Rejection 245

That batch of poems I believe in so hard were rejected by Hayden's Ferry Review, too. I can't seem to figure out a home for these guys.

If I send work out, I believe it's the best I could make it, but obviously I have a favorites, and it seems like my favorites are always the ones that have a hard time finding a home.  This probably says something about my taste in regards to my own work, but when I try to think about that, I just confuse myself, because that doesn't seem like something I can change.

This is nothing new. I just think it's interesting how things work out.

Rejection 244

Got a nice little slip of paper in the mail from The Pinch saying they weren't interested in what I'm selling.

Rejection 243

West Wind Review: form rejection. Unevent. Today I threw up a vitamin. Lesson learned.

Rejection 242

Kenyon Review apologized for their slow reply, but it only took them 3 weeks.

Rejections 239, 240, and 241 and a new story

Erp.  They're really piling up lately.

This could probably be seen as a shitty thing to say, but quite honestly, I had gotten used to a different submission/ acceptance/ rejection ratio for a little while there.  Which I don't think is a terrible thing to acknowledge.  I'm not discouraged by the increased rate of rejections of late.  I'm just going to buckle down and work harder.  As previously discussed, I think my writing might be in an adolescent period right now, so I'll work.  Plain and simple.

239: Puerto del Sol

240: A really nice note from Chris at Annalemma letting me know more what he's looking for.

241: Five Points

That said, there's a new story of mine up atWunderkammer: Janice-Katie, Both Fruit and Flower. It was a story I wrote for a Rec Room reading in which all the readers used Stacy Levine's fascinating character, Janice-Katie, in a story all their own.  The range is pretty terrific.

Poetry Collection Rejection

A poetry collection I put together was rejected by Octopus Books.  Such is life.  I'm excited about the people who were chosen though, and very eager to see the collections that were finalists - because hopefully I will get to see those collections somewhere else someday.

Here's the lists:

Scheduled for Publication in 2011:

Dear Jenny, We Are All Find by Jenny Zhang The Black Forest by Christopher DeWeese Conception by Rebecca Farivar These manuscripts were finalists:

Off to the Nervous Museum by Claire Donato

The Next Monster by Julie Doxsee

I Write to You from the Sea by Laura Eve Engel

Everything Here is Ok by Sasha Fletcher

Power Ballad by Dan Hoy

Early Linoleum by Brenda Iijima

Kingdom of Throat-stuck Luck, by George Kalamaras

The Dottery by Kirsten Kaschock

Sign You Were Mistaken by Seth Landman

Heart of Palm by Linnea Ogden

Emergency by Caryl Pagel

Lid to the Shadow by Alexandria Peary

The Abilene Paradox by Craig Rebele

Bloom by Rob Schlegel

Parties, by S.E. Smith

Common Birds & Their Songs by Melinda Wilson

There's a lot on the horizon, right?

Rejections 237 and 238

Fake it til you make it.

I received a form slip-of-paper rejection from the Iowa Review in an extremely timely manner and a form-email rejection from Third Coast.

Acceptances have been slow lately.  I will work harder. I think my writing is in a weird spot right now - maybe a "things are happening to the work itself, but haven't actually happened" sort of state, like adolescence.  At least I'm hoping so.

As Samuel Johnson said: "There is nothing uglier than that on the verge of beauty." I'm hoping things improve.

Rejection 236

Lovely rejection from notnostrums, in which they were kind enough to congratulate me on my forthcoming chapbook and novel.

Rejection 235

Anonymous rejection from Black Warrior Review.

Rejections 232, 233, and 234

Triple rejection day.  I guess you can see that I got busy sending work out a month or two ago.

Crazyhorse - An impersonal rejection in which there was also a paragraph saying "If this manuscript was a prize entry..."  I'm glad it wasn't.  If I'd paid an entry fee, I'd at least expect a different form letter.

Boxcar Poetry - A lovely, personal note saying the work didn't fit with their issue and congratulating me on my forthcoming books.

Hotel Amerika - Paper form letter.

That's all.  Good night.