How weak can rejection reasons be?

[MatthewVett]

I just got a story rejected with the reason "Is there an underage relationship in this story?" They didn't even bother to check, apparently. They were just like, "Uh, is there? Rejected." Shouldn't reading enough to find out whether it's true be a reason? Or not even true, at least enough so they feel certain? I feel like they read two sentences, stopped, rejected it.

 

[Stella_Omega]

There are an average of fifty submissions a day and nobody has time to read them.The submissions are scanned by a program first. It catches grammer and spelling, but it's only a program, hence the question.

Re submit and answer the question in the notes section. A real person will read that.

 

[sr71plt]

You're making an invalid assumption.

No, a human doesn't bother to check on the first pass. There's a huge submissions file here and rarely more than one editor on a daily basis. That's the computer program scanning bot turning up something questionable. It's in the form of a question because it's not asserting there's a problem--just one or more preset word combinations was set off.

If there's no underage sex in your story, just resubmit it and put a note to that effect in the Notes box. Having an entry in the Notes box is what sends the story to the human editor. If you suspect the bot might flag your story for something that's not really there, put a note in the Notes box on the first submission.

If the selection was handled only by the human editor(s) they have here, there wouldn't be any sixty or more stories posting every day.

 

[sr71plt]

There are an average of fifty submissions a day

I think there are more submissions than that on a daily basis. I think more than fifty clear for posting (seems more like sixty--and has been when I've counted them) and there are those submitted but rejected on top of that.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

There are an average of fifty submissions a day and nobody has time to read them.The submissions are scanned by a program first. It catches grammer and spelling, but it's only a program, hence the question.

Re submit and answer the question in the notes section. A real person will read that.

It also checks grammar.

 

[estragon]

This has been an ongoing issue. It was the subject of my first-ever posting to AH (when a derivative work for which I'd gotten a copyright license and to which I added a lengthy copyright notice got bounced), to the latest three "spelling bee" rejections also posted on AH.

sr is right. The bot is the gatekeeper. To get past the bot (no use in slipping it a Jackson), use the Author's Note on the second submission, questioning the reason for the kick-out.

And the e-mail link to the webmistress doesn't get you a reply. Try PM.

 

[lovecraft68]

I just got a story rejected with the reason "Is there an underage relationship in this story?" They didn't even bother to check, apparently. They were just like, "Uh, is there? Rejected." Shouldn't reading enough to find out whether it's true be a reason? Or not even true, at least enough so they feel certain? I feel like they read two sentences, stopped, rejected it.

The bot will sometimes ask this question if there are under age characters. Even if there is no actual sex if they are under age it can be kicked out just for that. Especially if by some chance you go out of your way to stress the age.

 

[MatthewVett]

Well thanks, everyone. I resubmitted it with a new second sentence that emphasizes their legal age.

 

[sr71plt]

Well thanks, everyone. I resubmitted it with a new second sentence that emphasizes their legal age.

But, did you put a note in the Notes box? Because, if you didn't, you just weren't listening to the advice you given here. Chances are good that you didn't hone in on the bot's issue and the bot might just kick it out again. It doesn't read the stories for comprehension.

The secret is to talk to the Notes box so a human editor looks at it.

 

[lovecraft68]

But, did you put a note in the Notes box? Because, if you didn't, you just weren't listening to the advice you given here. Chances are good that you didn't hone in on the bot's issue and the bot might just kick it out again. It doesn't read the stories for comprehension.

The secret is to talk to the Notes box so a human editor looks at it.

So a note in that box automatically guarantees a human editor? Or does the "bot" read the note? I always toss my editors name in the box so they get credit so does that mean it gets kicked out to real people? I wouldn't thinks so but what do I know? I've only had one kicked in the year I have been here and that was my own stupidity.

 

[sr71plt]

So a note in that box automatically guarantees a human editor? Or does the "bot" read the note? I always toss my editors name in the box so they get credit so does that mean it gets kicked out to real people? I wouldn't thinks so but what do I know? I've only had one kicked in the year I have been here and that was my own stupidity.

The Notes box I'm talking about is for information for the human editor. Why should she give two kumquats who your editor was?

Yes, I think putting a note in that box puts the story in the human editor's read queue.

 

[lovecraft68]

The Notes box I'm talking about is for information for the human editor. Why should she give two kumquats who your editor was?

Yes, I think putting a note in that box puts the story in the human editor's read queue.

"Kumquats" Now that's funny.

I thought putting the editors name in the box gave them some type of acknowledgment if they are part of the volunteer editors program. Maybe I misread that somewhere.

 

[sr71plt]

"Kumquats" Now that's funny.

I thought putting the editors name in the box gave them some type of acknowledgment if they are part of the volunteer editors program. Maybe I misread that somewhere.

Let's see what those who were here when the volunteer editor program was actually functional might know about that.

 

[lovecraft68]

Let's see what those who were here when the volunteer editor program was actually functional might know about that.

Yeah, it's not so hot these days. I've been through a few. each time I look I send out a bunch of requests that never get replies. I'm actually searching again. had one really good one that found me because he liked my work but saw I needed help. Only problem was he made a comment that editing my work and another authors made him want to wrote again and he dropped us to work on his own stuff. It's like "Jeez glad I could inspire you."

 

[LettersFromTatyana]

In LC's defense, the submission form explicitly asks for the editor's name. I've always wondered why, and if I'm being a bad lit author if I don't enter the name there.

 

[sr71plt]

In LC's defense, the submission form explicitly asks for the editor's name. I've always wondered why, and if I'm being a bad lit author if I don't enter the name there.

Ah, yes, I see. I think this is just another defunct function, though. The Lit. administration hasn't exhibited any interest in the volunteer editor program since I've been posting stories here.

 

[lovecraft68]

In LC's defense, the submission form explicitly asks for the editor's name. I've always wondered why, and if I'm being a bad lit author if I don't enter the name there.

I only knew about it because my first editor asked me to do it (actually she said I was supposed too) and I went and read it somewhere on the site itself. (I think things get hazy sometimes.)

I also had an editor who said they did not want to be mentioned because of the subject matter.

 

[LettersFromTatyana]

I only knew about it because my first editor asked me to do it (actually she said I was supposed too) and I went and read it somewhere on the site itself. (I think things get hazy sometimes.)

I also had an editor who said they did not want to be mentioned because of the subject matter.

There's no need to search the site; it's right there below the notes box on the submissions page.

I'd imagine that an author including a note in their story thanking an editor is different than an author entering the editor's name in the notes box while submitting the story, yes? I don't see how an editor becomes publicly linked to a story with the latter approach.

 

[sr71plt]

I'd imagine that an author including a note in their story thanking an editor is different than an author entering the editor's name in the notes box while submitting the story, yes? I don't see how an editor becomes publicly linked to a story with the latter approach.

I imagine that originally it was a way for the site to police the volunteer editors. I don't see any evidence of that happening, though.

 

[lovecraft68]

There's no need to search the site; it's right there below the notes box on the submissions page.

I'd imagine that an author including a note in their story thanking an editor is different than an author entering the editor's name in the notes box while submitting the story, yes? I don't see how an editor becomes publicly linked to a story with the latter approach.

They wouldn't be linked publicly. Only the site would see it. As time went on I found the guy to be exceedingly paranoid in many ways. Really an odd duck. And for me to say that...