What Gives?
First... kudos to Hebdomeros for scooping the story that Richard Peabody's poetry and article was in USA Today on Monday. That was such a cool achievement for one of our local literary notables -- a little national acclaim! That's great!
In other news, what gives? I saw a news article today that said The Atlantic will no longer publish fiction in its issues. It will have one August issue that is dedicated solely to fiction.
I don't know -- it's line about how quick, up-to-the-minute journalism is everywhere now but in-depth journalism like what it can offer will take up more pages sounds like a load. Or something. I mean, with all the current hoopla over the state of journalism now that bloggers are stealing some thunder, I guess this could theoretically be some weird knee-jerk reaction.
On the other hand, The Atlantic is one of the oldest and most venerated sources of fiction in a monthly magazine that gets more than your usual niche of readers. It's also one of the markets that pays the best. What happened to the feature in the most recent issue of Novel & Short Story Writer's Market that claimed that the main editor at least glanced at all the submissions?
Lame, lame, lame. I guess I haven't been too terribly impressed with a lot of the mainstream magazines but this isn't an improvement, it's a much worse turn of events.
Anyway... interested to hear what others have to say. I know that the chances of many of us struggling writers getting into The Atlantic is about the same as being hit by lightning, but still... it was one of those markets that you might hate, but you always kind of hoped to get into.
Here's to August... sigh.
Thanks for reading,
LLB
In other news, what gives? I saw a news article today that said The Atlantic will no longer publish fiction in its issues. It will have one August issue that is dedicated solely to fiction.
I don't know -- it's line about how quick, up-to-the-minute journalism is everywhere now but in-depth journalism like what it can offer will take up more pages sounds like a load. Or something. I mean, with all the current hoopla over the state of journalism now that bloggers are stealing some thunder, I guess this could theoretically be some weird knee-jerk reaction.
On the other hand, The Atlantic is one of the oldest and most venerated sources of fiction in a monthly magazine that gets more than your usual niche of readers. It's also one of the markets that pays the best. What happened to the feature in the most recent issue of Novel & Short Story Writer's Market that claimed that the main editor at least glanced at all the submissions?
Lame, lame, lame. I guess I haven't been too terribly impressed with a lot of the mainstream magazines but this isn't an improvement, it's a much worse turn of events.
Anyway... interested to hear what others have to say. I know that the chances of many of us struggling writers getting into The Atlantic is about the same as being hit by lightning, but still... it was one of those markets that you might hate, but you always kind of hoped to get into.
Here's to August... sigh.
Thanks for reading,
LLB
posted by LadyLitBlitzin at 10:04 PM
7 Comments:
That's terrible! Is the market really shrinking? Are novels the only way for fiction?
I am sorry to hear that the realms of fiction distribution are dwindling. But keep sending stuff out regardless. I will keep my fingers crossed for the August issue, which in my biased opinion, would be lucky to have your work in it.
Yeah, Maktaaq, I don't know if the market is really shrinking, but I do wonder about the fate of paying markets. It's kind of a conundrum, you know?
And being a published novelist seems the only way to make REAL money and not just some small infusion of extra income like one might get from publishing individual short stories. I guess we'll see but it doesn't seem to bode well.
Thanks for stopping by, asianpixie! And you are too sweet. :)
That's really sad news about The Atlantic. But it's true that Michael Curtis has in fact looked at all the fiction submissions, and, in addition, he has reserved space for emerging writers in the issues. I'll miss the fiction in each month's issue quite a lot. P.S. I enjoy your blog!
There is some very BIG news in blogland today, Lady LB, come check it out!
Can't say I'm terribly surprised. Short fiction is less and less popular. It seems strange to me, since a short story takes less time to read. But I guess it all moves in cycles.
At least there's still Playboy!
Hi Richard -- thanks so much for coming by! I'm glad you enjoy the blog. I remember that Michael Curtis's claim that he looked at all submissions (at least for a second, ha) was more than I had actually expected from the Atlantic... thought there was an army of slush pile readers or whatever. Ah well... the wheels of change are turning.
THB -- thank you so much for pointing that out to me -- that is such a cool idea! And I had no idea it was coming but it's obviously an idea whose time had come...
Hebdomeros -- hee hee, yes, there will ALWAYS be Playboy. After all, everybody just gets it for the articles. ;) In all seriousness, in the long-ago past I did submit to them a few times but never got in. Maybe I should consider it again. ;)
Seriously, though, I don't understand why short stories get the short end of the stick (heh). There are times I am in the mood for a novel, and many more times, when I'm in the mood for a short and impactful story, you know? It really does seem strangely counterintuitive.
Post a Comment
<< Home