Fiction Submission Guidelines:
A Story's Progress

Last update: 1 January, 2010

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

  1. You submit a story by uploading an RTF file using our 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 and all three first readers.
  3. 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 an auto-response, and the process continues as described below.
  4. We enter the story into the database. It goes into one of two unassigned-stories queues: one for the editors, one for the first readers. (Which queue the story goes to is determined by a complicated algorithm designed to distribute the reading load, while making sure the editors see a mix of stories by unknown authors and stories by authors we've published before.)
  5. An editor or first reader assigns stories from the queue to themselves, then reads those stories. (Note that it's essentially random which editor or first reader ends up reading a given submission from the queue; don't read anything into that.)
  6. The assigned editor or F.R. reads the story and enters a rating (and other information) into the database.
    • A No/Reject rating indicates that the other editors don't need to read it; the editor or first reader is then assigned the task of rejecting the story.
    • A Consider rating from a first reader moves the story into the editors' queue, for them to consider.
    • A Maybe or Yes rating from an editor tells the other editors to read it.
  7. Each week, all three editors read all of the stories that the other editors rated Maybe or Yes.
  8. The editors 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 by consensus. 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, on average), we send an acceptance letter. Later, we send out a contract and then a check, and we do a detailed line-editing pass (which the author gets final approval on), 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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