Story Still Pending After Two Months

[Raven_Feather]

Hi all - Seeking some tech support advice from more experienced authors on here. Back on 21 July, I submitted an edited version of my first published story. A month went by, and it was still pending with zero views. I re-submitted it to bump it back up to the top of the queue, thinking it must have somehow been overlooked. Now we're almost another full month on, and it's still sitting there with zero views. Can anyone give me any reason why a story could be sitting in pending for so long?

It's particularly frustrating because the edit is to fix a formatting issue that I think is really driving readers away. Currently, huge portions of my story appear in italics when they're not meant to (I'm 99% sure I got the italics commands right and this bug was introduced in publication, but whatever, that's not the issue - I just want it fixed!). So my story is sitting there with a bunch of comments from readers complaining about the italics issue rather than being able to focus on the actual story - obviously not a situation any author wants to be in.

I'm a relatively new author, so if there is a basic and obvious answer to this that I've somehow missed, please just let me know! If anyone knows a way to get my edited story seen and published, I'd be so relieved.

 

[jaF0]

1. Re-Submits don't got to the top of the queue, they go to the bottom. The end of the line.

2. Edits of existing stories are pretty much at the bottom of priorities to begin with.

3. There is a slew of voting for contests and some new contests beginning.

4. Author's Hangout may be a better place for your question.

 

[Mademoiselle_Sophie]

My story is still pending after weeks too, I emailed someone I was told could help today but nothing as yet, I never re-submitted, only once... so hmm

 

[Raven_Feather]

My story is still pending after weeks too, I emailed someone I was told could help today but nothing as yet, I never re-submitted, only once... so hmm

Good to know it's not just me! May I ask who you emailed?

 

[Mademoiselle_Sophie]

Laurel, someone told me to email Laurel but nothing has changed, my story says pending and is in yellow-orange

 

[LIDiver]

My story is still pending after weeks too, I emailed someone I was told could help today but nothing as yet, I never re-submitted, only once... so hmm

I feel lucky because my story was published after only 3 days.
I feel bad for the many people it seems weeks to get published.

 

[jsmiam]

Tips:

3: Do this last, but Use lit’s private messaging, not email, to reach screenname Laurel. Email does not work. Yes the site should do a better job of warning about this, but this is the way it is.

2: Also, if/when you submit or resubmit, don’t click into the pending submission again. That reopens it. This is a common gotcha. Yes the site should do a better job of warning, but this is the way it is.

Items 3 and 2 address standard issues if nothing was considered unacceptable by the site.

Below: off topic to this specific thread, but still applicable as common points.

1: If your work is returned, read the information in the rejection notification carefully. It can be cryptic. But buried in there is the reason why.

0: no need to make a new post. Search the forums for “story pending”, “story rejected”, etc. and read ten different threads. There is a very small group of questions that are asked over and over, and this is one of them. If you seriously read about ten different threads, you will learn everything, all the subtleties, everything. You will be an expert.

-1: If your story treads into underage references, back-story, etc., see step zero. But read twenty threads, not ten. Then (regardless of indignance levels, if applicable) remove your underage references/backstory and try again, if you want it accepted here at this site. (Reading the threads will expose you to the many arguments and debates.)

 

[Mademoiselle_Sophie]

Tips:

3: Do this last, but Use lit’s private messaging, not email, to reach screenname Laurel. Email does not work. Yes the site should do a better job of warning about this, but this is the way it is.

2: Also, if/when you submit or resubmit, don’t click into the pending submission again. That reopens it. This is a common gotcha. Yes the site should do a better job of warning, but this is the way it is.

Items 3 and 2 address standard issues if nothing was considered unacceptable by the site.

Below: off topic to this specific thread, but still applicable as common points.

1: If your work is returned, read the information in the rejection notification carefully. It can be cryptic. But buried in there is the reason why.

0: no need to make a new post. Search the forums for “story pending”, “story rejected”, etc. and read ten different threads. There is a very small group of questions that are asked over and over, and this is one of them. If you seriously read about ten different threads, you will learn everything, all the subtleties, everything. You will be an expert.

-1: If your story treads into underage references, back-story, etc., see step zero. But read twenty threads, not ten. Then (regardless of indignance levels, if applicable) remove your underage references/backstory and try again, if you want it accepted here at this site. (Reading the threads will expose you to the many arguments and debates.)

Thank you I sent a message to Laurel 1-2 days through the site as you suggest but still nothing...

 

[TheDeepThinker]

I did all this and more.

Back in August, nine of my already published stories were sent back with a note about Literotica requiring stories to be written by a human and not an AI.
Chapters 1 and 4 of a series were removed, but not 2 and 3. Most of my stories were written before ChatGPT and other AI writing software were available. I resubmitted all my stories with a note saying the only AI used was Grammarly for grammar and spellchecking.

One month later, none of them are back up.
Most were part of series, so I can't publish the next chapters until they are back up.

 

[TheDeepThinker]

I did all this and more.

Back in August, nine of my already published stories were sent back with a note about Literotica requiring stories to be written by a human and not an AI.
Chapters 1 and 4 of a series were removed, but not 2 and 3. Most of my stories were written before ChatGPT and other AI writing software were available. I resubmitted all my stories with a note saying the only AI used was Grammarly for grammar and spellchecking.

One month later, none of them are back up.
Most were part of series, so I can't publish the next chapters until they are back up.

Miracles do occur. They went back up a day later.