I’m starting to map out the next submission blitz in the lit. mag. world. It’s been about six months since my last one, and I’m going to have a stronger set of material this time around. I’ve done productive edits on Bubbles, How to Be Depressed in the Sunshine, and The Frog Boogie and I’m going to also edit Old Marvin Karl to use in the batch – I like having several stories to submit simultaneously, since different magazines have different tastes. And I’ve decided to stop submitting 22Trifles. I just don’t think it’s up to snuff – glad I wrote it, but if it’s never published, that will be no loss at all.
Last time I submitted to nineteen magazines and got two stories published. The meant withdrawing a published story from four mags that were still reviewing it, so we got two yays, four undecideds, and thirteen straight rejections. I feel good about that record. This time I want to spread it a little wider, and intend to choose about thirty targets. I’m also going to take a few select shots at publications with a bit more prestige and reputation. I’m not picky about mastheads at this stage in my prose-writing career, but there’s no harm in testing one’s self against a more foreboding target.
What I’m noticing in my research is that it’s becoming fairly common to charge a $3 reading fee to submit work on-line. I think some writers might see this as gouging, but I think it’s a very appropriate price to arrive at. First, paying anything at all provides writers just enough pause to spare the editors/readers the most sloppy and indiscriminate work, leaving them fresh-er and more available for the serious stuff; Second, it oughtn’t empty anyone’s pockets (see Contest Fees, Excessive); Third, it’s cheaper than postage, printing, and a big envelope; and Last, the money goes to the people reading/supporting/publishing the work of struggling writers, rather than the makers of stamps, ink, and big envelopes.
Even the magazines that are good enough to pay as much as $100 for a short story aren’t putting food on anyone’s table – and everyone knows that. I don’t even think we’ve reached the bottom-floor yet in the ever-plummeting valuation of writing in the Internet Age (see Huffington Post, Uncompensated Contributors to). The exchange of dollars here is more about mutual respect. They say to us writers What You Do is Valuable, Even if Our Culture Doesn’t Acknowledge It. And what we say back is The Thankless Work You Do Bringing Our Work to the World Shouldn’t Also Bankrupt You.
So I may end up shelling out twenty bucks in this next round. It’s still cheaper than gas money and drinks for another “networking” meeting in LA.