As promised, once the fall semester ended, I was able to send out some work.
Poetry: I sent packets of poems to 11 journals (Whale Road Review, Rattle, The Common, Museum of Americana, Green Mountains Review, Lascaux Review, Foundry, Black Warrior Review, IDK Magazine, Diagram, Exit 13). I entered three poems in a contest and my chapbook, Pounding Cobblestone, in one contest and submitted to one publisher. The publisher offered me a contract. When I receive the countersigned document, I’ll reveal the details. 2 rejections (Lascaux Review and Potomac Review). 0 acceptances of individual poems. I continue to work on weekly poems with my poetry mentor.
Fiction: 4 submissions of one flash fiction story I wrote earlier this year (Flash Fiction Magazine, Typehouse, Rumble Fish Quarterly, Hobart). However, one of these publications in its online version wrote “Forward” instead of “Foreword.” That makes me antsy. 0 acceptances, 0 rejections. I was inspired to submit by a conversation with The Whole Megillah’s Online Fiction workshop about flash fiction.
Creative Nonfiction: 5 submissions of a revised essay (Yemassee, 1966, Souvenir, Southern Indiana Review, Persimmon Tree), 0 acceptances, 0 rejections. I have one essay in progress, now with my Food Memoir instructor for feedback. Starting January 8 I’m taking another online essay/memoir course at Creative Nonfiction Magazine and should generate another three essays.
Other December 2017 activities: I completed the Food Memoir class and that dredged up all kinds of memories. My agent submitted my Holocaust novel in verse to a publisher. I’ve revised an essay and (finally) revised my YA Holocaust novella. I gave a poetry reading in Red Bank, New Jersey to promote my chapbook, Chicken Fat. And, I completed another article for Cobblestone, the kids’ history magazine.
Coming up in January!
Finishing an educational title, continuing revisions on my novella, working on a couple of academic articles, preparing for the spring semester. I’d like to write for a couple more kids’ magazines. I’m still catching up on book reviews. If any of you is an expert at using Excel for statistical analysis, I’d love to hear from you!
2017 Year-End Statistics
I’m not very proud of these:
Poetry: 38 submissions, 5 acceptances, 33 rejections
Creative Nonfiction: 51 submissions, 4 acceptances, 32 rejections
Fiction: 8 submissions, 2 rejections
The Whole Megillah 
Thanks for sharing, this Barbara the Brave. I’d love to learn more about the world of literary fiction journals. The stats seem astronomical. Is it even worth the time to submit? Do you enter contests? I do–many–because they give me a short-term goal and deadline, offer a lot of money, and are read blind. (In other words, my resume or lack of MFA doesn’t factor). Happy New Year!
Thanks, Evelyn! It is worth it to submit, although I prefer the verb “offer.” I don’t enter contests, because the cost to enter them can become prohibitive. The literary journals are for fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry, as well as hybrid forms. It is a numbers game. A colleague once told me that if you haven’t submitted to 60 journals, you haven’t really submitted. Luckily, the most I’ve submitted to is about 20-25 for one piece of work, and that story was accepted by the very first lit mag I sent it to. I subscribe to both Duotrope (fee-based) and Trish Hopkinson’s blog to learn about lit mags. I’d be happy to discuss further. Barbara
Barbara, I think you can be QUITE proud of your year-end statistics – what a lot of submissions! What a lot of courage and persistence! Sounds like you are planning to be quite productive in January too. Happy New Year! Meryl G Gordon
On Mon, Jan 1, 2018 at 9:32 AM, The Whole Megillah wrote:
> Barbara Krasner posted: “As promised, once the fall semester ended, I was > able to send out some work. Poetry: I sent packets of poems to 11 journals > (Whale Road Review, Rattle, The Common, Museum of Americana, Green > Mountains Review, Lascaux Review, Foundry, Black Warrior Revi” >
Thanks, Meryl, for your kind words! Happy New Year to you, too.
9 acceptances—that’s what speaks volumes. And if you didn’t submit, you wouldn’t have those, which I know you know. It does get discouraging, but you can be very proud.
Thanks, Dede! I appreciate the encouragement and support.