GET
YOUR FOOT IN
THE DOOR
AND YOUR
FICTION INTO PRINT
by
Susan
Taylor Brown
NOTE:
This article first appeared in the book Best of Magazine Markets
2003. Since then editors may have moved to a different publishing house
and editorial needs may have changed.
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Many writers
throw themselves at the door of the big glossy high-paying
magazines hoping for a prestigious short story sale that will launch
their career. There’s nothing wrong with that but the odds are enormous
and the frustration increases with every rejection slip. Faced with
rejections, writers often give up before their careers ever get a
chance to get off the ground.
One thing you
can do to reduce your chances for rejection is to start
off with some of the lesser- known or lower paying magazines and then
build upon your successes. Standard, Glimmer Train, Fantastic and The
Sun all publish fiction and encourage emerging fiction writers. They
also agree that it is often a writer’s passion for a story that unlocks
the door to publication. But beyond that, each magazine has a defined
focus as unique as each writer’s set of fingerprints. Read on for some
tips from the editors of these four magazines.
If the main
character in your story looks to God for direction and
strength, Standard Magazine might be a good possibility. Editor Dr.
Everett Leadingham has a clearly defined focus. “Three things are
important: Believable characters and story line, not too-predictable
ending and to be within the framework of Standard's mission --showing
Christianity in action.” He also warns that, “Writers often give
everything away with their titles and first paragraphs.”
At Glimmer
Train the emphasis is on literary short fiction; no blood
and gore, no graphic violence, and no science fiction. “We look for
work that is extremely well written and that is also emotionally
affecting,” explains editor Linda Swanson-Davies. “The pieces we print
influence how we look at ourselves, other people, the world at large.
We want to be somehow enlarged by a story and the perspective it
offers.”
If your main
characters are more likely to be quirky creatures from
another planet, they might be more at home somewhere else, say a galaxy
such as Fantastic Stories of the Imagination. Editor Ed McFadden looks
for fantasy and science fiction in all their forms.
“Usually the
story must have something new or different about
it—cutting edge. While I do publish traditional fantasy, space opera,
etc., these stories must be exceptional. For a new writer, a new idea
or concept would provide a greater chance of publication. And it must
entertain the reader. That’s what this is all about.”
What
if your story seems
to defy categorization? Perhaps you need a magazine that defies
categorization as well. The Sun Magazine is open to just about
anything. “We like personal writing that's deep and genuine,” explains
editor Sy Safransky. “No cynical or fashionable or trendy writing. Our
writers don't shy away from strong emotions, whether joyous or sad.”
His vision for The Sun Magazine is crystal clear. “I want The Sun to be
a magazine that tells the truth; a magazine that sees the world as it
is, without flinching; a magazine that celebrates the power of love
without ignoring the destructive forces around us. I think that most of
the writing we print is top-notch. But sometimes I’m willing to publish
something that isn’t so skillfully written if it gets me closer to the
heartache and the glory of being human. To some other editors,
upholding certain literary standards may be more important. Each
approach, I believe, has value.
Choose the Right
Market for your Story
Increase
your chances for a sale by making sure that your story is a good match
for the publication you have chosen. Study the markets well before you
send out your work. Start by reading the magazine and the writer’s
guidelines. It should be obvious but often basic editorial needs are
overlooked. Don’t send a 5,000 word story when the limit is 1,500
words. If the guidelines say they don’t publish fiction, don’t expect
your short story to be the first to make them break with tradition.
Most magazines now have a website and you can get the guidelines there.
When you go to a writer’s conference, pay attention to what the editors
say they are looking for and what to avoid.. Editors want to say yes to
your story. It makes their job easier if the first story they pick up
out of the slush pile is a winner. Make it easy for them to say yes.
“Follow my
guidelines and write a good story,” says McFadden.
Leadingham agrees that writers need to “show evidence that
they have researched enough to know what Standard is--a denominational,
take-home Sunday School paper. Show me some good writing skills
(grammar, spelling, elements of fiction-writing) about a subject that
fits our mission--showing Christianity in action.”
Ease the way
for acceptances by paying attention to a magazine’s
submission guidelines. For example Glimmer Train prefers submissions
via their website and Standard likes to have the stories emailed to
them. On the other hand, Fantastic Stories and The Sun don’t accept
email submissions at all.
Swanson-Davies
explains, “It's very wise to be familiar with a pub
before submitting work for publication. It's silly to send a romance
novel to a literary short story publisher, for instance. Read the pub's
guidelines before making submissions. Read your story aloud before
deciding to submit it: you'll catch errors, hear its strong points,
feel--or not feel--the story's strength. Do you use lots of adjectives,
adverbs? If so, you may not be choosing the RIGHT nouns and verbs.
Every word counts--choose each with care.”
“Write
honestly and movingly about something that's important to you,”
says Safransky.
“You
have to be familiar
with the publication. Blind submissions only waste everyone's time.”
Do editors
read every story from start to finish? Some do and some
don’t. “It depends,” says McFadden. “There are many manuscripts that
can be ruled out after a few pages. You would be surprised at how good
I am at telling you all about a story, including how it will end, after
only reading a few pages.”
“I want to
see how the author ends the story,” adds Leadingham.
“Sometimes good beginnings fizzle away into nothing endings. At other
times poor beginnings turn around by the end. In a few cases, I don't
read past the first page.”
Strive to
hook your reader from the very first line. Strong writing and
an evocative story will keep Swanson-Davis turning pages. “Usually a
few paragraphs will tell us how strong the author's writing skills are.
If they are top notch and the story holds our interests, we will read
on.”
An
Ever-changing Market
It’s
important to be aware of current trends in the fiction market but
be careful. Knowing which topics to avoid is as important as knowing
which trends to follow. Sometimes, by the time you write toward the
trend, it’s already finished.
“Certain
subjects seem to come in clumps,” says Leadingham, “like the
writers had a meeting somewhere that I wasn't invited to attend and
decided to submit the same kinds of articles in the same month.”
If you hear
an editor speak about a need for cozy mysteries featuring
nurses with insomnia and you just happen to have a story like that in
your bottom drawer, go for it. But be aware
that a lot of other writers heard that same editor speak
about the same thing and very likely raced home to write just such a
story.
On Taking Chances
Writers need
to be brave; brave enough to submit and brave enough to
face rejection. Don’t listen to unsupportive friends or spouses who
spout statistics about the odds against you. Do your market research,
write your story, make it as good as you can, and then, send it out
into the world. Sometimes you’ll make a match and sometimes you won’t.
But it’s a cinch that you can’t sell what you don’t submit.
Leadingham
encourages new writers to persevere in spite of the odds.
“Statistics are against the writer. I have space to publish less than
10 percent of the manuscripts I receive. However, new writers should
keep two things in mind: (1) Don't take the rejection personally. I
don't know you. I am simply making the decision that this particular
piece does not fit what I need right now. (2) Some other editor may be
looking for such a piece. Don't stop with one rejection. Send it to
other editors with similar magazines. Keep trying.”
McFadden
agrees that persistence is the key. “Rejection is part of any
career. I tell new writers that achieving publication requires
persistence. Keep sending out your work and try not to get discouraged
by rejection. Most magazines and book companies get far more
manuscripts than they can publish. Many times rejection has nothing to
do with the quality of the story, but the economics of the business. To
increase your chances of publication two major themes will always help.
A) Know where and who you are sending you story to. Read the magazine;
read interviews with the editor and the editors guidelines. Example:
Sending me a story about cats is a waste of time regardless of how good
the tale is—I hate cats and have said this on many occasions. B) Be
professional and present yourself as a professional—follow the
guidelines!”
“Rejection is
absolutely unavoidable,” adds Swanson-Davies. “It is NOT
personal. (We have sometimes hated one story an author has submitted,
but LOVED another.) We have a great deal of respect for writers and
appreciate the work even of writers who have not yet developed the
skills that will make their work publishable, as long as it's cleared
that they've invested themselves in their stories. There are not enough
publications that are able to stay alive to publish all the good work
that is written. Authors should submit their work to publications that
publish work the author admires and enjoys. (If you share the editors'
tastes, you've got a big advantage--you're probably already striving to
produce work that would interest them.”
Final
Thoughts
No matter how
many tips the editors share, or how many submission
guidelines you read, the final step is up to you.
Safransky
reminds writers, “The only way to have any odds of getting published is
to submit work. Don't be afraid of failure. You'll only regret that you
never tried.”
Swanson-Davies
loves to discover new talent. “Writers should know how
much fun it is for an editor to call an unpublished writer and ask to
publish their work,. Being unpublished is not a disadvantage. And one
more thing: READ! So often people are driven by their need to write and
don't spend time or money on other people's writing, but it's going to
be VERY tough to adequately sharpen one's skills without knowing what
great writing looks like. The writers who read and love great writing
have, by far, the best chance of achieving it themselves.”
Remember that
editors want you to succeed; they want to buy good
stories for their magazines. Without a steady influx of new
manuscripts, the magazines would soon go out of business. But think
before you act, cautions McFadden. “Don’t just send your stories out
willy-nilly. Understand the market you are trying to break into and
craft your fiction toward that market. Another approach is to just
write what you want, then try and find a market for it. The former is
how most professionals do it, while the latter is how most newbies do
it. Neither is wrong. Try and find you own voice. I get so many
manuscripts that are just imitations of Tolkien, or Dick, and these
stories fail. Have something to say without being preachy. The best
stories I have read or have published have a meaning beneath their
entertainment.”
“Make a game
out of the rejection slips rather than taking each one as
a rejection of you as a person,” suggests Leadingham. “It is just part
of the business. I have several writers who must send me more than 50
manuscripts a year, yet I might publish them only four or five times in
a year. They just keep plugging away.”
Knowledge really is power.
Get to know the magazines you want to write for, and get to know the
editors behind the magazine. There’s a lot they can teach you.
"The best
advice I have for writers," Safransky concludes, "is not to
listen to anyone's advice. Beyond that, I agree with Woody Allen’s
observation that eighty percent of life is just showing up. If you want
to be a writer, write. Write every day if you can. Don’t worry if
someone else - - particularly an editor you’ve never met - - doesn’t
think your work is any good. Remember, too, that talking about writing
is only that: talk. Talking about writing is as different from writing
as talking about breathing is from taking your next breath.”
For
information about reprinting this article, please email
reprints@susantaylorbrown.com
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