I think it's just part of a standard form for some places and maybe a higher tier form for other places. If you submit to the same places over and over, you can kind of figure it out. But either way I continue to submit to the same places.
Yes, this is a higher-tier form rejection. On a couple of occasions I have received a form from a publisher with that "submit again" sentence for one story, and a form without it for a different story. As a result, I do have a separate subfolder in my rejections emails folder, simply labeled, "Submit Again." NOTE - do not reply to that rejection letter with new material saying like, hey, you said submit again, so.. - they will probably assume from the subject line you sent something arguing about why you were rejected and delete it immediately without opening. Always make a new submission.
Does anyone ever get a "don't ever send me anything again" letter. That happened to me a bunch of time in the late 90s when I was querying my first novel. Some were downright vitriolic. Like "this is dogshit" or "don't quit your day job" or "stop wasting my time and yours." Good times!
I got a "No." once. that's it. 1 single word in the email. I was too embarrass to ever submit to them again
I'm anticipating some of these for the new novel. The query letter is going to generate more than a few nose scrunches from agents. If I must resort to self-publishing to get this one out there, you better believe I am using those quotes on the back cover. Ok now that's a little bit cruel.
I got a rejection letter that was so harsh it made me question myself, and I actually withdrew it from everywhere else that had it because eI felt embarrassed. They said "How could you even write this?" And gave some really specific feedback that was pretty hard to take. This was from a big publication that usually sends out forms. Every rejection I had gotten from them before was a form. After some time had passed, I submitted to a few places again. No one bought it, but this story did maybe get more personal rejections than any of my other stories. And aside from that mean person, they were all pretty nice, including a person rejection from The New Yorker. I don't see the need for a mean personal rejection, but it would seem some editors feel differently. And I guess this was their way of making sure I never sent them anything again.
52-day form rejection from the Writers’ & Artists’ Short Story Competition. Two form rejections from Paper Lanterns (not sure how long as they are not on Duotrope).
@Set2Stun and anyone else who took adv stage of New England Review's pay what you want for a subscription -- I just got my first issue from them today. I haven't read this one before, but I'm excited to dive into it. I've read a lot of different literary journals, but, of course I haven't read them all. I have read a lot of them over the years. I can say I do notice subtle differences in all of them and definitely have my favorites. It can also really help to know the journals I submit work to. Like I think that helps a super lot. I'll probably crack into the issue over the weekend. If anyone else plans on reading the new issue Volume 45.1, I would love to compare notes and chat about it. Feel free to DM me or we can chat here. I will pop back on here when I finish the issue to mention anything that might help people thinking of submitting work to them. Anyway, super excited. I love getting good mail. And when they had their promotion going on I paid $5 for a year subscription.
Yep, got my e-book sent on Weds. Great deal, thanks again for mentioning it. I haven't checked it out just yet but I'll give the fiction a gander in a bit. I actually sent them a trio of stories on my last submission spree. They charge $3 but I decided not to be a cheapskate for once. It will be interesting to read the stories and learn why I never should've spent the $3
Well, one of the markets I submitted to last year went on indefinite hiatus, so that a de facto rejection. Total for 2024: 5
I just sent out a new submission, but I forgot to mention in the cover letter that it's a simultaneous submission, which they allow but ask you to say if it is when you are submitting. I'm not going to do anything about it because I don't think it's a good idea to draw any attention to it. And it is on submittable so it's still easy enough to withdraw. Truth -- This is a big publication that has rejected me consistently over the years. It's a little foolish to think this time around would be any different. Still, I'm foolish enough to submit again and stress over my mistake here a little bit.
Just want to make sure my fellow submitters are aware of some upcoming deadlines. These are just a few places that I track and submit to that will be closing their submission windows at the end of the month. Granta The Fiddlehead The Maine Review Ninth Letter (Web) Indiana Review West Branch Michigan Quarterly Review The Cafe Irreal Salamander
