Tag: publishing

We writers all go through the same merry-go-round when submitting 
our work for publication.  We write, submit, get rejected and repeat.  
I understand that rejection is part of the process.  Rejection makes you 
try harder and you learn from every rejection.  

The thing that gets under my skin is the Vast amount of differences for 
submissions!  There are almost as many WAYS to submit as there are 
publications that accept them. 

*Some accept previously published pieces, others do not.  Some consider 
a blog post as being Published, others do not.  

*Some charge reading fees, others do not.  

*Some places do not accept simultaneous submissions, while others do.

*Some want your submission in a Word document, others want a PDF.  
Still others want the submission to be a copy and pasted into the body 
of the email.  

*Some have very specific requirements as far as font size and type, 
others do not.  

*Some want your submission to be blind.  No name on it anywhere.  
Others want your name on each piece.  

*If submitting short pieces, poetry, etc., some places want just 
One document with ALL of your pieces.  Others want each piece 
attached as a separate document.   

*A LOT of submissions go through Submittable.  With others you 
must email the publication directly.  Still others have their own 
online form you must fill out to submit.  

*Some places want a bio from you.  These can vary wildly. Anything 
from a short piece, limited to 50 words or less to something longer.  
Some places want the bio written in the 3rd person, others 1st person.  
Then some places do not want a bio at all.   And remember the 
requirements for font size and type!!

*Most publications seem to take a lifetime to get back to you with an 
answer, 6 months or more is not uncommon.  If this is the case, you’ve 
got this unpublished masterpiece (in OUR eyes, right?) sitting there and 
you can do NOTHING with it.  Because if they do not accept simultaneous 
submissions or previously published work, you cannot let it be seen 
anywhere else until the Publication Gods that you have submitted to 
have given it a pass or fail.

*Then there is the whole legal mess of your rights as the author.  
Do you retain your rights?  Do they?  You need an attorney to read 
the leagalspeak on some of the websites.  

It’s all maddening!!  Why do we do it??  

I get so frustrated at times that I just throw my hands up in the air 
in defeat.  I close down the website I’m on and crawl back to my little 
cave of self-pity to lick my wounds.  Then that spark will come.  That 
“ping” that tells me “This time! THIS will be the ONE that will get me 
seen and the publishers will take notice!!”  So I go at it again and 
submit more of my work.

I do offer some advice in this mad, mad world of write, submit, reject 
and repeat.   

*PRINT OUT the submission Guidelines and keep them next to you as you 
prepare your piece for submission.  This way, you can be sure not to 
overlook anything.

*FOLLOW the submission guidelines to the letter. No matter how brilliant 
your piece is, if you did not follow the rules, you’re out 
on your ear often before the piece is ever read.  

*PROOF your piece.  For heaven’s sake, you don’t want to be rejected 
because of a spelling error, do you?  Proof, proof, proof!!

*Lastly, take time to vent.  Cry, yell and curse the Publishing Gods.  
Shake your fist and stomp your feet. Scream into your pillow.  Cry 
yourself a river, if that makes you feel better.  But when it’s all 
said and done, take a deep breath and climb back on that horse and 
give it another shot.  

Why?  Because we are writers, that’s why.    

Copyright © 2022 Penny Wilson All Rights Reserved