NOTE: The topic of this post will probably be of interest only to writers of short stories--I doubt other people would even know what we mean by "simsubs." Even writers and those who DO know what we mean might be tired of the subject by now. But, because of the many recent discussions about it in some writer's groups I belong to . . .
Let's talk about simultaneous submissions. It's an issue that seems to pop up every year or two, with strong opinions being voiced from both sides, and--as always--most juries are still out on whether simsubs are good or bad. The simple question remains: Should I submit my story to more than one market at the same time?
I think this most recent rekindling of interest is because response times seem to be growing longer and longer for the few publications still left out there that publish short mystery stories--which is mostly what I. and friends of mine, write. One market in particular--Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine--is known to take around a year to respond to most submissions. (Some time ago it seemed to have dwindled to around 11 months, and now it's back to 13 or 14 months between submission and response.) A year, plus or minus, is a long time for a story to sit around in a queue, completely out of circulation, and when you consider the fact that your story can end up rejected after all that time, you might be sorely tempted to send that story someplace else while you're waiting. A hedging, shall we say, of bets.
So . . . should you do it?
Definitions and rules
First, for those who don't know, a simultaneous submission is the act of sending of the same short-story manuscript to more than one market at the same time--and not to be confused with "multiple submission," which means sending more than one story to the same market. The simsub practice can obviously be a good thing because it improves your odds of a timely acceptance. But it's also risky. If more than one place decides to accept your story, presto!--you've got two dates to the prom, which is never a good situation.
Even if only one of the two markets accepts your story, you must still notify the other market to tell them your story's no longer available for consideration, and that withdrawal can in itself be irritating to an editor. More on that later.
The upside
Let's break all this down a bit. On the plus side of the ledger, if you simultaneously submit a story, (1) you'll almost certainly sell it sooner, and (2) the risk is small because the chances are small that you'll receive two acceptances for the same story at around the same time. And hey, if you wind up with an acceptance from the first market and you have to withdraw an as-yet-unaccepted story from consideration at the second market, it's certainly possible that the second editor won't mind a bit. Maybe she hasn't even gotten around to considering your story yet.
Still thinking positively, and being realistic, simsubs usually result in one of two things happening: Either you get a rejection from both markets or you get an acceptance from one and a rejection from the other. Obviously, neither of those situations presents a problem. All is well with the world.
The downside
On the other hand, the possibilities are: (1) the worst could happen, and both markets could send you an acceptance letter--and one of them will have to be told OOPS--Sorry, that story's already sold. And (2) you might get an acceptance from Market #1 and when you notify #2 that it's no longer available, they might've already spent time considering your story, in which case they won't be pleased that you've wasted their time. They probably won't tell you that--you might never find it out--but you also might've unintentionally made an enemy. So, either of those situations could mean your name is now on a particular editor's sh*t list, and the * doesn't stand for or.
Another point. Some places will say, in their guidelines, that simultaneous submissions are permitted. That means you'll NEVER get in trouble with simsubs, right?
Wrong. Even if they do say it, they won't like it. No editor likes simultaneous submissions. If you withdraw a story from them in midstream--and believe me, they'll probably know why you're withdrawing it--there's a fair chance they won't be happy hikers.
Conclusions
As I have said before at this blog, I think the risks of simultaneous submissions outweigh the advantages. That's my opinion only, but I do believe that. Since we know that withdrawals can be annoying to editors, and the last thing I want to to do is annoy an editor, I just don't do it. I'm annoying enough as it is.
My personal "bad" experience with simultaneous submissions is a bit unusual. What happened to me is that I once submitted a story to a place (Strand Magazine, in my case) that is known to never respond at all unless it's an acceptance, and after waiting many months without getting a response, I assumed that story must've been rejected, and I sent it elsewhere (AHMM, in my case). Then I was told by the first publication that they in fact did want to buy my story, so I dutifully notified (confessed to) the second market that I had sent them a story that I thought had been rejected elsewhere but had not. Actually, this kind of misfire happened to me twice, with these same two publications. Both times, the editor of the second market--Linda Landrigan--told me there was no problem, and allowed me to easily withdraw my story so it could be published at the first market--but it still gave me a terrible feeling, and the second time it happened I resolved never to do it again. Since that point, I have never submitted a story to two different places at the same time, and I have never submitted a story anywhere unless I know for certain that that story is no longer under consideration elsewhere. Better safe than sorry.
Questions
How do you feel about this whole issue? Do you submit simultaneously, or not? Is it an always thing? A sometimes thing? Only with certain markets? If you haven't done it already, would you or wouldn't you, in the future? Is it really worth the risk? Any war stories, about this kind of thing? Please let me know, in the comments section below. I'd also love to hear the opinions of editors, if any of you decision-makers are reading this.
I assure you, by the way, that SleuthSayers is the only place to which I submitted this post.
John, you’re prolific and have a high acceptance rate, so what you say makes sense for you. For someone (who, me?) less prolific and with fewer acceptances, simsubs do make sense. A few editors in their guidelines even encourage it.
ReplyDeleteI’m looking forward to reading the comments of others.
Edward Lodi
Hi Edward! You make a good point (though my acceptance rate probably isn't as high as you think it is--thank you for that assumption), but another side of that argument might be that writers of all skill levels need to be cautious of anything that might vex an editor. And yes, I know some editors encourage it, and I assume they'd be more forgiving of a misstep--but I also know most of them hate those problems when they happen.
DeleteIt truly is a choice that every author has to make, and each of us has an opinion on the matter. What's best for one writer might not be best for another. One big thing to remember: You are correct when you assume that you'll almost certainly publish more often if you simultaneously submit--just be aware that it can be a dangerous practice.
Thank you as always for your thoughts, Edward, and best of luck with ALL submissions! Keep me posted!
Edward, I want to go on record as agreeing with you that some of us can't simply "write more stories" like that fount of narrative inventiveness, our friend John Floyd, just as some people "can't say no." John has shared his rejection numbers many times—it only proves he's even more astonishingly productive. ;)
DeleteGreat column, John. I never do simsubs personally, mostly for the reasons you list here--I just don't want to risk my relationships with editors, even those who say they're okay with it. In addition to the cons you mention, I'd also add that it complicates record keeping and tracking where your stories are at any given time. All in all, I'd rather just write two stories!
ReplyDeleteJoe, it does keep things simpler, doesn't it. The truth is, I probably would be more willing to simsub and take the chance if I hadn't run into problems with it myself. It really is hard to inform an editor that a story you've submitted to her has already been sold elsewhere--it's almost a betrayal, in a way: "I didn't want to be published at your magazine badly enough to give you an exclusive look at the story."
DeleteBut there are certainly two ways to look at it. Main thing is to know the risks, and then decide.
Thank you as always!
I've had your experience, John - and it was embarrassing, as the story had already come out before I heard that a more prominent magazine wanted it! And - I swear to the Greek Gods - I never did place a story with that second mag until the editor changed. I can certainly see their point of view. If you are going to spend work time as an editor reading a story, you need to know that it is still available.
ReplyDeleteHey Melodie. I agree--it surely is embarrassing, when it happens. And yes, editors do remember. The times that I did submit stories simultaneously, before I swore off the practice, I always felt I dodged a bullet anytime a story was accepted by one place and rejected by another, around the same time--or even when both stories were rejected! And I didn't like having to sweat it out, each time, waiting for the response(s).
DeleteThe one true solution to all this, as mentioned earlier and as arrogant as it sounds, is to write more stories!
Dammit, that was me replying, not Anonymous. Sorry, Mel.
DeleteThis is a tough question, John, and my answer seems to change as I get older. The first time I did a simsub was several years ago when I subbed a story that had won Honorable Mention (which meant no pub, no money) in a contest to an anthology, was told the story was accepted, and then found out that the people running the contest hadn't even pitched the story to that publisher. I submitted it to a THIRD magazine before finding out about the non-pitch. I withdrew it, then found out about the non-pitch (No, I can't follow it all either!) and resubmitted it to the third magazine, who eventually accepted it. the third magazine editor hadn't even read my withdrawal message yet!
ReplyDeleteNow, I give myself six months. If I haven't heard from a magazine, I submit elsewhere. Since most mags pay so little, annoying an editor doesn't risk a financial hit. Except, of course, AHMM and EQMM. I do multiple subs to both of them, but never a simsub to EQMM. At the moment, I have three simsubs out. That's very unusual, and all three of them involve first-time submissions to markets I only learned of recently. Two of them said simsubs are OK, too.
Steve, that was a wild situation, but sounds as if you did the right things and came out okay.
DeleteI have to say, six months should certainly be enough time--more than enough, really--to wait for a response at most publications. (AHMM is, of course, different.) I too would assume that anything held longer had probably been rejected. And I too will multiple-submit to EQMM (I often have two or more stories queued up, there), and I do the same at AHMM.
One thing I often do when a lot of time has gone by without a response is send a polite withdrawal email. Something like "Since I've not heard back from you on my April submission of such-and-such story, I would like to withdraw it from consideration." That should unruffle any feathers that might be disturbed by my withdrawal.
What a crazy business this is . . .
I have never intentionally simsubbed, but have done so accidentally. Twice (if memory serves, and these days it often doesn't) I waited long past any reasonable expectation of a response, presumed my stories didn't make the cut, and sent them elsewhere. I've done this several times with no problems, but in these two cases, the original publications wanted the stories and I had to withdraw them from the second publications.
ReplyDeleteNot fun.
As an editor, I'm not fond of simsubs, but I've not blacklisted any writers who've simsubbed and then withdrawn a story. As a writer, I understand what it's like to wait for a response, so I don't begrudge them the desire for quick and positive responses.
On the other hand, if a writer did this to me repeatedly, I might might look askance at their future submissions...
Hey Michael! As I mentioned in the post, my bad experiences with simsubs were also caused by accident. But they were enough to scare me off from simsubbing again afterward.
DeleteI certainly agree with your not blacklisting those writers who withdrew stories--though, as you later said, I think I would if it happened several times. As a writer who has submitted to a lot the publications you've edited (magazines *and* anthologies), I must say I appreciate the way you keep writers informed at several points in the process--when the windows open and close, when the story's accepted or rejected, when publication is expected, etc., etc.
Thanks so much for this note--I was hoping to get an editor's opinion on this craziness.
I submit pieces simultaneously unless the publication prohibits it, obviously. I can imagine the disappointment an editor might feel when they realize they won’t get to publish a piece they loved. It’s probably similar to what I feel when a publication I love passes on my work. Disappointment is part of publishing—on both sides of the desk.
ReplyDeleteNikita -- Thanks for the note! As mentioned earlier, I can certainly see your reasoning,
DeleteAs (I think) Joe said, if you simsub, keep good records of your stories that are out, and for sure notify other editors fast if something they might be considering gets published elsewhere. As for disappointment, you're right--it comes with the territory. I've certainly had my share.
I wish you the best of luck with all submissions--thanks again!
John, I've encountered this issues in poetry markets as well as with short stories, and unless you rule it out altogether, the key variable is whether you have a fair idea of whether the editor known for long delayed response times will have read your submission by the time you've submitted and received an acceptance or rejection from the market to which you're slipping in the simsub. When an editor has spent time on a submission, and then the author says blithely, "By the way, I'm taking it elsewhere," they're justifiably outraged. (You know, I'm getting to like that singular gender-neutral "they.") But if it's still in the ceiling-high virtual slush pile, they won't mind sending it to the trash. Of course, there are some rules, like not sending to AHMM until EQMM has said no, even though the timing would work. And there's common sense, like if you want to get paid three figures instead of two for your story, send to AHMM and wait it out; don't pop it over to Black Cat Weekly for a quick acceptance if you're lucky, or you defeat the purpose of submitting to AHMM in the first place. I guess the moral of the story is that if you're going to subsim at all, you need to know your markets really well.
ReplyDeleteHey Liz. How true! Know who you're submitting to, and if possible know how long the wait'll be, and decide whether simsubbing to someplace else is worth it, etc., etc. This whole game of musical markets is a little daunting at times, and I think the only way I've been able to handle it at all is to have enough stories written at any one time to be able to spread 'em around a bit. I can't imagine having only one or two stories available to submit and having to invest one or both in a long, long wait until a response--that would drive ANYone into simultaneously submitting.
DeleteBottom line for me is, I avoid it and therefore don't have to worry about keeping all those particular ducks in a row.
Thank you as always, Liz. I love getting your opinion on this kind of thing.
I never do simsubs (though once I did by accident. No problem. Both markets rejected it!) The only time I might consider it is if I have a story out there awaiting a response and suddenly there is a themed anthology call that fits my story. But then my issue would be whether to withdraw it from the first market before I submit to the anthology, or simply submit it to the anthology and hope for the best result.
ReplyDeleteBob, that accidental simsub you mentioned would be the only time in publishing that I would ever feel relieved (as you were) that both stories were rejected! All of a sudden the potential problem goes away!
DeleteThat second situation is a difficult one. I myself have had that happen: I submitted a story to a magazine I like and respect and then, some time afterward, I saw a submission call for a themed anthology that would have been a perfect fit for the story I'd already sent to the magazine. In my case I resisted the temptation--and I can only hope that if I had withdrawn that themed story from the magazine's queue and sent it to the anthology instead, it would've been rejected by the anthology. (I'll never know, but how's that for rationalized negative thinking???)
I never simsub and will never again sub to Strand or anyone else who thinks emailing a one sentence rejection is a burden. jimguigliauthor.com
ReplyDelete