Time was when a writer sent a story off to a magazine in an oversized envelope, enclosing a stamped return envelope, and waited months for a reply; when it came back as a rejection, one sent it off to another magazine.

It’s easier nowadays: one submits electronically, and sending to several simultaneously is usually acceptable. But it’s still uphill work: many literary magazines publish more poems than fiction, often as few as two or three stories in each edition. Most receive hundreds of submissions, so even the best are often declined. Most rejections come in boilerplate language, but I find occasional editors writing a personal note, typically saying my story just didn’t mesh with others accepted, and urging that I submit again.

Usually, when rejections of a story near double digits, I take a hard look, and often do some significant rewriting to improve it. But sometimes I don’t see much I can do to make a story really better, so I persist in sending it off.

“The Emissary” is such a story: A wise old woman embraces the wife his son is divorcing, with an unexpected conclusion. I had 16 rejection notes when the editors of the respected Massachusetts-based Meat for Tea, The Valley Review accepted it.

Unlike many others, Meat for Tea won’t let you read it online; they want you to buy a copy for $12. But you CAN read it free ==>here at my blog: