Why Editors Reject Your Story
As many of you know, I judge stories for the Writers of the Future contest. Today I want to talk about those stories that get an Honorable Mention. On my computer, I have a story up. I’ve read the first two pages, and although I’m a little soft on the opening paragraph, the rest of […]
Ten Reasons Why I’ll Quickly Reject Your Story
This past week I’ve been judging Writers of the Future. Most of the stories come to us electronically, so much of my day is spent opening files, taking a look at them, and then putting in a review–usually one that says “Rejected.” I hate that “Reject” button, and I may ask our programmers to give […]
What “Rejection” Really Means
For the last few weeks I’ve been scurrying to finish up judging on a large contest. I’ve had to “reject” thousands of stories. I hate the word “reject,” because it doesn’t really express what I want to say. Very often I will read the opening to a story and it is obviously the first work […]
