Five Minute Rant

Hmm, No one seems to use this anymore but me. But ugh. Trying to send out stories again. For some strange, unknown reason the online submission system that Asimov's and Analog use does not like my .doc files. Unless it is a flash story it is always too large-or so they say. I don't have that problem with anyone else except for the two other magazines owned but the same company as those two. I can send .rtf except my WP doesn't convert to rtf. I have OpenOffice for another problem I have and that doesn't do .rtf either. It's been so long since I tried to submit to them I hoped that the problem would be fixed but they probably don't know there is a problem.

Rejections don't always get to me the way they used to, although I've got some potential candidates in the near future.

That problem with Asimov's definitely seems frustrating. Maybe there's a place on their website where you can contact them to report the issue?

Besides the fact that I am out of the habit of sending out stories I think that the years of rejections help my subconscious to forget to remind me to send them out. But this one (Shakes head). What makes it worse, I think not quite sure though, they can not read the .rtf files. If so I will try a .doc file made by OpenOffice. Once Sheila Williams allowed me to send a story via E-mail again if I recall correctly, that would have been two years ago. We shall see what happens this time.

Hmm, No one seems to use this anymore but me.

Don't get me wrong, I want to, but I'm taking a new approach to rejections and it's helping. When a story comes in, I immediately turn it around and send it to another market. Whenever I get a query rejection for my novel, I pick another agent and send it out.

It's turned into something of a reflex now and I barely notice them anymore.

That said... I did get a rejection about a story where the first reader said the premise wasn't believable. It's about a delivery guy inadvertently breaking quarantine and then going on vacation with expected results.

*deep breath*

I'll edit in more distractions to make it more "believable," but come on.

I used to do that and will again when I get back into the habit of sending out stories again, but I still get the need to vent sometimes.

I can't think of where to put this, so here goes.

I submitted to Infinite Worlds recently(little less than a month), I mistakenly thought they respond within two weeks. The reality is that more than half don't get responded to. They say this outright, that they don't know when or if they will respond. But they don't take simultaneous submissions.

So what should I do? I want to send it elsewhere.

I can't think of where to put this, so here goes.

I submitted to Infinite Worlds recently(little less than a month), I mistakenly thought they respond within two weeks. The reality is that more than half don't get responded to. They say this outright, that they don't know when or if they will respond. But they don't take simultaneous submissions.

So what should I do? I want to send it elsewhere.

Wait the average, then send it back out a mark it as a rejection. If they document they don’t send rejections, then use your best judgement. I don’t think anyone in the world would fault you for that.

I say this as someone who edits a “magazine.”

I can't think of where to put this, so here goes.

I submitted to Infinite Worlds recently(little less than a month), I mistakenly thought they respond within two weeks. The reality is that more than half don't get responded to. They say this outright, that they don't know when or if they will respond. But they don't take simultaneous submissions.

So what should I do? I want to send it elsewhere.

Wait the average, then send it back out a mark it as a rejection. If they document they don’t send rejections, then use your best judgement. I don’t think anyone in the world would fault you for that.

I say this as someone who edits a “magazine.”

Thank you!

I've never posted a Five Minute Rant before, but I think it might be a little cathartic this time. Submitted a story to an almost pro-'zine and got personally rejected at length (over 300 words). Unfortunately, about 40% of the rejection was an editor trying to tell me how wrong my facts about New Testament studies are. They dismissed positions endorsed by 90% of NT scholars without reason and made one claim so surprising, it's difficult to imagine they could have gleaned it from a scholarly source. Unclear if this is why I was rejected, but I hope it wasn't the reason.

There, I feel much better. Off to The Grinder!