In its first draft, my short story “Opportunities” ended with a cop lamenting that no one had reported a man collapsed by a brook. One of the editors who turned the story down suggested it needed a stronger finish.
I invented a better ending, sent it off, and bingo! It was accepted by MacQueen’s Quinterly.
In the same breath, MacQueen’s accepted my ultra-short “Man with a Riata”, a memory of a Paiute cowboy I rode with.
The two are back-to-back in the new edition: This link takes you to the shortie, and “Opportunities” is on the next page. Click ==> here