No Do-Overs!

by Nancy Sackheim

Almost all submissions are now made online.  Click the send button, and you are one step closer to publication.  It's that easy.

 It has also never been easier to withdraw a submission.  On Submittable, for example, you click open your submission, give a reason for withdrawal if you want, then click the withdrawn button. 

 Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.  The only legitimate reasons for withdrawing a submission:

• Accepted elsewhere (great news all around!)

• No response (whatever you deem reasonable after publisher's projected response time)

 Publishers will think you are either incompetent or a jerk if you withdraw for these reasons:

• Wrong version (careless and/or disorganized)

• Found a typo (neurotic and have no clue how this works)

• New and Improved version (why didn't you wait and send in the first place)

• No reason (you just wasted our time which makes you a jerk)

 Write, submit, be patient.  And while you are being patient, write and submit another story.

Photo by Sandeep Swarnkar on Unsplash