I had a busy week on the submission front because I had a lot of recently rejected material, some older material I had gone back to revise and even a few new pieces. Imagine that!
- Submitted: 9 Told you it was a busy week! This includes stories, essays, poetry some even to contests and one entrance for a small fellowship where you spending a Saturday teaching a class and giving a reading.
- Accepted: Had an essay accepted for publication
- Rejected: two sets of poems which means many more rejections to come soon.
Quick note on one of the rejections because it is important for new people sending work out. It isn’t often I am asked to specifically send work some where and one of these rejections was the case where I felt I was specifically solicited (it was hard to tell from the email-long story-since, in part, because it is email but I’m pretty sure it was a specific requested after I received positive feedback from entering the same publishers book contest which I didn’t place in). What I want to say is that just because you are solicited for work doesn’t mean it will be taken. I feel good about the work I sent but, for whatever reason, it wasn’t what they were looking for so I’ll re-read those pieces and see if they need to be revised before sending them on to the next location.
Lots of revising this week and a few new pieces. Really hauled through my old idea list to try out any pending items that were there so I could just start working on fresh material soon. Feels good to clean off the sheet and to start afresh.
It’s been pretty quiet around here so hope everyone is well. Reminds me of when I first started blogging and for at least a year I was pretty much talking to myself 
Have a great weekend everyone!
9 submissions – that’s a lot, but good idea to pick up on the rejections right away and send them out again. about being solicited: i think it basically means your chances are better, and from reading submissions for blueprintreview, i can say that when i come across a story / poem that makes me curious for more, but that doesn’t fit into the current issue, then i tend to write back and invite to send something else, but then it’s still like a puzzle to get the issue together, and i am probably as glad as the writer when the text turns out to be a good fit for the issue.
here, july is coming with unexpected dynamic: i now joined the flash writing group 52/250, and after focusing on revision, now am back to flash stories, which go up on the group page. ( http://52250flash.wordpress.com/). and now Folded invites to join their August month of writing, and aftertt the good experience of 52/250, i am tempted to take part there. (http://folded.wordpress.com/2010/07/20/247/)
AND YEY! what a coincidence. i just received the news that one of my photos is up now in Referential:
http://referentialmagazine.com/contents/poetry/june-2010/one-layer-deeper/
wunderbar! (wonderful!)
Whew your post makes me look like a slow poke! So much good stuff going on!
I do the same with soliciting work, but I was a little disappointed when I just got a standard no back after what felt like a specific request for work. If I ask someone to send more I try to send back a personal reply but every editor is different!
Speaking of editors and submitting stuff, I really need to start making a new list of places to send for 2011. Have to plan way ahead
If the Dead Mule asks you to send work, it WILL BE taken. I think anything less is the height of rudeness. We might ask you to to change something, but a rejection you WILL NOT RECEIVE. That flabbergasts me. But I know all editors do not think alike. I even had a guy say he wanted an online chapbook before he rejected it, saying he didn’t like it and wouldn’t publish anything he didn’t like. All that after agreeing I’d sent it early so “anything” could be changed. Go figure. But that’s water under the bridge.
I’ve had one rejection and one submission this week.
You are so good to your writers, Helen
But, I do have to admit, if I solicit work but receive work that just doesn’t speak to me I will send a rejection with remarks. I, however, will usually ask for more and I’ll normally have someone else look at the work before I send the rejection just to make sure I’m not running solely on my own opinion!
Tough decisions editors have to make!
I am here. Good insight, as always. I have often wondered about ‘solicited’ material. Only had that happen twice, where online journals *ehem* read something on my blog and then said they wanted it for their journal.
On topic, I believe, are re-submits…(ie. we don’t like this piece but would you send us something else to consider and then we will decide whether or not to publish you) That one always throws me for a loop.
Hehe. I know as an editor I like to scoop up good work I read online
The “send more” issue is a tricky one but a great topic to bring up! I normally wait and send something during their next submission period and just write something like “I appreciated your comments and request to send more work that I received xyz date. Thank you for taking the time, again, to consider some of my work.” I’ve been rejected quite a few times even in that scenario but then in other cases I’ve had work taken or I’ve been asked to write a blog instead of fiction. Hey that works for me too!
Piqued curiosity re: the ideas list. Do you have a session just to add to the list? (as opposed to chasing a poem off into the shrubs when an idea seems good, like I do). I’m thinking if poems mellow for pruning left alone, maybe ideas do some subconscious growing once on the list.
I became a list maker when I was working full time because a line or an idea would come to me but I’d have no time to work on it. Even after leaving that job the list has been very helpful to keep up. I prefer to write the idea still the think about it for hours,days etc before I go back to write and the poems are much better for it I think
So late commenting! Sorry about that! This is one where I’m really out of my league. Okay, I don’t have a league. ha! But I do thank you for talking about when work is solicited and then still rejected, that it happens. If I ever get to that place, I’ll remember not to get too excited yet.
Jessie, as you make your lists to submit to, I’m assuming that you also read these journals right? Are most online? Do you set days to read and find places to submit to, and days to revise, and days to write new material . . .or do some of it all each day? Just curious! Thanks for letting us go along with you each day!
Good questions Deb! I try to read the journals I submit to but I can’t say I’ve read all I’ve submitted to. I find many through marking the ones I like each year in the best American poetry series. Then there are a few I subscribe to. I submit about 50 50 to print versus online bug I probably read more online now through my blogreadibg program. I could do a post more about this perhaps?
Slow, I barely left the gate often reading your posts…Debbie and I can walk as we discuss how to catch up, oh right, we should trot, lol!
I am looking forward to hubby leaving for three weeks, so I can work on my writing! WAMPP Amalthea will be done next week, and I can breathe-
Seems I have no time for blog reading either and it makes me sad, because I enjoy a few really good ones, like this!
E Stelling
http://wampp.cookappeal.com/ ‘shameless endorcements’
Too many good blogs and too many good books!
I know what you mean about taken a spouse break
I’m going to a mini writers conference soon and I’m looking forward to immersing myself inbooks and the aura of other writers for a few days!
E . . .you crack me up! My one daughter goes to horse therapy. She just loves it if the horse chases after me. So there I am, running around an arena with a horse hot on my heels. It’s hilarious and scary all at the same time. The instructor wants to make a video. And I think it’s helping me lose weight. One week I went down 3 lbs.! ha! I told her she could start a whole new program . . . Have a great time writing! I know you’ll come up with something good!
Sounds like you have the start of a terrific essay!
…oh, I see… your lists have “as it comes to me” stuff. (not from a listing session). I write those snippets down, but each has its own 1/8 of a folded paper side.. some elaboration happens on the note, and transcription/build-out later. Makes me phrase-oriented, though. I should jot ideas without necessarily using the words as is…(sometimes).
I like your idea of list sessions Jim! I just wrote a note yesterday that said dictionary of dreams. I then pulled this book I got at one of those HUGE book sales that normally sells junk that has that title. I flipped through it and when I saw the word muff I knew I had something to write about
leave me a comment or send me an email if you’d like to be added to the blogroll btw
Jessie, who but you could see something in my weird rambling? ha! You are like Jesus in that . . .And you influence me. Now I won’t look at horse therapy times the same way. I’ll be thinking of what I can take away to write about. ha! And you somehow spurred on an idea for a series of essays, poems, devotions? . . .lessons from a topsy-turvy tomato planter. !
Is it okay to write without a specific audience or purpose in mind?
Oh I hardly ever write without a specific audience or purpose in mind! Sure you need to think about audience if you are writing a college essay or for a project (like a book review) but for poetry? JUST WRITE!