Fiction Submission Guidelines:
A Story's Progress

Last minor update: 31 December, 2007

This page describes what happens to a story after we receive it.

  1. You submit a story by uploading it on the RTF submission page.
  2. Our system automatically converts the RTF file to plain text, with the formatting we prefer, and forwards the story to all three fiction editors.
  3. Our email software generates (but doesn't yet send) an auto-response to let you know we received it.
  4. We glance at the submission.
    • If there's an obvious problem with it (such as if you didn't follow our guidelines), then we send a note explaining that it's not valid, and we delete it unread.
    • If it's a valid submission, we send the auto-response, and the process continues as described below.
  5. We enter the story into the database and assign the next editor in line to read it. Note that it's essentially random which editor reads a given submission; don't read anything into that.
  6. The assigned editor reads the story and enters a rating (and other information) into the database.
    • A "No" rating indicates that the other editors don't need to read it; the editor is then assigned the task of rejecting the story.
    • A "Maybe" or "Yes" rating tells the other editors to read it.
  7. After all three editors have read all of their assigned stories for the week, we each read all the stories the other editors rated Maybe or Yes.
  8. We meet by phone once a week to discuss Maybe and Yes stories. (We're widely geographically separated; meeting in person isn't feasible.) At each meeting, we decide what to do with each story still under consideration. In theory, if two of us like a story enough we can outvote the third; but in practice most of our decisions are unanimous. Note that titles like "senior fiction editor" and "editor-in-chief" do not confer greater authority in choosing stories.
    • If we decide to accept a story (we can generally accept only one story a week), we send an acceptance letter. Later, we do a detailed line-editing pass (which the author gets final approval on), and we send out a check and a contract, and (usually about six months after acceptance) we publish the story.
    • If we're not sure about a story, or someone wants to re-read it, we hold onto it 'til our next meeting.
    • If we decide we don't want the story after all, we mark it to be rejected; see below.
  9. Every week or two, each of us goes through their list of stories to be rejected and sends out rejections. Many of those rejections will be simple form rejections, with no personal comments; if we feel we have anything useful to say to the author about why we're rejecting the story, and if we have time, we may also include a personal note.

 

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