Rejection letter lucky number seven comes courtesy of One Story, a publication I actually subscribe to because I like how they only feature a single writer only one time, ever, and that the publication itself has, well, one story.  I wish they would do something similar for slightly longer stories.

Only 93 more rejection letters before I officially change my name to Rejection Letter Queen Olexa.  Kinda has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

At least they said they enjoyed it.  I wish they had enjoyed just a wee bit more.  Oh, well.  There is always next time . . .

Dear Gabrielle Olexa:

Thank you for sending us “Jenny Kissed Me”. We really enjoyed this piece, but we didn’t feel it was right for One Story.

We hope that you will continue to send us your work.

Sincerely,

The Editors of One Story

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This one came earlier than expected.  Someone, somewhere is bound to eventually like “Jenny Kissed Me” enough to buy her, right?  When I get to rejection letter # 100, I may consider changing my name legally to Rejection Queen.

Dear Writer:

Thank you for the opportunity to consider your work. We’ve read it with care but have decided not to accept it for publication. Best of luck placing it elsewhere.

Our reading period is now August 15th through April 15th. If you want to know more about this change, please read our blog post on the subject: cincinnatireview.com/blog/uncategorized/rethinking-our-reading-period.

Sincerely,

The Editors of The Cincinnati Review

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I haven’t received any rejection letters lately, which is good, but I haven’t received any acceptances either, which is a bummer.  However, I should be receiving a whole bunch of one or the other in the next week or two.

Since The New Yorker told me kindly that “Jenny of Lebanon” wasn’t what they were looking for, I’ve resubmitted it to two other publishers.  It’ll be another three months before I hear back from them, unless of course my manuscript falls on their desk and light from heaven illuminates it.  That would be cool, although highly unlikely.

I searched Duotrope and the internet for places to send her, but there aren’t many places that accept and pay for a story as long as she is, nearly 14,500 words.

I guess once I’ve tried every avenue for JOL, I’ll probably self-publish her.  I’m glad I live in a world where that is relatively easy, but I would much rather have someone else accept her first, then republish her later.  I’m looking forward to turning her into an audiobook, too.

And for those of you wondering, I have not become a millionaire with my first audiobook.  At least not yet. 

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The audiobook version of “The Enemy in the Mirror: A Novella” written by Sandra Miller and narrated by pretty ole’ me is now available on iTunes and Amazon.com, in addition to Audible.com.

Buy. Listen.  Enjoy.  And if you are feeling frisky, review it!

My second audiobook should be out in month or so.  I’ll keep you updated!

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It’s for SALE!!!!

I was very happy today to learn that the story I narrated, “The Enemy in the Mirror: A Novella”, written by Sandra Miller,  is now available for purchase on www.audible.com.  In a few days, it will be available on iTunes and www.amazon.com.

Click here to buy it through Audible.  I’ll include the other links for you as they become available.

Here’s the synopsis:

Ellane Williams bitterly hates the aliens who are invading the Earth, but when she takes a stand against them she gets more than she bargained for. Join Ellane as she struggles with an unwelcome metamorphosis, an unwanted new identity, and the end of life as she knows it. To survive, we must all fight not to become the evil we oppose….

Interested?  I sure hope so.  Now go buy it!  : ) And be sure to tell all your friends and family.  Sandra and I thank you in advance!

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Well, it was bound to happen, so I am not that depressed about it.  Rejection letter # 5 comes courtesy of The New Yorker.  It was very simple, to the point.  I’m sure hundreds of other people share a similar piece of paper/e-mail.  At least, I’m not alone.  In case you were wondering what a rejection letter from The New Yorker looks like:

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Well, I finished the audiobook, and the author approved it.  Now I am waiting for ACX to give their approval, and then it will be for sale on iTunes, Amazon.com and Audible.com.  I should know something either this coming Monday or the one after it.  I don’t know why they would reject it, I followed all their rules, but until I get a “congratulations” email, I’m going to be sitting her twiddling my thumbs in anticipation.

I just completed buying all new equipment and I am ready to start a new project.  I even know the one I’ve got my eye on.  Just got to work out some kinks and then I’ll be back in the studio again.  Fun times.

Once the first audiobook goes live, I’ll come back and do a big reveal so all of you can go and buy it.  And by ALL, I mean the one or two of you who accidentally stumbled upon this page and/or blog. 

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A day after my rejection letter from Words and Images, I got another, but this one was one of the most promising ones I have received thus far.  If one editor nibbles, one is bound to bite somewhere, right?  That is my hope at least.  I still have 9 others considering “Jenny Kissed Me” now.  If they all say no, and that is an extreme possibility, I’ll have to go back to the drawing board.  Let’s all cross our fingers that I don’t have to.  Here is the rejection I received from Room magazine.  I only wish they had liked it just a little more.

Dear Gabrielle Olexa,

Thank you for submitting your Fiction to Room magazine. While we are unable to accept Jenny Kissed Me for publication, we would very much like to see more of your work.

Members of Room’s collective read over 1200 submissions of poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction each year, of which less than 2% are accepted for publication. As you can imagine, we have to make some very tough choices. Each issue of Room is edited by a different collective member, and each issue editor is responsible for choosing manuscripts that most closely match her issue in theme and feeling.

Your submission was one of very few that gets passed on by our readers to an issue editor. We really liked it, but were ultimately unable to use it in one of our upcoming issues. Please be sure to send us more of your writing. You can find out what themes might be under consideration by visiting our website, http://roommagazine.com.

We look forward to reading more of your work.

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I got a highly unusual rejection letter the other day.  It wasn’t personal or anything.  It was a very standard, sorry, but thank you for trying type letter.  So standard, it didn’t even say Dear Gabrielle Olexa or mention the story I’d written.  So standard, it was only one sentence long.  That was expected, though, so I wasn’t too bummed about the whole ordeal – rejection letters are an odd source of nourishment for writers.  What made it unusual was that everyone else who had been considered and rejected were also included instead of being blind copied, like they should have been.  I got a second email not long after apologizing for the novice mistake.  For a very skinny minute, I thought about sending an email to each writer and telling them that I felt their pain and wishing them luck in their future endeavors, but once I realized how ridiculous that would be, I just moved the email into my growing rejection folder, and moved on with my life.

The rejection letter was from the magazine Word and Images and it went like this:

We thank you for submitting your piece to Words and Images but we regret to inform you it has not been selected for printing in the 2013 issue.
Sincerely,
The staff of Words and Images

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Okay, so it’s not news about “Jenny Kissed Me” or “Jenny of Lebanon”, but it is news, and it’s good news.

I recently auditioned for an audiobook through ACX, my very first one actually, and I just got word back from the author that she loved it and she wants to work with me.

I was so happy that I got up and did a jig.

I don’t want to say what the book is yet because I have to record the first 15 minutes and it has to be approved before the offer is completely in stone.

As soon as it is ready for purchase, I’ll be the first to let you know.

Now, if only someone will buy one of my short stories, I’ll be as content as a cat in cat nip heaven.

Waiting is sooooo painful!

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