Acceptance and Rejection

Today I received a message from Diana Lyles, who is a multi-talented person, who runs Scribblers and Ink Spillers. My historical horror short story "Io Saturnalia" was accepted into the third issue of Emerald Tales, and it will be published on December 1, 2009. I am so excited that "Io Saturnalia" was accepted. For one, after receiving a rejection letter yesterday, it is always nice to receive an acceptance letter the next day. For two, I really loved writing "Io Saturnalia." It is most likely my best short story to date. For three, the "Winter Solstice" edition of Emerald Tales comes out on December 1 of this year. It means that people can buy and read one of my stories before 2010 when my ebook and YA fantasy short story are published. Here is the link to Emerald Tales: http://www.scribblersandinkspillers.com/emeraldtales.html. I'll put up another blog post and everything to remind people when it comes out. "Io Saturnalia" will be in print and electronic versions, and it'll only cost $5 for the magazine. It's definitely worth it!

Unfortunately, I had to mention my rejection letter. My horror story "Wishes" was rejected from the Dead Bells anthology. I had made it until the end of the final, final cuts. Here is what was said:

Good morning, Cherie,

I want to thank you again for your submission of "Wishes" to the Dead Bells Anthology, and for the work you put into the story. It has certainly been a hard decision making process for this anthology.

Unfortunately, we won't be including "Wishes" among the those in Dead Bells. The story was definitely close and I enjoyed reading it both times, but when it came down to it, it just didn't fit with what we are working towards.

Best of luck with your future endeavors.

Sincerely,
--
Jodi Lee
Belfire Press - http://www.belfirepress.com
The New Bedlam Project - http://www.newbedlam.com
Dead Bells - http://www.jodilee.ca/deadbells


I wasn't quite as disappointed as I originally thought I would be, and I wish the anthology success, even though my story wasn't accepted. "Wishes" is a great story though, and I hope to find another place for it elsewhere.

I currently only have a few stories out there that I'm waiting to hear back from, including the Eve anthology, Sorcerous Signals, and Abandoned Towers. I should have already heard back about "Hell Has No Fury" and "Eclipse," but the editor of the Eve anthology and Sorcerous Signals seems to have disappeared from the earth, since I've heard nothing from her since June. I need to send out my stories elsewhere, but it'll have to wait until after NaNoWriMo.

As for NaNoWriMo, I am still doing very well, I think. I am part way through finishing chapter nine, and I have around 21500 words written in nine days. I haven't done my writing for day 10 yet, but I'll keep everyone updated on the status of my novel.