When your submission to a publisher is rejected, how much information do you want/need?
How much information do you need on rejections?
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 Horror fic |
How much information do you need on rejections? |
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Posts: 278 (05/29/08 08:58:29) Veteran Shockliner |
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gfaherty |
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Posts: 3309 (05/29/08 09:01:54) Top-Tier Shockliner Demon |
The rejection is all the information I 'need.'
As for what I want, it's always great to get an indication of why the story/book was rejected. Any personal note is always welcome, as well. There's nothing worse than a form rejection.
JG Faherty
www.jgfaherty.com 'Everyone has a monster inside.' "Bones," in Cemetery Dance #58 (available now) "The Toll" and "Hybrids" in Wrong World, www.wrongworld.com (available now) "Experimental Subject," in Bits of the Dead "Family First," in Dark Territories |
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Horror fic |
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Posts: 280 (05/29/08 09:12:08) Veteran Shockliner |
Form rejections sent by an automated system are strange. I don't know how to say "thanks for your consideration" to a machine.
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LeatherZebra |
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Posts: 559 (05/29/08 09:15:53) Veteran Shockliner |
All I need is the no, but listing a reason can help me target future submissions better.
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RossWarren |
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Posts: 76 (05/29/08 09:17:12) |
It would be nice if they could get the title of your story right so you can at least feel they took the time to read it properly
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lokilokust |
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Posts: 2717 (05/29/08 09:26:43) Top-Tier Shockliner Demon |
'Form rejections sent by an automated system are strange. I don't know how to say "thanks for your consideration" to a machine.'
that's often rather the point. many writers think it's a courtesy to respond to rejections in such a manner, while most editors find such responses a tedious and unwelcome clogging of the inbox.
yrs. in exile,
-s.j. bagley |
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Qusoor |
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Posts: 689 (05/29/08 09:28:15) Veteran Shockliner |
I need a yes/no.
If you want me to submit again, I need a polite yes/no. I like an explanation, so I can improve my work. I'm impressed with someone who makes sensible suggestions as to what I need to do to make the story better. The more effort that comes out of the editor, the more likely I am to try the market again.
John Goodrich,
My blog: Flawed Diamonds "There's an old Indian proverb that says if you are ever lost, you should sit down and begin to make a curry. Before the water boils for the rice, someone will come out of the forest and tell you you're making it wrong." --Bruce Lierman, "Dutch Mess" |
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Horror fic |
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Posts: 281 (05/29/08 09:35:25) Veteran Shockliner |
"All I need is the no, but listing a reason can help me target future submissions better."
That is true! "It would be nice if they could get the title of your story right so you can at least feel they took the time to read it properly " That's too bad; maybe politely let them know they got the title wrong--who knows, they might have sent the wrong letter to the wrong person--or maybe not submit to them again.
Last Edited By: Horror fic
05/29/08 10:00:43.
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Horror fic |
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Posts: 282 (05/29/08 09:38:39) Veteran Shockliner |
lokilokust wrote: Hmm, I didn't know that. I usually respond with a "thank you" at the very least, especially if they took the time to send me a personal
rejection and tell me why they didn't accept the story. I'll probably keep doing that. Thanking someone for their effort at least seems to be the right
way to go about things.
Last Edited By: Horror fic
05/29/08 09:40:54.
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lcrisler |
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Posts: 49 (05/29/08 12:23:30) Shockliner |
From a writer's viewpoint, I'm the same as most of the people who've already posted. A polite yes or no will do, but I always appreciate the extra
input if it's given.
As an editor, I always try to provide the extra input. If a story shows promise, I'll let the writer know I'm willing to re-read if they're willing to revise. If the writer doesn't give me all that much to work with, or the story just doesn't tickle my pickle, they get the quickest, politest form reject I can type. I am soooo backed up on slush right now. |
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nebuly |
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Posts: 826 (05/29/08 12:44:17) Master Shockliner |
As an editor, I always try to provide the extra input. If a story shows promise, I'll let the writer know I'm willing to re-read if they're willing to revise. If the writer doesn't give me all that much to work with, or the story just doesn't tickle my pickle, they get the quickest, politest form reject I can type. I am soooo backed up on slush right now. This goes for me too. If a story is good but needs, in my opinion, some tweaking, I'll write a fairly detailed response, making it clear that these are suggestions only, but that if the author wants to revise the story and re-submit it I'd be happy to re-read and re-consider. The feedback I've had from authors indicates that they appreciate the comments; indeed, today I had a story re-submitted after I made a few suggestions. Often, though, there's simply nothing to say; the story isn't good, or isn't memorable, or isn't right for us, and no amount of re-writing would change things. If the story isn't right for us, but is good and might be right for another market, I'll say that; but in the other two cases I simply give a polite 'thanks but no thanks' message. |
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MariAdkins |
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Posts: 2308 (05/29/08 12:46:59) Shocklineraholic |
lokilokust wrote: Not only that, but I find it very bizarre... We use a form rejection at Apex, but I always do my best to include some kind of personal feedback.
Mari's Midnight
Garden - Apex Book
Company
I don't own a cell phone or a pager. I just hang around everyone I know, all the time. If someone wants to get a hold of me they just say "Mitch," and I say "What?" and turn my head slightly. - Mitch Hedberg 
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Mamatas |
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Posts: 1412 (05/29/08 13:09:43) Shocklineraholic |
Personally, I'd rather NOT receive thank yous for rejection letters, as there is always that moment of wondering whether the response to one's emailed
rejection slip is a thank you, a flip-out, or an immediate new submission done so quickly that the author doesn't even bother changing the subject heading
of the email. I've not met any editors who really appreciate thank yous and more than a few who do find them (mildly) annoying.
The best way to thank an editor for feedback or whatnot is in the cover letter to one's next submission. Keep the inboxes clear otherwise. |
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Gary Mc |
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Posts: 1851 (05/29/08 13:33:04) Shocklineraholic |
IMHO, it's a small common courtesy to thank an editor for reading your work - particularly in the small press, where most editors also have day jobs. But
I'm English: we even thank people while they're shooting us. And my mam raised me to be polite. :-)
"I've not met any editors who really appreciate thank yous and more than a few who do find them (mildly) annoying." Really? That strikes me as either very weird or plain arrogant. 
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scottstandridge |
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Posts: 44 (05/29/08 13:39:42) |
As a writer, like everyone else here, I would always rather know why my submission was rejected than not--was it just total crap, or too much like something
you've bought recently, or interesting to you but with some failings that took it out of consideration? Did you even read the whole thing? I know
that a form or "thanks but no thanks" rejection is all you need, but it's not very satisfying.
When I first started out as an editor, I wanted to write a little something in every rejection I sent out, just to let the authors know that yes, a real human person laid eyes on the thing and gave it a chance. That lasted less than a month--as someone pointed out, it's just too time-prohibitive, especially for a mag that gets a LOT of submissions. Plus, as someone else said, sometimes there's just nothing to say--would you really prefer a "we read this story and it is in no way up to the standards of our magazine, neither in style, content, nor execution" over a polite "We have decided not to publish this story"? Some people might, I guess, but a lot wouldn't. Generally I take the time to comment personally if I felt the story was very close but just missed the mark, or if the author's voice appealed to me in some way even though the story was not right for us, or if I otherwise want to encourage the submitter in some way and feel I have something constructive to say. Of course this doesn't mean that all those I don't comment on are absolutely terrible--editors are people too, and sometimes you don't have a lot of time, sometimes you're in a bad mood, sometimes the dog is barking in your ear and the kids are screaming and driving you up the wall--so sometimes even good stories don't get the comments they might otherwise. Basically what I'm saying is what everyone always says--if you get a personal response, it's a good sign. If you get a form, it's not necessarily a bad one. If the editor writes back and says "This was terrible and I never want to read anything like this ever again"--well, that might be a bad sign. *wink* As to thank-yous, put them in the cover letter of your next submission; inboxes get clogged very quickly and the thank you may not even get read; and a cover letter is better anyway, as it reminds the editor he/she has seen your work before...for better or worse. *smile*
Managing Editor
City Slab Magazine [website] [blog] Personal Blog: Defined By Negatives Movie Blog: Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies Poetry Blog: The Sonnet Project
Last Edited By: scottstandridge
05/29/08 13:41:55.
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Gary Mc |
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Posts: 1853 (05/29/08 13:43:10) Shocklineraholic |
Hmmm... this thread is making me reconsider my politeness. Maybe I'll just ignore the rejections in future.
"Generally I take the time to comment personally if I felt the story was very close but just missed the mark, or if the author's voice appealed to me in some way even though the story was not right for us, or if I otherwise want to encourage the submitter in some way and feel I have something constructive to say." That warms my heart. Kudos to you, sir!
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johnhornor |
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Posts: 101 (05/29/08 13:48:09) |
Why thank an editor for a rejection anyway, unless it's chock full of crit or advice? You've submitted, they've said no. What's to thank?
I try and end my cover letters by saying, "Thanks for your time and consideration." Don't feel like I need to do it again after a reject. |
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johnlprobert |
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Posts: 29 (05/29/08 13:49:39) |
Gary McMahon is quite right when he says we thank people even when they shoot us. Either that or we apologise, eg "I'm terribly sorry but you seem to
be in bed with my wife" (I'm so glad those old houses have fire escapes but that's another story).
But do you know I have never said thank you to a rejection slip? I have always assumed that the last thing a busy editor needs is extra rubbish to go through. If I know, or have had dealings with an editor before that's different but the 'rejection slip' approach means I leave it there. A lot of small press editors, however, have been absolutely lovely with their rejections and in those cases I've always written something nice back. And if an editor eg Barbara Roden has taken the time to actually go through a story in detail and explain what changes might make them willing to look at it again I find that so immensely helpful that it would be really rude not to rewrite the piece taking that advice into account |
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Gary Mc |
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Posts: 1855 (05/29/08 13:56:43) Shocklineraholic |
I have never thanked an editor for a rejection slip - I do, however, quite often say thank you for taking the time to read my work. As my old gran used to say:
it costs nothing to be nice. Reading this thread, though, it seems that it does. :-/
>>A lot of small press editors, however, have been absolutely lovely with their rejections and in those cases I've always written something nice back.<< I experienced this early on, too.
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ghostbrain |
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Posts: 752 (05/29/08 14:15:13) Veteran Shockliner |
I don't respond to rejections usually, but if I feel the editor has gone out of his or her way to give me feedback, or has said something particularly nice
about my work ("We would have loved to include it but . . .") then I may respond with a thank you. That doesn't happen often, though.
Simon Strantzas
www.strantzas.com BENEATH THE SURFACE; Humdrumming Ltd.; 2008 Available now for pre-order |
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William Sheffield |
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Posts: 1306 (05/29/08 14:44:17) Shocklineraholic |
I'll echo what JG and others have said. It would be nice to know why my story didn't cut it.
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