Full Sundance write-up tomorrow. Mundane catch-up herein:
Back from Utah. Retrieved skunk from godmother. The lil guy was pretty ecstatic to be home, and so am I. All is well, but I’m exhausted. I was napping with Hobkin–crashing really–until he got it into his wee head to run amok and wake me up. Now he’s done being amok and napping under his hutch, and I’m bleary-eyed and insomniac.
Hobkin somehow knew when we were coming to pick him up. He was busily digging at the door when we rolled into her driveway–a behavior she informed us he hadn’t engaged in at all before, and which he’d begun about two minutes prior to our arrival. There’s a lot of sense and intuition going on in that small, fuzzy head. Hobkin gave me many nose-sniff kisses as soon as I picked him up, and snuggled me all the way home. ‘Course then he went amok at 5AM . . .
My laptop powered itself down several times while we were in Utah, the same malfunction as before. Not surprised in the least. Going to have to call HP and see about sending it back again. Bastards.
Writing Stuff
Got an email from the Aberrant Dreams folks inviting me to dinner after the signing on Saturday. Haven’t replied yet ’cause dude_the is coming down this weekend for Superbowl Sunday, and I don’t know what our plans are. Delighted by the invite regardless. I love it when editors offer to feed me.
I have much, much Tangent work to catch up on. And I have about two dozen stories that I want to read, as well as a slew of ones I’ve already read from last year, that I need to pare down to the five best to nominate for the Sturgeon Award before the 24th of February. Urk.
Received:
Squee:
– 217-day sale of a French reprint of “Returning My Sister’s Face” to Faeries.
– Check from Ennea for the Greek reprint of “When the Lights Go Out.” And it’s in U.S. dollars and not euros, hurray!
– A status update from mroctober on a YA anthology he’s trying to sell to Mirrorstone that I wrote a story for. The Mirrorstone editor made lots of promising-sounding words, “very interested” being the main ones, but it’s still in the “maybe” category. A very positive maybe, though. Got my fingers and toes crossed. I’d love to be published by Mirrorstone.
– 24-day email from Doug Cohen, slush editor of Realms of Fantasy, informing me that he’d received my latest submission and that he’ll pass it along to Shawna in February.
Sigh:
– 106-day personal nope from Chris East of Futurismic after holding onto this story for extended consideration. Bummer. But he did invite me to try again.
– 54-day “no thanks” with invite to submit again from Lorraine and James. Eh, it was a long shot.
Rolling my eyes:
– 547-day “Despite your publication credits, we feel you need some help getting your prose skills up to a truly professional level. You may want to consider attending a Borderlands Press Writer’s Boot Camp” rejection from Borderlands 6 on a story I’d already withdrawn and sold elsewhere.
I am terribly tempted to respond with: “Despite your pay rate, I feel you need some help getting your publishing house up to a truly professional level. You may want to consider improving your response times and organization skills, as well as not including a self-serving plug in your rejections.” But I won’t. After all, two unprofessionals does not equal a professional.
New Words: 3K on a Japanese Demon Hunter short written during some down time in the condo at Utah. This one I’m intending for dsnight‘s Heroes in Training anthology.
Club 100 For Writers
1
*sigh*
500/day
1
It’s a new year, and the first time I’ve managed to hit 500. At least it’s not February yet.
Alright! You’re back to writing again! You might just catch up with me, too, ’cause guess what just happened to me? Yep, writer’s block. Sorta. On fiction stories at any rate.
So, um, can I have one of my creativity fairies back now? Pretty please? The other ones kinda went on strike.
I shipped them fairies out UPS. They might have some skunk-sized teeth marks here and thereabouts, but otherwise are in reasonable working order. I’m pretty sure I punched air holes in the box . . .
Eh, worst case scenario: I won’t have to buy Loki any catfood for a couple days.
i had the same borderlands thing. in fact, i had it twice, one nice, one unnecessarily unprofessional. everything int he rejection world 🙂
From personal experience and various feedback I’ve been hearing, it seems that the Monteleones excel in unprofessional and rude rejections. Oh well.
Heh. I was just going to ask if it was that particular Borderlands antho. I read one of the earlier ones and kept thinking, “Decent anthology. Too bad about the editorial intrusion.”
“After all, two unprofessionals does not equal a professional.”
But it might, in this case, equal a significant amount of satisfaction.
Damn, but that’s a condescending, self-serving, BS-laden “rejection” letter. And to send something like that after holding onto the manuscript for over a year is just unmitigated gall.
Say, I was just looking over the Aberrant Dreams website…
Do you think they’d be a viable potential market for “None So Blind”? I don’t see anything on their site suggestiong they wouldn’t be, but I thought I’d ask for an informed opinion before submitting.
From what I’ve been able to infer, the editorial folks at AD have fairly eclectic tastes–the two stories I’ve sold to them have been pretty dissimilar animals, one being a dark fantasy with an “olden day” setting, and the other being an urban fantasy set in modern times. Their response times are reasonable and their submission process is electronic, so I sez “Go for it.” I would love to finally get to share a ToC with you.
Done. Wish me luck.
And if you wanted to send dirty pictures to the editor on my behalf, it probably couldn’t hurt. 😉
Huge bags o’ luck!!
“And if you wanted to send dirty pictures to the editor on my behalf, it probably couldn’t hurt.“
Gah! Too scary. Have you seen what their web comic did?
I think dirty pictures might be akin to pouring wasabi sauce on habanero peppers, major implosion risk.
You’re probably right about not writing back, but I can certainly understand the temptation. What is it with publishers who feel like it’s okay to take almost two years or more, not to mention a plug that sounds like it came right off the pages of The Scammers Guide to Ripping Off Writers, 2006 Ed.
Ooh … Japanese demon hunter story. ::Rubs hands together::
“What is it with publishers who feel like it’s okay to take almost two years or more, not to mention a plug that sounds like it came right off the pages of The Scammers Guide to Ripping Off Writers, 2006 Ed.“
I think I’m going to have to turn to the eternal wisdom of the Simpson’s (paraphrasing): “Some [editors] act badly because they’ve had a hard life, or have been mistreated…but, like people, some of them are just jerks.”
In the “some people are just jerks” department…
I remember flipping through a book about how to find an agent. The book included some sample rejections that authors received from agents to whom they submitted.
One such rejection read something to the effect of, “We appreciate the gift, but we cannot use the paper you sent us. You wrote on it.”
=8-O
It’s true that there are some people out there who need to turn their talents elsewhere than writing, but for Pete’s sake…
Welcome back!
Hobkin sounds like he just went crazy after you arrived home. That’s true pet love.
Thank you! And yeah, the fuzzwit seems glad to be home. He shows it in silly ways sometimes, but he is a silly beastie after all.
I am terribly tempted to respond with: “Despite your pay rate, I feel you need some help getting your publishing house up to a truly professional level. You may want to consider improving your response times and organization skills, as well as not including a self-serving plug in your rejections.” But I won’t. After all, two unprofessionals does not equal a professional.
I say go for it…
d
It would be so terribly satisfying, but even if they are rude and unprofessional, I’m not.
you a very classy lady
d
Welcome back, Eugie! And I’m proud of you for not sending that reply–ooh, but it must be tempting. :evilgrin: Stupid place. Of all the shameless, self-serving little…ugh. Remind me not to submit there!!
Thanks, sweetie! I’m glad to be back. Although I’ve got so much work to catch up on! Eep.
“Remind me not to submit there!!“
Those folks have certainly been stricken from my market lists! Sheesh.
Hehe. Yeah…I know how that goes. I’ve got a lot to catch up on, too, and I haven’t been in Utah!! :hugs: I’m glad you’re back.
Borderlands
Hmm. One wonders. One muses. One thinks about the Preditors page.
Re: Borderlands
Hmm. You think? I dunno if they count as scammers since there’s a possibility that their “boot camp” might actually have something meaningful to offer (although I’m skeptical). But maybe a note to Preditors and Editors that warns writers ’bout how rude and unprofessional these folks are wouldn’t be unwarranted . . .
Re: Borderlands
:muses: That would certainly be professional, wouldn’t it, Eugie? :rubs hands together gleefully:
so, wait. I feel like I missed something, what with the *signing* being here-and-gone in the middle of the paragraph. Is it absolutely unexcited, or did I really miss you talking about it for weeks?
Hee! I think you may have missed a few posts in there. I’ve been pimping it for a while now. I don’t know how exciting it’ll end up being, but I’m pretty stoked!
I scrolled backward and could not find it, and now I’m worried about random things I must be missing all the time and whether the universe will end early as a result, but probably not, so it’s ok. annoying though. Yay for being stoked and I wish I could teleport to Atlanta for it, but alas…be stoked! the Squee is contagious!
I would have responded: “I would sign up for your Writer’s Workshop, but I’m afraid it would take you 547 days to process my application.”
*giggle*
“- 547-day “Despite your publication credits, we feel you need some help getting your prose skills up to a truly professional level. You may want to consider attending a Borderlands Press Writer’s Boot Camp” rejection from Borderlands 6 on a story I’d already withdrawn and sold elsewhere. “
‘I would like to sincerely apologize for wasting your time. I had foolishly assumed you were a publishing house. As you are clearly an educational institution (with a publishing front), I must fault myself for mistakenly submitting my story to you. I appreciate your effort in correcting my judgement! Best Regards, yadayadayada’
*snerk* I guess some editors do need to have a spork shoved somewhere tender. It’s not really that hard being polite, prompt, and professional (the three editorial “P”s?); one has to wonder what these folks get out of writing such inappropriately rude correspondences.
Borderlands BS Press
Merebrillante brought this blog entry to my attention. Sorry to barge in, so to speak, but I’d like to add a comment. If you don’t mind, that is.
You see, I too had a lovely experience with the esteemed Monteleones and their alleged publishing business. It seems to follow regular pattern, if chaos is indeed a pattern.
They lost my email address, said they sent rejections that never had arrived. They sent me sarcastic comments, very thinly veiled, by way of email reply when I queried them no less than four times over a period of months. I was also accepted to last year’s “bootcamp”, which I turned down because of — good guess — their unprofessional actions. And it took them well over a year to complete these actions.
Professionalism, my …er, eye. 😛
>->->———–> R., aka “withfeathersinmyhair”
(Y-Messenger IMs/offline messages accepted with this I.D., anytime.)
Re: Borderlands BS Press
Thanks for the additional data point. I’ve heard from other writers, and it seems that rude, unprofessional, and downright sleazy behavior are par for the course with these folks. They’ve definitely earned a black mark on my marketing lists, and I won’t be submitting to them again. I’m just glad I decided not to wait for them and sold my story elsewhere.
Re: Borderlands BS Press (2)
You’re very welcome to any information on them that I can gather, but I only can be certain of the truth on my own experience. You can bet that I won’t submit anything to them again, either. They are indeed low quality. If anyone doubts it, I still have the original emails involved.
I don’t submit things to publishers often — I’m primarily a visual artist. But when I do, I expect to be treated with reasonable levels of decency, the same as any business demands. Borderlands Press can’t deliver, and they certainly can’t maintain any level of order in their dealings. It’s just disgusting.
:o) Heh, thanks for letting me vent. Good luck in future!
>->->————> R.
Welcome back, continental traveler and internet cafe commando!
Sorry to hear your laptop is still flaky. Laptop problem are all too common at my work group at Fair Isaac. 4 out of 10 of the harddisks in our group’s Dell laptops have failed in past 6 months.
What a lame 547-day rejection letter!
I’m glad I learned many years ago to be OCD about making back-ups. And I won’t be replacing my HP Pavilion with a Dell, that’s for sure!
By the way, wanted to let you know that the replacement D-Link WiFi device arrived and it works dandy. I’m actually upstairs on the old Vaio with it chatting nicely with our wireless Internet hub right now. So I’ll be able to write upstairs while my notebook is off to the repair shop again. Thank you!!
Congrats on the reprint, Eugie!
And HOLY COW, but that rejection is profoundly un-classy.
Thanks for the congrats! And empathetic nods on the “unclassy.”
Congrats on the sale(s). That Borderlands reject was a piece of crap (expletive deleted).
Goodness, and that was with the expletive deleted? I’m not sure I’ve heard you swear before . . . Are lawyers even allowed to swear?
So, my self-control is evident? Lawyers are not only allowed to swear, but our colleagues teach us ever more interesting words, sometimes in a dead language as well. I’ve even sworn in court, with abject apologies to the bench, however. I dislike even the thought of being jailed for contempt and have only been threatened with it a time or two in my decades-spanning, haphazard, legal career.
I will have to think up some appropriate Latin for you to lob at Borderlands in your virtual, and much-deserved diatribe, something like corpus olfactorium to you, Borderlands!
Um…Terri Windling should have trademarked Borderlands so these twits couldn’t use it…
When you call HP, demand a replacement laptop or your money back. They have failed completely to meet a standard of service. If they give you your money back, go buy a Gateway. I have had great luck with my Gateway laptop that I got last year.
We talked to a case manager today and are sending my laptop back tomorrow. We’ll see what happens. I’ve got the extended care pack which means, come what may, I’ve got a working Pavilion (replaced or repaired) for the next two years, but when it comes to replacing it, I’m going to seriously look into a Sony Vaio or an IBM Thinkpad.
“Despite your publication credits, we feel you need some help getting your prose skills up to a truly professional level. You may want to consider attending a Borderlands Press Writer’s Boot Camp”
Dear Borderlands:
I’d love to sign up for your Boot Camp. My tuition check will take 547 days to clear.
Huh. Outdoes my Baen Universe rejection for weirdest rejection ever. (Besides being the longest form letter ever known to man, it seemed to be a vehicle for promoting their Slush Forum. Righty-oh. I’d love to be rejected by a market twice, the second time publicly. Goody. The letter also prattled on about naughty writers who write to win awards rather than creating good entertainment. And then followed up by saying that Baens didn’t want to create “superstars.” Eh?
I think the editor may have been on the sauce.)
Pat K.
*crosses Borderlands off the list of people ever to submit to*
Borderlands
In an attempt to find out more about the Borderlands Boot Camp I’m attending in August, I wandered onto this thread. I’ll return with a full report, but of all of the reports I’ve read from attendees in the past, the writers they get are top-notch, have had best sellers, and are incredibly helpful. I’m looking forward to having someone who makes a living writing disect my submitted story, and help me elevate my writing.
What I think is funny though is how you all say, “I’m going to take them off my submission list” as if the company really cares whether you submit or not. The Borderlands anthology is the premier horror anthology (including Bentley Little and Stephen King in the past) and I think they’ll survive without you. Whether you’ll admit it or not, you need the publishers more than they need you.
Re: Borderlands
As writers, we routinely encounter legitimate, daunting obstacles in the course of our dogged quests to achieve publication. I find it particularly regrettable when the few and meager standards of courtesy and professionalism we can expect to receive are transgressed. It’s bad business, and it devalues what we do.
So, while you may find it amusing when professional writers try to stand up and speak out against a publisher who engages in unprofessional behavior, it would better behoove you to applaud our efforts instead.