Received the latest rejection to publish a short fiction story I’ve been shopping around to literary journals. The rejection was printed on a small 4×5 card and, curiously, returned with it in the SASE I had provided was the first page of my manuscript?
There were no emoticons — I half expected to see a little yellow sad face.
The card was addressed: Dear Prospective Contributor…
And continued: Your manuscript has been read and evaluated by the appropriate editor.
I should’ve stopped reading right there! I mean, spectacular, right? One copy of my story was read by one human being, what more could a newbie writer ask for. But I didn’t stop, like a glutton for punishment I continued reading. It was all downhill.
We regret to inform you... Ugh, there it was, the big letdown, something to do with the lack of suitability of my work for publication in this journal.
The blow to the ego was softened by the following: Since manuscripts are declined for a great many reasons, this rejection is in no way intended as a declaration of the relative merits of your work.
Now, certainly one generous interpretation of this last may be: In the grand distribution of the merits of all stories ever written, your story, Dear Prospective Contributor, was in fact brilliant, meaning the real loser here is us, our journal and its reputation, because owing to the limited scope of the material we choose to publish your genius will go unrecognized by our readership.
Indeed, this the interpretation I prefer.
As a further consolation to myself it’s worth noting that I’m swinging pretty hard in terms of where I shop this story, and I’m really not terribly surprised, as no newbie writer should be, that I’ve received multiple rejections. John Grisham’s first novel, which became the best selling novel of 1991, had been rejected by 28 publishers. So there. I’ve know all along, of course, that the probability of having this story accepted by any one of the publications I’ve submitted to thus far was roughly equivalent to the probability of me getting drafted as a walk-on to the Green Bay Packers. Still, nothing ventured nothing gained.
I will keep swinging.
Readers here who would like to read the story and provide me feedback should click the Contact link and let me know.
Rod, getting your writing published is a bit like casting mayflies to rising trout when multiple bugs are hatching at the same time. Your fly may be rejected multiple times, though you tweak the pattern, try a similar pattern, or change flies altogether in attempts to match another of the mayflies which are hatching. Some times you get it right, and land a nice fish. Other times, your flies are rejected, by multiple trout in a myriad of different lies in the stream. It isn’t necessarily the catching which makes the fishing good.
Rod, if I have not read this particular story, shoot it over to me.
Same one, John. When I have a new one I’ll let it be known. I’m flattered some have already contacted me wanting to read this one.