Submission Frenzy

They say: You gotta be in it to win it.

That applies as much to the National Lottery as publishing fiction, but it's never made me cross my fingers and buy a ticket. It is the same reasoning that has made me wary of being a submission junky. Although my writing process is very methodical, afterwards, my judgement of a piece is based on intuitive feelings. Aside from some stupidly optimistic vibes right at the beginning of my current writing life, the main feeling I have had for my work has been mild dissatisfaction. It's like the shape of the story on the page isn't the Platonic one in my mind, but an ugly facsimile. Editing helps, but it still leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

Under these circumstances, it is hard to send a story out. You know it's almost certainly going to be rejected, and if it is accepted, part of you will be disappointed that it isn't quite as you'd like it. It reminds me a goal a team-mate scored in a football match many years ago. He was on the half-way line and the keeper was out of position off his line. He took a chance and scored. Everyone on the team was ecstatic (it was turning point in the match) except him. He bent over and shook his head. Because he hadn't intended to score in that exact fashion--he'd sliced the ball slightly--he was disappointed. That's where I'm coming from in my submission reluctance.

However, I think I've managed to get past this stage now--partly because I have more belief in my stories since Clarion. I can tell more easily why something doesn't feel right, and I can begin to make amends.

So, my stats thus far:

Submissions: 35
Acceptances: 0
Rejections: 27
Withdrawals: 1
Pending: 7

The silver-lining of rejections is that, provided you keep generating fresh material, you end up with more and more subs in play, and can cling to the "You gotta be in it to win it" motto.