Rejections - Prison Thanksgiving - Too Cold

 Friday: I got up early and have no idea what I did. CC came over around 11 AM to wait on the arrival of the new computer. I went to group. KH picked me up, and we came to my place. CC was cleaning and cleaning; it was not even like the place was a mess. KH and I talked to Joel C; we may be launching a literary magazine on Substack. CC left around 3; just as the new computer arrived. KH agreed to my eyes are worse than his. The computer is in a corner of the living room. KH left me to piddle the night away. I got an idea about what to do with "

Inkd Publishers rejected “Going For The Kid”:

Thank you for the opportunity to read your submission to the Rebels anthology.

Unfortunately, we have limited space, and we have decided to pass on your story.

We received many great stories, such as yours, with over a hundred submissions for this anthology, but can only accept a small number of those.

--

 Facebook

Submissions

Kickstarter

And one more:

Thank you so much for sending us 'Agnes'. This time, however, we're saying no, but we wish you the best of luck with your piece.

Sincerely,

Editorial staff

The Forge Literary Magazine 

I got this info from my friend Wes, who remains incarcerated by the BOP:

so the meal here was turkey dressing mashed tators and grazy green beans all kid size protions one yeast roll and one single serve apple pie not to bad i guess but could have been better this plce serves us like children and doesn't stay to the nat menu most of the time we will see how xmas goes the xmas bags will suck i'm sure 

i hope to get some funds for xmas the items on sale this year look good

well have a good weekend

wes 

 Yeah, do not think inmates are getting feed well just because the menu put out by the BOP has items like Lo Mein. That one sticks in my mind: spaghetti with boiled ground turkey. OTOH, maybe that sounds like haute cuisne to you.

I spent Saturday morning working on blog posts, the email, and napping. Lunch and dinner were leftovers - fish and beans in a red curry sauce. 

“Coming Home” went to Penelle Magazine and Chestnut Review. I am not sure that my writing is good enough for either. The first has already rejected “Agnes”. The latter has some fine writing that shows up my own for how they touch the heart. Check out Andrea Cavedo's Antifreeze and Cheyenne Mann's SaintDogfish97.

Thin Skin has 10 Reasons Why We Didn’t Accept Your Submission. I passed on submitting anything to them after reading those 10 reasons, and reading Through with Blue by Rachel McCarron. Instead, I spent 2 hours working on “Agnes” before stopping. 

I ran out of Coke, so I did a walk down to Muncie Liquors. I expected to pay too much for Coca-Cola, but was wholly unprepared for $5.99 for a six-pack. This made walking down to Reserve and University worthwhile. Some of the sidewalks had signs of being cleared. A rarity for Muncie.

My ride to church had already notified me that he was staying home. Seeing the roads, it was a good call. They will be very slick in the morning - and they are already slick. Although, not that much snow.

I will work on “Agnes” tomorrow.

Instead, I keep looking for places to submit. I started with listing on Chill Subs and DuoTrope.

I found Valparaiso Fiction Review and left not understanding how to submit to it, or if I could.

Then there was Marrow Magazine. It is late, so I skimmed Lavender and Wild Roses and Ladies 3-in-1 Electric Shaver, and felt intimidated. 

No Church tomorrow. My ride didn't want to get out when there was a winter weather advisory. I didn't think it was a good idea. I was stupid enough to walk down to University and get two two-liter bottles of Coke. I had stopped off at the Muncie Liquors on Wheeling first. While, I had expected a serious uptick in cost, I balked at $5.99 for a six-pack of Coca-Cola. I was surprised how some sidewalks had seen a snow shovel.

I did not hear a snow plow until late at night. Around 11 PM.

No church today. So I went to work on finishing up on "Love Stinks". I worked three hours, napped, worked a bit more, took a bath, read a bit more, napped, and then decided I would go forth and get me more Coca-Cola. I should be drinking tea or water, but I miss the caffeine and the hot water bothers my gums. Luckily, the wind was not as cutting as it had been during the day. 

My policy towards email has been to cut everything that is not personal or about writing. That still took 2 hours to get through some of the emails; some are leads on submitting stories. I also finished editing "Love Stinks".

I don't bake bread. No particular reason why not, but neither have I been a big eater of bread after I gave up peanut butter sandwiches, but Kitchen Dispatch: The Bread That Almost Broke Me (Gastro Obscura) interested me. Once upon a time I wanted to be a chemist, so maybe I will try making bread.

Perusing The Guardian's book reviews: ‘If I was American, I’d be worried about my country’: Margaret Atwood answers questions from Ai Weiwei, Rebecca Solnit and more (Atwood is too much fun and sensible not to read her answers to these questions); Tessa Hadley: ‘Uneasy books are good in uneasy times’ (I have not read Tessa Hadley, but I like how she talks); ‘I took literary revenge against the people who stole my youth’: Romanian author Mircea Cărtărescu (I do not know why I am read so widely in China and Singapore - I have a theory you are actually ransacking me for AI - but maybe they will undertake reading foreign writers; I have failed to interest American writers and readers in this project); Bog People: A Working-Class Anthology of Folk Horror review – dark tales with a sting (As part of my “Chasing Ashes” project, I have been trying to locate Indiana folklore and I can find nothing like what is reviewed in this book; I think my lack of local stories may be due to issues of class); and Holbein: Renaissance Master by Elizabeth Goldring review – a magnificent portrait of the artist (Just because I like art - I cannot even draw stick figures properly.)*

False Equivalence (Sheila Kennedy) - not just good politics, but good sense.

I spent the morning working again on revising "Agnes".

Then I ran out for groceries around 1 pm and got back here around 3 pm. Then I started working on submissions. There was a call to KH; he made it home safely.

After my trip outside, I submitted "Agnes" to The Westchester Review, The Ex=Puritan, Boulevard, Guernica Magazine, The Lascaux Review, Long River Review, and Craft.

Spank the Carp, ANMLY, The Maine Review, Helix Magazine, Midway Journal, Emerson Review, Good Life Review, Broad Ripple Review and Marrow Magazine got "Coming Home". 

 LitBreak Magazine got the first chapter of "Love Stinks".

The Colored Lens got "Going For The Kid".

Now, it is going on 10 PM and my neck is stiffening up.

I will leave off the photos from the past few days until tomorrow.

sch