I find waiting for LitMag responses very nerve-wracking and stressful. I want to check my status on Submittable hourly, but I know it’s not going to change. I have two pieces sitting in their queue, one since January 22 and the other since the 29th. I caved yesterday and checked them again, the first time in a week.
No movement.
And rightfully so. The response time for both pieces is not over yet so I can’t bug the editors or even glare menacingly at my computer screen. It’s expected, it’s accepted, it’s how things are. But it still frustrates me.
I don’t like to have a piece out to multiple places, even if they allow simultaneous submissions. It’s a personal thing, I don’t know if I can explain it well. However, the long turnaround times make it difficult to get anything published and many magazinesĀ don’t accept simultaneous. My personal preferences aside, this makes things more complicated.
I’ve promised myself to get something published this year so these pieces will keep making the rounds if the two magazines they’re at now don’t accept them. I’m hoping to get them to at least four or five magazines (if they’re not accepted first!) by the end of the year.
Does this review process frustrate you, Reader? If you’ve worked for a LitMag, is the lengthy turnaround time necessary? What are the editors doing in the meantime?
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Until next time, write on.
Taking On a World of Words 