From Here to Acceptance

I seem to have gone on rather a lot about rejections and how horrible they are and waiting and how horrible it is. But what about the good stuff?

The Acceptance! I wish I could put that word in bright twinkly letters so it sparkles.

I’ve had a very lucky week with three acceptances. The first was a ghost story to Bridge House for an anthology due out in October. Second was a story to Woman’s Weekly, third was to Fiction Feast.

I particularly enjoyed writing those three stories and it has taken the sting out of the recent rejections.

So for those who are still trying to break in to the magazine market, what should you expect? A letter? A phone call? An email?

My first acceptance (Secrets) was by letter. I still have that letter somewhere, but don’t ask me to find it. It’s in the garage with loads of other paperwork and only a brave soul would venture in there. You should see the size of the spiders – they have webs like funnels and they just have two legs poking out . . .

Where was I?

A letter/email might begin something like “We enjoyed your short story . . .” It may even go on to tell you why they liked it (take note, comments like that can be just as useful as rejection comments).

Or you may get a phone call from the fiction editor – and you will find yourself speaking to a friendly person who is genuinely delighted to be giving you the news that they want to use one of your stories.

Your acceptance letter may even arrive in one of your big brown envelopes. It will feel very slim . . . deliciously so.

That very first acceptance is always going to be extra special simply because it’s a first, but you never take an acceptance for granted, every one is special which is why you keep on going even when the rejections have been flooding in. (Oops I really wanted to write a blog without the R word but now I’ve done it about four times!)

And just a few words here about fiction editors. I have known quite a few over the past twenty-mumble-mumble years and the vast majority have been – and are – the nicest people you could wish to meet (not that I’ve met many, but you know what I mean). They aren’t in the business to hurt feelings or upset people and they would much rather accept a story than reject one.