are also always in need of straight humor articles. We are especially interested in well-written, wholesome humor.
If you send a manuscript, either (1) include a sufficiently stamped and sized SASE for its return; or (2) indicate you do not wish the material returned and include sufficiently stamped SASE for reply only.
Thanks again or thinking about the Post. We wish you success in your writ in endeavors.
The Editors
4 comments:
I do not like their use of 'traditional relationships.'
You don't have to like it, but that is their editorial preference. You can write about a gay merman who comes to the surface to find out if underage human males are better lovers, you can submit the story to SEP, but you cannot honestly expect them to publish it.
Frankly if I wrote that story I wouldn't expect anyone to publish it.
I am the submitter of this rejection, and what bothers me isn't that they want wholesome, relationship-focused material; it's the clear implication that alternative relationships somehow don't fall under that rubric. The fact that they don't say it outright also bothers me. It's this idea that we're all supposed to just understand and accept what's wholesome and what's not. I simply won't do that. I'd rather play dumb, waste stamps, and send what I find wholesome and traditional.
I'm sorry. The Saturday Evening Post? Did you time travel to the 40s to submit or are they just now getting back to you?
The fact that they don't say it outright also bothers me. It's this idea that we're all supposed to just understand and accept what's wholesome and what's not.
Yes, it's presumptive of them. But for anyone who wants to submit to a publication with a 1950s outlook, the correct answer is heterosexual long-term committed monogamy.
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