Hey Writers, Do You Have An Opinion?

[Chad Carver]

So, I've found myself sending out a lot of submissions lately to a ton of different magazines, literary journals, etc. I've got some pretty crappy anthologies and lit journals I've picked up at cons around the country and I almost hesitate to submit to them because of how poorly written some of the stories are. Granted, I have tastes that aren't necessarily mainstream, so they may be great by some standards. It breeds the question though, should one be picky when deciding where to submit, or do you damn the torpedos and send as many to as many as you can? I've almost convinced myself that a published credit is a published credit no matter how bad the publication may be as a whole. Thoughts?

[Ryan Eldridge]

I agree with you for the most part, especially when it comes to anthologies. Obviously, you want to be in a high-quality book, since it will probably sell better and get your stories read by more people. But, I happen to go through tons of good and crappy anthologies all the time after cons, so I know there's got to be other people out there who would read it.

[Sean Taylor]

If you're not published yet, you simply want to be published. Then you have something to show a prospective new editor. It's up to you to make the story good enough to be seen, regardless of the source publishing you. That's your job as a writer or artist.

[James Russell Sapp]

I did ink work on a comic back in the 90's "White Raven" issue 7 I was hoping that it would help get my foot in the door and that I would get to work over Rob Rebman's pencils again but alas that didn't come to fruitition AND I made no money from it just my name in the credits. But I dare you to find that issue now. Be picky about where you submit even if you feel you're not "mainstream" and get more than a handshake when you agree to do any work. That's my 2 cents worth.