I’ve heard this refrain before:
We love your story … but it doesn’t fit (with the rest of the stories in the anthology) …
Great concept … but it doesn’t fit (with the rest of the stories in the issue) …
We love your writing … but it doesn’t fit (with the current publishing landscape) …
Sometimes said refrain is followed up by an invitation to submit pieces in the future, sometimes not. It’s always better than some of the rejections I’ve gotten – the form letter returned in less than 24 hours that didn’t include one piece of personally identifying data – author name, article title – other than the email address they used to send it.
But then along comes poor little Readers, which has been searching for a home for over a year now. It’s science fiction, but it’s also near-future, satire, a little bit of humor, a not-so-subtle Bradbury homage, and of course, one of my favorite pieces. It gets harder and harder to send it out, knowing that it’s probably going to come back with its tail tucked between its legs, accompanied by one or more of the above refrains (…but it doesn’t fit…)
I got one of these this morning, as I was typing up the next installment in my “Conversations” series. It was one of the nice ones, accompanied by an invitation to submit future work, from a publication that might actually mean it. I really should learn not to check my email before my morning coffee.
So I had a cup or two, did another Duotrope market search, re-read for polishing, and fired it off to another market. Because as much as I would like to sit and wallow, I have to get to work, and I know that somewhere out there is a home for this piece. Whether they know it or not.
Good luck, kid!
