Research Paper
Writing isn’t easy. Getting published is even harder. Many writers spend years honing their craft, practicing from noon ‘til night, balancing a novel between work and pleasure, spending hundreds of dollars on books, courses, and workshops only to come home to a self-addressed envelope in the mail that practically sizzles with rejection.
Rejection. One of the few words most writers don’t seem to find pleasure in, despite the fact that the act of being rejected is part of what steels a writer; what gives her the strength to push on or to reevaluate the writing she had submitted. For a time even Stephen King collected rejection slips. And while rejection is all part of the uncertain outcome of the writer’s game, there are sure approaches one can take to lessen the number of those rejections and maybe even get that phone call.
All it takes is one yes.
The query letter is often the most important piece of the publishing puzzle (Brewer 19). In some cases, a strong query determines whether an editor will even read your manuscript. A good query letter will leave a lasting impression; a bad query letter will only earn one more envelope for that stack of rejections. A query letter should sell an agent or editor on your idea. It is wise to get into specifics from the very first line—hook the reader immediately, and without bogging your idea down by listing details or features. A bored audience is not an audience who will be calling you back. In addition to selling your idea, a query letter may also include information on photography and artwork, a working title, word count, and research. Indicate whether the manuscript is being simultaneously submitted (some publications will not look at a manuscript if they know it is also being judged elsewhere.) Include some biographical information only if you think it will help sell your story. Informing the editor of previous publications will help build your credibility, but don’t feel ashamed if you have yet to see your work in print. Everyone has to start somewhere. All it takes is one yes!
Now for a closer look at the twist-and-turny road of the submission process. There are two major venues of publication, online and print. Imagine a young hopeful eager to show her work to the world. We’ll call her Nora Priest. Nora absolutely adores the horror genre, from the beastly and bizarre to the downright grotesque. As it happens, Nora’s writing reflects this interest and she has prepared a short story that she hopes to publish. Informative books like The Writer’s Market (which is released once a year) contain an invaluable selection of in-print publications available to poets, novelists, and other writers. After flipping through the Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror section of her 2012 copy of The Writer’s Market, Nora is confronted by a dozen magazines all looking for manuscripts. But which one to choose? Which is right for her story? They all seem so perfect! Well... no. Nora may have written a horror story, but each publication is extremely specific when it comes to accepting. Paying close attention to the details of the magazine help narrow down which publication is right for your story and keeps those pesky rejections to a minimum.
Every magazine entry in The Writer’s Market presents a number of details specific to that magazine. Oftentimes a magazine will list how many manuscripts it accepts from freelance writers each year, how many cents or dollars the writer can expect per word, response times to queries and manuscripts, advised length, genres, and “tips,” the last of which may include a helpful tidbit on receiving a resounding “YES!” instead of a rejection. For example, Asimov’s Science Fiction may advertise that it’s 98% freelance written but it specifically states that horror will not be accepted. On Spec will only accept manuscripts submitted by Canadian writers. The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction is looking not just for fantasy and science fiction, but adventure stories, space fantasy, sword and sorcery, psychological horror, supernatural horror, and hard science/technological fiction. They buy 60-90 manuscripts a year and challenge their readers to keep submissions under 25,000 words. “Read an issue of our magazine before submitting,” is stated at the end. Knowing the magazine before you submit will put you at a huge advantage against those who submitted in good faith. Single issues of magazines are easily obtained from the magazine’s website (also available in The Writer’s Market) for a small fee.
Nora has her eye on Theatre of Decay, a magazine that is 100% freelance written. They state, “We accept anything that has an element of horror.” Theatre of Decay may not pay in cash (only in contributor’s copies) but it’s a hopeful place for Nora to start. Dream big, but don’t jump into something you do not think you can handle. It’s always wise to find a small niche and work up the ladder rather than finding yourself bombarded by letters from the big name publications that have rejected you. Nora’s query is as follows:
Nora Priest
88 Nautilus Road
Manahawkin, NJ 08050
[Current date]
[Editor’s Name]
Theatre of Decay
129 Mountainwood Drive
Davison, MI 48423
Dear [Editor],
Please consider the following 1,800 word story, “Between the Trees,” a supernatural story about a hidden vampire village where no one ever comes of age until their settlement is discovered by a raving woodsman.
After reading several issues of Theatre of Decay, I think I’ve written a piece that will fit with your audience and leave readers feeling very much unsettled.
Thank you in advance for considering “Between the Trees.”
Sincerely,
Nora Priest
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
Encl: Manuscript and SASE
This query is neither flashy nor gimmicky. Nora reveals the basics about her story and puts her audience in the right frame of mind. While mentioning that she has read the magazine will not guarantee publication, it will make the editor a little more hopeful that what Nora’s written will be a good fit. Nora is a new writer, so she doesn’t have any previous publications, else wise she may insert them in her second paragraph. Always include a self-addressed stamped envelope in the folder that contains your manuscript. Unless specifically stated by a magazine, it is okay to send your manuscripts to several magazines at once considering they are aware of it. “Unless your magazine is a perfect fit for only one publication (very unlikely) or you insist (unwisely) on seeing your byline in only one of the premiere magazines, you should query to two or three publications at the same time." (Harrison 136) So let’s have her submit to an online publication as well.
If our friend wanted to publish her story “Between the Trees” in an e-magazine, she could start by searching a website called everywritersresource.com. This site lists online publications encompassing many different genres, from poetry to creative nonfiction, and literary to horror. This site includes newer publications that have started up within the last ten years or so and also well-established magazines that might only be known to a small group of like-minded individuals.
If Nora types the phrase “horror fiction” into the site’s search bar, she will get a list of links to 28 different e-zines that accept stories in this genre. The very first is Abomination Magazine, an online publication that was established in 2012. If Nora clicks on that link, she’ll be taken to another EWS.com webpage that lists facts about this magazine. The page has: a link to AbominationMagazine.com, a summary of the magazine’s mission, who the editor is, how often the magazine publishes in a year, what genres of submissions Abomination accepts, and most importantly, a link to the submission guidelines page and an approximate response time to submissions.
Since Nora has a polished story, she will then click on the submission link and be whisked directly to the AbominationMagazine.com submission page, which is very clear about what the magazine accepts:
"We are open to submissions of horror, science fiction, and dark fantasy between 1,000 to 7,500 words in length. We want you to scare us. If your story doesn’t incite dread, give us nightmares, or make us feel extremely unsettled, it’s probably not for us. Gore is acceptable, but not at the cost of story."
Nora’s story “Behind the Trees” could possibly find a home in Abomination Magazine. It falls within the range of accepted word length, and, ever since the Dark Ages, vampires have inspired dread and nightmares.
It’s also good to note that, at the very bottom of the submission webpage, there is a paragraph discussing payment!
"Abomination Magazine pays 1 cent per word USD for short fiction and US$6 per poem. Author will receive payment upon publication in any issue of Abomination Magazine. Stories selected as featured fiction will not receive monetary payment at this time, however, anyone that has been accepted as a featured author is greatly encouraged to submit additional work for consideration."
This low pay rate might be a turn-off to many new writers, but this is not uncommon. Especially for a publication that is only a few months old. Many publications listed on EWS.com don’t give monetary payment, but they do send a free copy to anyone who has something published in that issue. That’s not so bad.
Many online publications warn how long they take to send back a response to a submission. Abomination Magazine has an approximate response time of 7 days. Weird Tales Magazine, which is most famous for launching the careers of H.P. Lovecraft and Ray Bradbury, has a response time of 6-8 weeks (if they’re not backed up…which they usually are), and Menacing Hedge, who looks for stories that “Make our eyes dilate, our pores open one by one, and our skin break out in shivery gooseflesh,”has a response time of 2-3 months.Don’t be surprised to find wait times even longer than that because there are hundreds of people just like you and Nora, budding writers who are looking for anyone at all to publish their stories. It’s just not practical to aim for the New York Times best-seller list fresh out of college. A plan like that is a guarantee for disappointment. There is no shame in looking at these small, online publications. If you get scatter-published in many different magazines, think of how your resume will look! Wow, people will say, you are a writer!
Improve your odds of publication by specializing in certain genres, keeping a file of ideas, maintaining contacts with editors, and operating as a business. If you are a serious, part-time freelance writer, then you should also be a serious businessperson (Harrison 139). Conduct yourself professionally, read carefully, and write, write, WRITE.
A helpful tool in this industry is an agent, especially when trying to publish longer works, like a novelette or full length book. Finding an agent sounds like a daunting task. You might ask, “Well how on earth do I get an agent if I don’t have an invitation to a fancy shmancy Hollywood party?” But Lisa Jahn-Clough, who teaches creative writing at Rowan University and has published 14 picture and young adult books, assures that finding an agent is as simple as a carefully worded Google search. To use Nora and her story “Between the Trees” as an example again, what Nora would have to do is pull up Google.com and type into the search bar “literary agents for horror fiction.” The first website that comes up is Writers.net, a nifty site akin to EWS.com in that it has many different agencies’ information all in one spot. The first listing on Writers.net is the Elite Finesse Literary Agency. Their mission statement is “With 17 years of experience we know just how to present your work to the right publishers and get your material out there, read, reviewed and published. In the 17 years of business we have published over 200 first time authors with great success.” That sounds promising, especially the first time author part.
Then the site lists submission guidelines:
Submission Guidelines: Please mail the agency or send a query to the above agency address. You may also send the entire work for our review. Your submission will be reviewed for its content, its appeal to other readers, and its marketability. Once a decision has been made on representation you will either be emailed or a reply by mail will come to your door of a representation offer.
Notice that the first thing the agency asks for is a query letter. Although this agency says that they’re willing to read a “finished” manuscript, a query letter is a good route to take because it’s a nice summary of what the manuscript is about. It’s your chance to sell your story so that the agent will be curious enough to read it instead of setting it aside for someone else’s more interesting story. What may be most important about the Elite Finesse Literary Agency is that they assess the audience that will read your work, not just the people who might buy it in a bookstore but also the publishers who would put it in print in the first place. This ties into sending your work to the appropriate people.
At the bottom of the website is an added bonus:
Reading fee: No
Most new writers are strapped for cash (quite the understatement), so it’s good to keep an eye out for whether or not publications or agents charge for certain things. But again, an agent is a key ingredient to a young writer’s success because many publishing houses don’t accept freelance manuscripts. It’s their way of weeding out the iffy amateur tales to find something with potential. Don’t think of your agent as a blood-sucking middle man. He is more of a messenger who heralds the great news of your forthcoming brilliance. The agent has what a new writer doesn’t: knowledge about the industry. It is most beneficial to you and the publisher if you do your research ahead of time. It wouldn’t make sense to send a gory vampire story to a picture book publisher. An agent will help you figure that out.
Remember, rejection is a way of life in the publishing world. It’s inevitable in a business that deals with an overwhelming number of applicants for a limited number of positions. Anyone who has ever been published has received their fair share of rejections, and writers with thin skin are at a distinct disadvantage. A rejection is not a personal attack on you or your writing! Writers who let rejection dissuade them will never be published. So long as you resign yourself to the fact that you will be rejected, you will live through it and eventually overcome it.
Rejection. One of the few words most writers don’t seem to find pleasure in, despite the fact that the act of being rejected is part of what steels a writer; what gives her the strength to push on or to reevaluate the writing she had submitted. For a time even Stephen King collected rejection slips. And while rejection is all part of the uncertain outcome of the writer’s game, there are sure approaches one can take to lessen the number of those rejections and maybe even get that phone call.
All it takes is one yes.
The query letter is often the most important piece of the publishing puzzle (Brewer 19). In some cases, a strong query determines whether an editor will even read your manuscript. A good query letter will leave a lasting impression; a bad query letter will only earn one more envelope for that stack of rejections. A query letter should sell an agent or editor on your idea. It is wise to get into specifics from the very first line—hook the reader immediately, and without bogging your idea down by listing details or features. A bored audience is not an audience who will be calling you back. In addition to selling your idea, a query letter may also include information on photography and artwork, a working title, word count, and research. Indicate whether the manuscript is being simultaneously submitted (some publications will not look at a manuscript if they know it is also being judged elsewhere.) Include some biographical information only if you think it will help sell your story. Informing the editor of previous publications will help build your credibility, but don’t feel ashamed if you have yet to see your work in print. Everyone has to start somewhere. All it takes is one yes!
Now for a closer look at the twist-and-turny road of the submission process. There are two major venues of publication, online and print. Imagine a young hopeful eager to show her work to the world. We’ll call her Nora Priest. Nora absolutely adores the horror genre, from the beastly and bizarre to the downright grotesque. As it happens, Nora’s writing reflects this interest and she has prepared a short story that she hopes to publish. Informative books like The Writer’s Market (which is released once a year) contain an invaluable selection of in-print publications available to poets, novelists, and other writers. After flipping through the Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror section of her 2012 copy of The Writer’s Market, Nora is confronted by a dozen magazines all looking for manuscripts. But which one to choose? Which is right for her story? They all seem so perfect! Well... no. Nora may have written a horror story, but each publication is extremely specific when it comes to accepting. Paying close attention to the details of the magazine help narrow down which publication is right for your story and keeps those pesky rejections to a minimum.
Every magazine entry in The Writer’s Market presents a number of details specific to that magazine. Oftentimes a magazine will list how many manuscripts it accepts from freelance writers each year, how many cents or dollars the writer can expect per word, response times to queries and manuscripts, advised length, genres, and “tips,” the last of which may include a helpful tidbit on receiving a resounding “YES!” instead of a rejection. For example, Asimov’s Science Fiction may advertise that it’s 98% freelance written but it specifically states that horror will not be accepted. On Spec will only accept manuscripts submitted by Canadian writers. The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction is looking not just for fantasy and science fiction, but adventure stories, space fantasy, sword and sorcery, psychological horror, supernatural horror, and hard science/technological fiction. They buy 60-90 manuscripts a year and challenge their readers to keep submissions under 25,000 words. “Read an issue of our magazine before submitting,” is stated at the end. Knowing the magazine before you submit will put you at a huge advantage against those who submitted in good faith. Single issues of magazines are easily obtained from the magazine’s website (also available in The Writer’s Market) for a small fee.
Nora has her eye on Theatre of Decay, a magazine that is 100% freelance written. They state, “We accept anything that has an element of horror.” Theatre of Decay may not pay in cash (only in contributor’s copies) but it’s a hopeful place for Nora to start. Dream big, but don’t jump into something you do not think you can handle. It’s always wise to find a small niche and work up the ladder rather than finding yourself bombarded by letters from the big name publications that have rejected you. Nora’s query is as follows:
Nora Priest
88 Nautilus Road
Manahawkin, NJ 08050
[Current date]
[Editor’s Name]
Theatre of Decay
129 Mountainwood Drive
Davison, MI 48423
Dear [Editor],
Please consider the following 1,800 word story, “Between the Trees,” a supernatural story about a hidden vampire village where no one ever comes of age until their settlement is discovered by a raving woodsman.
After reading several issues of Theatre of Decay, I think I’ve written a piece that will fit with your audience and leave readers feeling very much unsettled.
Thank you in advance for considering “Between the Trees.”
Sincerely,
Nora Priest
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
Encl: Manuscript and SASE
This query is neither flashy nor gimmicky. Nora reveals the basics about her story and puts her audience in the right frame of mind. While mentioning that she has read the magazine will not guarantee publication, it will make the editor a little more hopeful that what Nora’s written will be a good fit. Nora is a new writer, so she doesn’t have any previous publications, else wise she may insert them in her second paragraph. Always include a self-addressed stamped envelope in the folder that contains your manuscript. Unless specifically stated by a magazine, it is okay to send your manuscripts to several magazines at once considering they are aware of it. “Unless your magazine is a perfect fit for only one publication (very unlikely) or you insist (unwisely) on seeing your byline in only one of the premiere magazines, you should query to two or three publications at the same time." (Harrison 136) So let’s have her submit to an online publication as well.
If our friend wanted to publish her story “Between the Trees” in an e-magazine, she could start by searching a website called everywritersresource.com. This site lists online publications encompassing many different genres, from poetry to creative nonfiction, and literary to horror. This site includes newer publications that have started up within the last ten years or so and also well-established magazines that might only be known to a small group of like-minded individuals.
If Nora types the phrase “horror fiction” into the site’s search bar, she will get a list of links to 28 different e-zines that accept stories in this genre. The very first is Abomination Magazine, an online publication that was established in 2012. If Nora clicks on that link, she’ll be taken to another EWS.com webpage that lists facts about this magazine. The page has: a link to AbominationMagazine.com, a summary of the magazine’s mission, who the editor is, how often the magazine publishes in a year, what genres of submissions Abomination accepts, and most importantly, a link to the submission guidelines page and an approximate response time to submissions.
Since Nora has a polished story, she will then click on the submission link and be whisked directly to the AbominationMagazine.com submission page, which is very clear about what the magazine accepts:
"We are open to submissions of horror, science fiction, and dark fantasy between 1,000 to 7,500 words in length. We want you to scare us. If your story doesn’t incite dread, give us nightmares, or make us feel extremely unsettled, it’s probably not for us. Gore is acceptable, but not at the cost of story."
Nora’s story “Behind the Trees” could possibly find a home in Abomination Magazine. It falls within the range of accepted word length, and, ever since the Dark Ages, vampires have inspired dread and nightmares.
It’s also good to note that, at the very bottom of the submission webpage, there is a paragraph discussing payment!
"Abomination Magazine pays 1 cent per word USD for short fiction and US$6 per poem. Author will receive payment upon publication in any issue of Abomination Magazine. Stories selected as featured fiction will not receive monetary payment at this time, however, anyone that has been accepted as a featured author is greatly encouraged to submit additional work for consideration."
This low pay rate might be a turn-off to many new writers, but this is not uncommon. Especially for a publication that is only a few months old. Many publications listed on EWS.com don’t give monetary payment, but they do send a free copy to anyone who has something published in that issue. That’s not so bad.
Many online publications warn how long they take to send back a response to a submission. Abomination Magazine has an approximate response time of 7 days. Weird Tales Magazine, which is most famous for launching the careers of H.P. Lovecraft and Ray Bradbury, has a response time of 6-8 weeks (if they’re not backed up…which they usually are), and Menacing Hedge, who looks for stories that “Make our eyes dilate, our pores open one by one, and our skin break out in shivery gooseflesh,”has a response time of 2-3 months.Don’t be surprised to find wait times even longer than that because there are hundreds of people just like you and Nora, budding writers who are looking for anyone at all to publish their stories. It’s just not practical to aim for the New York Times best-seller list fresh out of college. A plan like that is a guarantee for disappointment. There is no shame in looking at these small, online publications. If you get scatter-published in many different magazines, think of how your resume will look! Wow, people will say, you are a writer!
Improve your odds of publication by specializing in certain genres, keeping a file of ideas, maintaining contacts with editors, and operating as a business. If you are a serious, part-time freelance writer, then you should also be a serious businessperson (Harrison 139). Conduct yourself professionally, read carefully, and write, write, WRITE.
A helpful tool in this industry is an agent, especially when trying to publish longer works, like a novelette or full length book. Finding an agent sounds like a daunting task. You might ask, “Well how on earth do I get an agent if I don’t have an invitation to a fancy shmancy Hollywood party?” But Lisa Jahn-Clough, who teaches creative writing at Rowan University and has published 14 picture and young adult books, assures that finding an agent is as simple as a carefully worded Google search. To use Nora and her story “Between the Trees” as an example again, what Nora would have to do is pull up Google.com and type into the search bar “literary agents for horror fiction.” The first website that comes up is Writers.net, a nifty site akin to EWS.com in that it has many different agencies’ information all in one spot. The first listing on Writers.net is the Elite Finesse Literary Agency. Their mission statement is “With 17 years of experience we know just how to present your work to the right publishers and get your material out there, read, reviewed and published. In the 17 years of business we have published over 200 first time authors with great success.” That sounds promising, especially the first time author part.
Then the site lists submission guidelines:
Submission Guidelines: Please mail the agency or send a query to the above agency address. You may also send the entire work for our review. Your submission will be reviewed for its content, its appeal to other readers, and its marketability. Once a decision has been made on representation you will either be emailed or a reply by mail will come to your door of a representation offer.
Notice that the first thing the agency asks for is a query letter. Although this agency says that they’re willing to read a “finished” manuscript, a query letter is a good route to take because it’s a nice summary of what the manuscript is about. It’s your chance to sell your story so that the agent will be curious enough to read it instead of setting it aside for someone else’s more interesting story. What may be most important about the Elite Finesse Literary Agency is that they assess the audience that will read your work, not just the people who might buy it in a bookstore but also the publishers who would put it in print in the first place. This ties into sending your work to the appropriate people.
At the bottom of the website is an added bonus:
Reading fee: No
Most new writers are strapped for cash (quite the understatement), so it’s good to keep an eye out for whether or not publications or agents charge for certain things. But again, an agent is a key ingredient to a young writer’s success because many publishing houses don’t accept freelance manuscripts. It’s their way of weeding out the iffy amateur tales to find something with potential. Don’t think of your agent as a blood-sucking middle man. He is more of a messenger who heralds the great news of your forthcoming brilliance. The agent has what a new writer doesn’t: knowledge about the industry. It is most beneficial to you and the publisher if you do your research ahead of time. It wouldn’t make sense to send a gory vampire story to a picture book publisher. An agent will help you figure that out.
Remember, rejection is a way of life in the publishing world. It’s inevitable in a business that deals with an overwhelming number of applicants for a limited number of positions. Anyone who has ever been published has received their fair share of rejections, and writers with thin skin are at a distinct disadvantage. A rejection is not a personal attack on you or your writing! Writers who let rejection dissuade them will never be published. So long as you resign yourself to the fact that you will be rejected, you will live through it and eventually overcome it.