In The Right Place ...

It isn't personal when an editor or agent rejects a submission. For short stories it is truly a numbers game. Editors receive hundreds, thousands perhaps for some publications, of submissions. They may reject it because for that one editor at that single publication at the time the editor reads the story she or he decides at that moment that the story doesn't meet her or his short term needs.

Out goes the story, again and again if necessary, until it is published. I am very happy to write that my story, Paper or Plastic?, has been published by the online science fiction magazine Atomjack. This is a very, very good thing. :-)

Look at the other stories in that issue of Atomjack and you'll see a theme. The editor mentions that this was unintentional. There just happened to be a lot of robot stories submitted that he liked. One editor, at one publication, reading my story, and deciding, for whatever reason, that it fit into his short term needs.

As this is my first published short story, I need to give a few shout outs. The online community at Forward Motion Writers has been very supportive and helpful. The eclectic group of writers who meet every other saturday at Borders (TEGOWWMEOSAB? We need a new name :P) have been equally supportive and I hope I have been able to give back in kind. So thank you Chuck, Chris, Kathleen, and Leo.

Finally, there are many friends and family who have not laughed out loud when I said I was going to be a writer. Special thanks to my wife and daughter. I am a writer.