Pro market response times

I have to get on my soap box about this...

I just withdrew a short story submission, "Whispers of the Night," from a pro market because it got accepted by Siren Book Reviews Ezine (which I'm happier about). Here's what I got as a response:

Dear Miss Kuehl,

As requested I am withdrawing your story from our reading queue. You will get a second notice of withdrawal attached to your submissions e-mail.

Many pro markets are behind as we are right now and closing their submissions to catch up. Weird Tales being one of them. We certainly have no problems accommodating withdrawals, however I would respectfully ask that in the future you adhere to guidelines and not send us simultaneous submissions. we do not accept simultaneous submissions. In return our newer authors enjoy being in the same magazine as such names as Bradbury, Romero and others.

One thing I might suggest for you that could be helpful for your future in submitting stories in pro markets such as ours, is to expect lengthy waits. for instance it isn't untypical for a publisher like Doubleday to by the rights to a book that doesn't see print for at least a year. One way to do that is to tailor a story for that particular magazine or publisher and then submit and go on to writing the next. All of the top names in the industry we have dealt with do this.

I sincerely hope this helps with the frustration of waiting,


I feel like writing him back. I really do. I don't mind lengthy waits. What I mind is when your site says that you have a four month response time (120 days) and it's been 277 days. When a market gets so far behind, they shouldn't be shocked to find that authors are simultaneously submitting to other markets. (BTW: I submitted to them several years ago. It took 647 days that time (Jul 2007-Apr 2009). I had hoped that they got their game straight over the years. Guess I was wrong.) For that matter, markets shouldn't do that; not allow simsubs. If it takes almost a year to make a 4 month decision, either change the guidelines on your site or allow simsubs. Easy as pie.

I don't mind waiting a year if your guidelines say it'll be a year.


Also, learn to spell. You're a pro literary magazine. Look like it.