11.15.2008
Back in May of this year, I submitted Skin to Abyss & Apex. It's a magazine that I've been submitting to from the beginning and have been trying to get published in since I received the nicest and most complementary rejection for The Three Lives of Slugger Joe ever.
Given that they liked that story so much, I thought, "Well, hell. They might like Skin."
Skin is a story I describe as my attempt at a House story set in a sci-fi world. An ex-cop and a doctor are exploring the colonies and passing through one that is afflicted with a "plague". Along the way, they end up solving it, of course.
But it was fun to write. Especially two such different characters. It's the doctor, Moira, who is the calm, reasoned one and the cop, Sue, who is the flake, but also the adventurer. Watching the two of them interact in this story was great fun.
Anyway...
Today, after 189 days, I received my rejection from them:
Thank you for submitting 'Skin" to Abyss & Apex. As you know, we kept it for second round consideration but ultimately decided not to accept it for publication. The competition this month was strong and while we came up with an excellent table of contents for our next issue, we had to say no to many works (like this!) that we wish we could keep.
So yeah. That makes the second time I've made it to the second round without going on to publication. Just once, I'd like to know what it's like to be accepted. What it's like to work with an editor to do the final massage of my words into what gets published. At this point, I know the submission game about as well as anyone. I know how to write the stories. But there's this world that exists, it seems, just within reach but as untouchable as the moon. And like anyone who's looked at the moon, I wonder what it would be like to touch it.
Bah.
Kids, I wish I had a moral to this story but I find myself with none. I just woke up and found the rejection. I haven't even had coffee yet much less process the meaning of life yet today.
But here in rainy New York, it's the perfect day to veg in front of the TV and watch a movie. And that's exactly what I plan on doing. Then tomorrow, I'll work on something new.
Here are the stats as they stand: This is the eighth rejection from Abyss & Apex since I began submitting to them in 2006. This was only the third rejection for Skin but the twenty-fifth for the year. My stories have been out for a combined 1095 days, averaging almost forty-four days per rejection.
As of now, I have no stories out for rejection. This is the first time this has been the case since January. But this might also mark the last for the year given the time of the month. We'll see. If I do submit again this year, you'll hear it here first.
Have a good weekend, kids.