Posted by Ann

Podcastle has never (yet) banned anyone from submitting. (Yet) because who knows what the future might hold?

But nihilistic_kid is worth reading on the topic of responding to rejections.

Submitting writers do not have a business relationship with me; they are would-be vendors showing me, a customer, their wares. Would some salesperson trying to sell a widget-maker to a widget factory respond to business correspondence stating that the device does not meet requirements with a whining complaint or an attack on the factory manager's intelligence or integrity or dare instruct them somehow? Not if they ever wanted to sell anything to that company ever again.

He is one hundred percent correct.

One may be tempted to argue that Nick's judgment is no better than anyone else's, that he's a writer just like the rest of us so where does he get off making pronouncements from on high? But the fact of the matter is, he's correct.

While it's true that some editorial responses are abusive, most aren't. I've been rejected by nihilistic_kid myself, and while his rejections are frank and not one hundred percent complimentary, they're not arrogant or out of line. And even if they were, well, he's the editor. If he wants to choose stories based on what phase of the moon it is, or how the tarot cards fell that morning, then that's his right. Arguing with his reasons is fruitless. It doesn't get you Correctness Points. If his rejections are more than you feel you're willing to handle, don't submit to him.

I do hear, and feel, the sincerity in the bannee's cry, that she's been rejected over and over again and she's sick of just "being the good girl" and taking it. I really do, I feel a pang of sympathy for her when she says that. That's a cry from the heart, that is.

But she's mistaking good, businesslike practice for "just taking it." You're not going to change the situation by complaining, by talking back, by declaring that you're just as good as them so what do they matter!

More importantly, from a writer's point of view, the complaint misses the point, utterly and completely. If you're being rejected over and over again it's not because editors are against you, or arrogant, or stupid. It's not because you're being a doormat.

It's because your writing isn't good enough. And that's fixable but only if you're willing to buckle down and do the work. Which begins with realizing that you've got to get better. Complaining about editor arrogance is ego-defense. Fine. Defend your ego. You've got to, one way or another. But please, folks, don't do it in front of the editor. Don't do it on the internet, where Google will make it immortal. Don't mistake your necessary ego-defense for Truth.

This is not, by the way, triggered by anything in Podcastle slush. We've been really lucky in the way of responses to rejections. If they happen, they're invariably a short thanks for a quick response. You're welcome!

No, this post is more on the order of a pre-emptive strike.

Perusing the Clarkesworld guidelines isn't a bad idea. Because although few other markets say things like "you'll be banned for subbing more than once every seven days,"(eta--CW won't ban for submitting more than once a week, see Nick's comment below) Clarkesworld's guidelines give, as few other guidelines do, very specific advice on good submitting etiquette. The things Clarkesworld will ban you for are things you shouldn't be doing, just on general principles. When Nick says something like, "A cover letter is what you wear and how you groom yourself for a job interview," he is absolutely correct. Sure, not all editors read cover letters before they read the story, but you don't know who those editors are, do you? Comb your hair and put on the suit. It's just common sense. I'm not saying this because it affects your chances at Podcastle. I'm saying it because it's good advice for writers, generally.

Podcastle won't ban you, or reject your story, because you've done something that mildly annoys us. Nor will we reject a fantastic story because the cover letter is flawed, or whatever. But. Read Nick's guidelines, and his tales of the banned. It's educational.