Well, Here Goes Nothing

So I finally did it, I sent my complete, fully revised manuscript + sophomore novel, The Ninjas of My Greater Self, to agent extraordinaire, Georges Borchardt, agent of Elie Wiesel, Ian McEwan, Robert Coover, TC Boyle, who is also in charge of the estates of Tennessee Williams, Aldous Huxley + John Gardner, this is the man who first introduced America to Lacan, Barthes, Bourdieu, Fanon, Duras, Foucault, Ionesco + Sartre. Yes, this dude is a big fucking deal, representing over 8 Pulitzer Prize winners + 2 Noble Prize winners, in fact, he may be the biggest fucking deal I've submitted to in my entire life. And while sending him my novel (which he asked for in its entirety last year after I'd sent him the first 145 pages + an outline) honestly scares the shit out of me because it puts me on the chopping block, at the same time, I kinda want to get this over with, one way or another. Does that sound bleak? I guess it does. But Ninjas is the best thing I've ever written yet. It's a fucking awesome novel, it really is.

And at this point, while nothing would make me happier in the whole fucking world than for Georges to pick me up as a client, if he doesn't, I guess at this point, I want to know that, accept that + go on with my life + stop pining for something that's not gonna happen. It's just the realist in me. Of course I'd be bummed if he didn't give me a shot, but I'd find a way to soldier on. Hopefully, though, he loves this novel enough to say yes. God knows how that would totally transform my writing career . . . I hope he sees what I see. It could be the beginning of something massive if he did.

Good Rejection from Missouri Review

Jackson,

Thank you for allowing us to consider " . . . " for publication in The Missouri Review. The writing is stout and polished and has a strong sense of style, but, unfortunately, the story does not currently fit our needs. We appreciate your interest in our magazine and your commitment to quality writing.

We wish you the best of luck publishing your work and hope you continue to send us more selections in the future.

Sincerely,
The Editors

1st Story Accepted in 2012

Wow, look at this shit, it appears I may be on a roll, people. Two accepted short stories in two months! すごい，な？Whether this is part of a new trend or whether it's the last acceptance I'm gonna get for years, either way, I'm fucking ecstatic to get a piece accepted in Quarter After Eight. I've been sending them stories since 2006 + this is a small major victory for me. Also, considering how great the innovative writing is in QAE + how QAE has published well-known writers like David Shields, Steven Millhauser, John D'Agata,, I'm flattered to be a contributor of that journal. Anyway, here's the acceptance email:

Hi Jackson,

Thanks once again for your patience. Also, I'm glad to say that we
have room for "Kothar" in our next issue due out in February. It's a
piece we all enjoyed reading and are excited to feature in QAE.

Now we need you to provide an electronic signature to the attached
contract by typing in your name and send it back. Also, please attach
a .doc copy of the piece. Finally, we need a brief biographical
statement that you can include in the body of the email.

I'm glad this worked out.

Best,

Steve

Payment is a contributor's copy of the issue your in.

Good Rejection from Five Points

Dear Writer:

Thank you for sending us your work. We really enjoyed this piece, but we didn't feel it was right for Five Points.

We hope that you will continue to send us your work.

Sincerely,

The Editors of Five Points

2011-12-18 04:44:27 (GMT +0:00)

10 Reasons Why You Should Buy Your Books Locally

Whether we like it or not, Amazon.com has become the interface of the new commerce. And while there are a things that I think Amazon.com does extremely well, especially in terms of its broad marketplace of products, it's endless library of customer reviews that can be really helpful (predating Yelp by like a decade), especially when not sockpuppeted, at the same time, it's impossible for any company to excel in every department, which is a good segue I think to why you should buy your books locally for the holidays + forever after:

1. Every time you buys books locally, you help support small businesses (and small business are actually people's dreams made real), which means you're helping support your city, which means you're helping support a neighborhood in your city--those are already good enough reasons. For every semester at SC, I'd print out my long list of books for my graduate seminars + take the subway to Skylight Books in Los Feliz + order a shitload of books. And after I'd dropped like $500-$600 for books for my field exams recently, Meg, one of the savvy, charming bibliophiles working there, said to me: --Hey, thanks for paying for my job. And then it hit me how interconnected local businesses + individual needs are . . .

2. No matter how cheap the deals are on Amazon.com (et al.), saving a few dollars will never replace the material marketplace of culture + creativity inside physical bookstores. Bookstores are places where you can escape from your roommate who watches 15 hours of "Sex in the City," where you can look up shit in the Writer's Guide to Literary Journals, skim the next McSweeney's, shake your head at a dog-eared, mostly wrinkled copy of the New Yorker + sometimes "glance" at an already-open copy of Penthouse. Bookstores are safe spaces for intellectuals, artists, autodidacts, current event junkies + people-watchers. Bookstores are: 1/4 café, 1/4 library, 1/4 refuge + 1/4 transient hotel. If you're an aspiring writer, you need to see what people are buying on the new book shelf + what journals are publishing in your genre. Period (.).

3. Most of the time, the people working in indie bookstores are fucking passionate about books, passionate about reading + passionate about language, which is not only an amazing resource for you, but also, that kind of bibliophilia is infectious + exciting to be around.

4. Many indie bookstores are also showcases for both established + emerging literary fiction writers + poets. While the big chains can + do offer many of the same privileges (which is a great thing), small indie bookstores cater to great literary fiction. They tend to live + breathe it. On the other hand, at large chain bookstores, they are selling too many kinds of books to specialize in literary fiction/poetry: besides lots of great novels, there's also a lot of absolute shit, coloring books, cookbooks, badly ghost-written celebrity memoirs, romance novels with steroidal male bodies on the cover, CD's + DVD's, a million derivative vampire thrillers, James Patterson drivel, maps + atlases, already-clawed magazines, private journals with lockets, kindle knock-offs, nauseatingly cute animal calenders, even packets of Starbucks coffee, mugs + chocolate bars. And while I think it's great these stores exist to satisfy a larger demographic, not to mention, they routinely have little cafés too (which is rad), at the same time, only the indie bookstores fight the good fight each + every day, showcasing the best in literary writing on both the shelf + behind the mic. If indie bookstores perished in America, literary fiction/poetry would die. College campuses would then become the last protector of great literary art, further removing literary fiction from mainstream culture than it already is.

5. Small, local indie bookstores prove that writing still matters. It's easy as an emerging fiction writer to feel like your writing doesn't affect anyone anymore (except underpaid, overworked editors who reject our asses routinely), but walk into Powell's in PDX, for example, + you'll see right away that the stories we create, the stories we invent, the stories we live on, all have an impact, there's an infinite potentiality of language waiting to be discovered in the aisles, helping us remember that our own literary creativity still resonates with people on an important cultural level

6. Buying books locally is an investment in tangibility in the floating world. While personally I think it's an awesome fucking world we live in when you can download a kindle version of virtually any novel in the whole world + while I think eNovels are also ecologically responsible + also intellectually practical in terms of giving us the ability to carry our entire library with us, at the same time, there are many traditionalists (myself included) who will never get over our love affair with physical books, the intoxication of the smell of a new (old) novel, the way that words have an actual weight in your hand (or in your backpack or purse), the way that pages can be folded, touched, flipped back + forth (a soft splash of air hitting us between the eyes every time), the way paragraphs can be scarred with violent marginalia, even the sound of a book triumphantly plopped on a table after we've finished reading it helps us stay grounded to materiality. All of these things matter, especially in a world where once-concrete objects are now becoming more + more graphic, more iconic, more visual, less tangible--an entire world reduced to jpg.'s, word + pdf files, organized + contained within desktop folders + attachments. And while I think that readers should never have to choose between hard + digital copies, there's something to be said about the intimacy of a physical novel, the way it becomes the center of your life inside your satchel, the way it captures your attention as you pass your bookcase in the hallway years later + suddenly remember the 2-7 days you loved no one else.

7. Indie bookstores foster a sense of community. While there are plenty of valid, seasonal reasons to order books online from time to time (e.g. avoiding holiday crowds or long lines at the post office where you'll drop a shitload of money sending books priority mail or waiting a small eternity for the media rate to do its fucking job), I personally think these situations should be exceptional. It's great we can do so much shit online, but the more we spend behind our computers, the less connected we are with people in the physical world, the less we know how to be human socially (+ writers are intrinsically social artists on one important level since writing involves people + it involves readers). And while large megastores chains are great for anonymity + sheer breadth of selection, smaller indie bookstores are crucial in giving all of us misfits a place to meet up together + exist. Small local bookstores, at their best, becomes subcultures for an art form that doesn't know how to die.

8. Indie bookstores don't bully the publishing market the way the big chains do, they support it. Barnes & Noble, until recently, Borders, didn't just sell books, they actually controlled a large chunk of the marketplace. Editors, for example, use(d) the various sales rankings of the big chains (among other things) in order to not only gauge current projects, but to examine future book projects (e.g. "well, this author's last novel never made it to the B&N superstore rankings list . . ."). Publishing houses actively swoon/charm/coddle the big chains because they know that if they can get them to buy a ton of their books, the big chains will actively try selling the books they've invested in, which means those books become more visible because they're marketed, which often means more people buy those books because they're more visible, which makes those books profitable (helping both the large chain + the publishing house), which makes that author a good future investment. And when the big chains aren't interested in a new novel, that novelist's career becomes endangered with poor sales. But not so with indie bookstores who don't give a shit about Nielson Bookscan stats, NYT bestseller rankings, or other dubious metrics of so-called literary talent where great art poses as sales figures (as if great writing could ever be quantified). Small, locally-owned, indie bookstores only care about great writing, plain + simple. And the reality is that aspiring writers need to embrace locally owned, indie bookstores because they are the greatest allies of literary fiction in this whole world.

9. Local, indie bookstores can be meccas for beautiful, articulate, eccentric, stylish, smart, critical-thinking post-hipster hipsters who make reading sexy. 'Nuff said.

10. Your local bookstore is a sanctuary in our bustling word. Inside the aisles, time stops. Like a Borgesian paradise, bookstores are wrinkles of time-travel, passing moments of linguistic rapture + personal evolution. Your local bookstore is the place where you can be anything you want, a babel of narrative voices chanting from the pages, where the din of impatient drivers outside is muted by the soft, slow, sensuality of words circling around you, rushing to meet your eyes with every open book + smother you in an orgy of details.

The Ugly Side of Being a Fiction Writer (My Guidelines for Aspiring Fiction Writers)

Recently it's come to my attention through some spirited exchanges on Literary Rejections on Display, as it does at least 100 times every year, how ugly it can get trying to make it as a novelist. Now, I don't claim to have all the answers. If anything, I probably have too many questions. And though I've made some definite progress in my writing career (for which I'm always grateful for), for the most part, to quote Chris Parris-Lamb, the best part of my writing career is definitely ahead of me. All of this makes me want to lay out my own guidelines as an emerging fiction writer. These won't be your guidelines + they won't be your mother's either, unless she writes literary fiction like a motherfucker, but they are my guidelines + they help me remember what's really important in this industry. Maybe, just maybe, they'll help someone out there:

1. Don't hate on other writers. You have every right to crit the shit out of their technique or dislike their novel, or disagree with the premise of one of their short stories or remain emotionally unaffected by the characterization of their last book--published or not--but don't hate on the author. You don't fucking know the author at all, so stop pretending you do. You have no idea how much time she spends working on her writing, how much time he spends editing + revising + changing + pruning + re-revising + editing + revising his shit all over again, how dedicated she is trying to publish her novel + make her career into something besides a delusion of grandeur. For some reason, writers, especially fiction writers can be the most judgmental motherfuckers in the whole world. Put that shit in your novel + spare other writers your own couch psychoanalysis because I promise you, you're wrong 99% of the time when you think you know the author. Also, if you think an aspiring writer is whiny, try submitting 300 manuscripts in three years + then tell me how you're feeling about the industry. The vast majority of the time, writers judge other writers really harshly who are working just as hard as they are + often, even harder, to get to where they are. But all of our hard work is invisible until we get something published, sad as that is.

2. Hate the industry, not the people working in it: While I've never met an editor I didn't totally respect/admire, I've read a lot of industry stories that make me shit on myself. It's time to take a reality pill: The industry, despite itself, publishes fantastic writing (e.g. Jeffrey Eugenides, Jennifer Egan, Don Delillo, Junot Diaz, Haruki Murakami, Susan Choi, Aimee Bender, TC Boyle, Joan Didion, Chuck Palahniuk, Susan Steinberg, Carole Maso, Lydia Davis, Michael Chabon, Phillip Roth, Salman Rushdie, Percival Everrett, Jhumpa Lahiri, Ha Jin, Susan Choi, Julie Ostuka, Nami Mun, to name just a few). But it also publishes a lot of absolute crap: Celebrity memoirs, talented movie stars that publish shitty short story collection just because they're famous (James Franco, I'm talking to you, punk), reality TV stars like Kim Kardashian, Snookie, Amanda Knox. True, commercial shit pays for literary fiction, that's the rub. But it's precisely because publishing houses publish so much crap that literary fiction has no chance of succeeding, making it a self-fulfilling prophecy. It's about accessibility: People can only buy what you put out there + if you don't put enough quality literary fiction, people don't buy it + then then the genre stagnates, slowly dying, continuing the cycle.

And while the above authors don't write workshoppy fiction, a lot of MFA grads who do get contracts do, publishing stories that agents have told me are totally derivative + safe + uninspiring + extremely polished bullshit that no one cares about. If they're lucky, they're one + out. But people need fiction that really matters. The above parenthetical writers do that, but how many other fiction writers never get through to us? Why was Confederation of Dunces not published until after John Kennedy Toole committed suicide? Why is it that we can read Jack London's Martin Eden + it still rings true about the insane cliff of rejection we face that arbitrarily changes even when our writing doesn't? I think about a story Aimee (Bender) told me once how once she had an agent, journals that had rejected her short stories suddenly started accepting the exact same stories, which really pissed her off in the beginning . . . who in his right mind would try + defend that? The system is fucked, but the people working in it are the true champions of the industry. Contradiction? Yup.

3. Don't listen to anyone who says you should fuck all the rules of follow all of them. Personally, I follow 97% of the industry rules, choosing to selectively fight my own battles the other 3% of the time. But some people treat the publishing industry as if it's some sacred child prophet--don't. It's not. It can be improved. It deserves to be critiqued. There are plenty of flaws in the system. But there are also plenty of things that are right about it too, like the authors mentioned above, like publishing houses taking a risk + publishing great art, something that's smart + challenging + richly creative like Infinite Jest + Underworld + Gravity's Rainbow + Ulysses + Hardboiled Wonderland + The End of the World + Ava + A Night at the Movies + Patchwork Girl + so many other great works of art out there, there are plenty of things working in publishing right now, like underpaid, literature-loving editors who are working nights + weekends because they love fiction more than their spouses. In fact, don't listen to anyone else's rules on writing fiction or submitting or craft maxims or writer ego or writer humility, not even mine. Write your own fucking rules + figure out which ones work for you.

4. Don't apologize about your self-confidence. To be honest, you'll fucking need it to make it in this industry. Otherwise, you'll eventually give up after you realize that some authors are publishing stories that are as good, if not worse, than your own stories, which will (should) piss you off. Mary Yukari Waters once told me that your confidence should be quiet confidence. She's probably right. Either way, you'll be criticized for believing in your own ability, you'll be criticized for believing in your own art, for believing that with enough hard work, time + serendipity, you can be the next Hemingway or Salinger or Junot Diaz or Jennifer Egan, for believing that your shit is actually comparable to other authors who've already made it to The Show. But listen, don't pay attention to the haters or the critics. Art isn't modest, it doesn't ask for permission + frankly, often it's not even welcome in the gallery. You just write your ass off + try to meet the right people who love your art + even better, happen to be powerful in the industry too.

Here's the other crazy thing: When you start working with well-known novelists, they'll be the first ones to tell you you've got the right stuff, don't give up, you've got it, keep pushing it, keep writing, you're really talented, you're gonna make it someday if you don't give up, you're already a novelist. They'll actually affirm what you tell yourself on the rough days (which can be every day). And all the things your haters + critics told you you aren't + shouldn't be, all the things they criticize about you, your mentors will, in their own way, affirm that you are + you should be, as long as you have discipline, talent + dedication, as long as you never give up + fight for your outrageous dream. Of course, your critics will tell you you're arrogant + ungrateful, but your mentors, your inner self, the budding artist within, all of them will know that you're not arrogant (that implies you think you're better than other people, a thought you've never had), you're just confident in your own ability, + also hard-working + insatiable + ambitious + creative enough to never be complacent with what you've got, never settling for what the industry gives you, but always creating new momentum for yourself in each possible lifetime. That's how you slowly make your own career, by never settling + always thanking those who have helped you--two things I've always done my entire writing career, two things I'll never stop doing.

Either way, you have to believe in your art, otherwise you'll get your heart broken + you'll give up or you'll burn up with envy + despair, + then a 1,000 other aspiring fiction writers will rush to fill your empty space you worked so hard to carve out for yourself. The truth is, people will always call you arrogant as long as you think your writing deserves to be read, but as long as you're still writing + publishing, who fucking cares what they think about you? Really, the critics/haters are making you strong for the next phase of your career, so you should thank them.

Good Rejection from Milkweed Editions

I know this is a form rejection (I know I know I know I know), but compared to the last rejection I got from Milkweed, this one feels so much more supportive + appreciative, that I decided to post it anyway, just because it made me feel kinda good, even though this is the second book of mine they've rejected. Anyway, here it is:

Dear Jackson Bliss,

Thank you for letting us consider " . . . " which we’ve read with much interest. I’m afraid, though, it isn't quite right for Milkweed Editions.

Please understand that we assemble our small list from the enormous number of manuscripts we receive each year, which means that we must make difficult decisions about manuscripts such as yours. Often these decisions have less to do with the quality of your work, and more to do with the incredibly competitive climate surrounding manuscript review. Please know that we’ve appreciated the opportunity to spend time with " . . . " and your patience in awaiting a reply.

We wish you all the best in your continued literary endeavors, and thank you for thinking of Milkweed Editions.

Sincerely,
Ben Barnhart
Milkweed Editions

2011-12-07 16:52:10 (GMT -6:00)

My Advice to Another Aspiring Fiction Writer on Submitting to Literary Journals

Darren Manley, a writer friend of mine, asked me for advice on submitting to literary journals since I've been killing trees for years now. By the time I'd finished, I thought my response might possibly be helpful to other aspiring writers who are braving the odds. Obviously, if you have a fucking agent, then you have different rules. And, I'd like to point out that my publication history is lean at best. But since I have had a few good publications to my name, I thought this might be helpful for someone out there looking for a few pointers on submitting to literary journals. Here it is:

yo darren,

what's going on, man? great hearing from you. you know, my take on submitting to journals is deeply subjective + may only be true for me. but i have a series of conflicting hierarchies in terms of what i think is the most important when submitting to literary journals: first off, whenever possible, send your stuff to journals where editors actually read it. it may take longer, but if an actual editor will be reading your stories, i actually think you have a better chance of getting published because fiction readers tend to be bottom feeders in an aquarium, they tend to be passionate, opinionated + idealistic but also insecure, self-righteous, impatient and unpublished, which is a fucking terrible skill set for reading unsolicited manuscripts, especially when they're MFA students because usually, they're working on their own shit, worrying about workshop, trying to balance their lives + generally, reading for the literary journals isn't their job. sometimes, readers are a 100 times more obnoxious than the editors themselves. the problem is trying to figure out which journals have a front line of readers + which do not. basically: it's unavoidable, since almost every university-affiliated journals uses its MFA foot soldiers to screen incoming manuscripts, but i actually think that journals that exist outside of academia or that let editors take a crack are better, though their acceptance percentages are even smaller: journals like Slice, Crab Orchard Review, ZYZZYVA, N+1, for example, the editors read everything.

also, look at Santa Monica Review, which has a slant towards West Coast writers. Mcsweeney's is always worth a try + i've gotten good feedback from editors many times, which makes me feel like they're generally looking for material from the slush pile, which isn't always the case with journals like the Paris Review, New Yorker, et al.. i'd normally suggest staying away from TLR, Fence + the hudson review, because they take over a year to send you form rejections, at least in my experience. also, journals like glimmertrain are just one big contest. it's kinda fucked up actually. and in terms of journals where students DO police journals, i'd say, look at journals that have PhD students in CW reading because those readers are generally more mature, better published, chill + much more serious than MFA students, though there are many exceptions. for example, the missouri review is a great journal, so is quarterly west + SE Review + witness + 3rd Coast (all read by PhD students in CW).

one other thing, always send your mss. to the best journals first + then come back to reality with less ambitious journals, otherwise you'll wonder after a piece is accepted at a mid-tier journal if an better journal would have accepted it. stranger things have happened. don't worry about simultaneous submissions either because journals are so bad at getting back to you that by that time you've already received a rejection from another journal. you can always email a journal + tell them to remove your mss. from the docket + they will. it's less work for them. also, there are a couple great online journals too that you should consider. one is faultbetter, which usually publishes great shit consistently. narrative is also slick, but they charge $25 per submission, which is total bullshit. wait for their open submission month before submitting.

another thing, journals always receive less nonfiction than fiction, so consider sending the former. always google the editor's name whenever possible so you can include it in your cover letter (+ always write a CV--cover letter, not curriculum vitae). if you have any pub.'s, list them in your CV. if not, don't worry about it. don't shy away from online submissions either because many of the best journals now accept (or only accept) online submissions. by the way, most online submissions managers don't even show readers your cover letter unless they specifically click to see it, so don't worry about it (but still write one). this is obvious, but: make sure the first page is virtually flawless. i didn't think about this for years but that simple difference in revision can keep you in consideration after many other manuscripts get rejected.

lastly, expect to get rejected all the fucking time, often for no goddamn reason, or for the most random, subjective, personal, nit-picking, bullshit, platitudinous, captious, dumbass reasons imaginable, like, because the reader hates 3rd person limited, or because he can't stand coming-of-age narratives, or because she only likes coming-of-age narratives, or because they hate your politics, or your character's name or they believe stories shouldn't have adverbs, or because they've been brainwashed into believing that the only acceptable dialogue tags are he said/she said or because like me + you, they have way too many opinions on good writing, even though they haven't published shit, which they also resent. also consider that in a way, you are the readers's competition, so naturally, they're harsher on you. even the best readers aren't perfect, they have their own stylistic + technical biases. often they can't identify a great story unless it's so amazing it knocks them unconscious, but even that can be a problem because they'll resent you for bruising their pretty English major faces. when you have a sec., go to an indie bookstore, buy a copy of a few literary journals + skim through the rest + get a feel for the journal's aesthetic, it's layout, its politics + always read parallel pieces to see how/if your piece fits.

okay, i hope that helps. good luck man, fighting the good fight!

peace, blessings,

-j1b

Good Rejection from McSweeney's

Hi Jackson Bliss --

Thanks for letting us read " . . . " We rely on stories like yours, since a good portion of what we publish comes to us unsolicited. Unfortunately, we can't find a place for this piece in our next few issues--but we liked it, so we hope you’ll continue submitting. If you do, please include the word “ . . . ” at the front of your subject line—that way, we’ll be sure to see it. We're always looking, so send us something anytime.

Thanks again,

C****** H****

Good Rejection from the Florida Review

Dear Jackson Bliss,

Thank you for your interest in The Florida Review and for the opportunity to read your work. While we found the flash pieces engaging, this submission doesn't fit our current needs. We encourage you to send more of your work in the future.

Sincerely,
Darlin' Neal
Fiction Editor

1st Story Accepted in 2011

¡Yo, por fin! The drought is finally over. It's been a year and a half (actually, nineteen months) since my last story was accepted + I admit, there were many days where it looked really bleak, but fortunately for me, that drought is now officially OVER. Just a few minutes ago, I got an email from Hal Jaffe at Fiction International telling me that my conceptual story, "When Silence Is a Old Warehouse and Love is a Pocketful of Rocks" was accepted. The truth: I'm fucking ecstatic! FI has published some fucking dope literary luminaries such as William Burroughs, Robert Coover, Joyce Carol Oates, Allen Ginsberg, J.M. Coetzee + Bessie Head, just to name a few. Anyway, here is the acceptance letter:

Hello Mr Bliss,

Sorry it's taken a while to get back to you.

I like your text, "When Silence Is a Old Warehouse and Love is a Pocketful of Rocks" and would be pleased to publish it in FI's Ways of Seeing issue.

Please send an electronic version (word.doc) to my assistant M****** M***** and cc me.

Include a brief contributor's note and your home address.

Many thanks,

Hal Jaffe, editor

Good Rejection from AGNI

Interesting and well-written, just not quite an Agni fit----many thanks for sending.

Eds.

______________________________

AGNI Magazine
Sven Birkerts, Editor
William Pierce, Senior Editor

Good Rejection from the Indiana Review

Dear Jackson Bliss:

Thank you for sending these three shorts to Indiana Review. We really enjoyed them, particularly "Cabrón"—the voice is well honed and the story is compelling—but ultimately found them not right for IR at this time. Please take this short email as a note of encouragement to continue sending us work.

Best wishes,

R***** L***
Fiction Editor
Indiana Review

Even though I always appreciate editors taking the time to send me a good a response, I always wonder: If a story had such a well-honed voice + was so compelling, why don't you want the story? I mean, personally, if I thought a story had a well-honed voice + was compelling + I really enjoyed it, why the hell wouldn't I want to publish it? Did I lose out to the group vote? Did the IR receive other manuscripts where the voice was better honed and more compelling? Was it just a question of personal taste + style? Who the fuck really knows, man. I'm flattered, but I'm also pissed off.

Good Rejection from Fairy Tale Review #2

Ugh, another good rejection. And while very gracious + kind, I think I may be done submitting stories to the Fairytale Review. I like the journal a lot (+ several of my friends have published stories in TFR), but so few of my own stories really fit the journal's aesthetic + I think I've run out of workable manuscripts. Too bad. Anyway, here's the rejection:

Hi Jackson,

I'm so sorry that I've taken so long to respond--unforgivable, truly.
I want--terribly badly, in fact--to craft a perfectly balanced issue
that everyone will love, but my response time has suffered from this
obsessive consideration, and I am finally having to make the hard
choices. I've read your fine story several times now.

Only by way of narrowing since there were sososososo many great
submissions, I chose a very specific aspect of my already very
specific theme to follow, otherwise I wouldn't have known how to
possibly choose just a few. I'm heartbroken to say that these didn't
turn out to be a perfect fit amidst the other pieces I chose. But this
issue will be just one (hopefully beautiful) specific arrangement made
from me selecting key symbolic threads (within my theme of lost
children, no less!) that we received within the submissions--that is
to say, please submit again!! I do hope you enjoy the issue, and that
you'll give us another chance. Please let me know when this story
finds a home elsewhere as well, so that I may celebrate with you and
enjoy it once more.

With admiration,

Alissa

Alissa Nutting
Guest Editor, The Grey Issue
Fairy Tale Review

Good Rejection from Ploughshares

Normally I don't give a shit about form rejections, even when readers/editors press the good rejection button. But since it's Ploughshares, that kinda makes it more meaningful. And even though everyone knows you have to be a creative writing faculty member to publish your shit in that journal, still, for a few seconds, it almost felt good to read this:

Dear Jackson Bliss:

Thanks very much for submitting your work to Ploughshares. Although we regret that your manuscript does not fit our current editorial needs, we enjoyed it and hope you'll consider us again.

Sincerely,

The Editors of Ploughshares

2011-10-02 21:06:08 (GMT -4:00)

I'm a Lucky Man to Work with Aimee Bender

Knowing that people drop thousands of dollars to attend the Tin House Writer's Conference in beautiful PDX in the summer + that a large Phish-like following of Aimee Bender fans follow her wherever she goes, especially when she hits Skylight books to strut her stuff in the most charming, self-effacing way an author can strut her stuff, I've realized three weeks into this fall semester that I'm one lucky motherfucker. Think about it: I get to send Aimee twenty pages from The Ninjas of My Greater Self every week + chat about it with her, while learning ways to improve chapters, sustain conflict, develop character chemistry + stoke tension, things I could always use more help with. Anyway, even though I have to read like a million novels in the next three months, teach + pound out the remaining five chapters of my novel, I have to say that I feel so goddamn fortunate to work with such a good critic, reader, fabulist, stylist, writer + editor as Aimee Bender. She's the real dope, not to mention a friend of mine too.

Good (Second) Rejection from Nat Sobel

Dear Jackson,

Thank you for giving me a chance to consider ". . .". Again, I admire the energy and originality of your work, but I did not feel engaged enough by the story to want to read the balance when it is completed. I found the plotline to be overly episodic, and I think the novel needs more structure in order to hold the interest of readers. I appreciate that your voice is young and fresh, but I’m also concerned that there is a limited readership for the novel because it is so stylized.

All in all, I respect your talent but don’t feel we are the right agency to represent your work. In some ways, your writing reminds me of Junot Díaz. You might try querying his agent if you haven’t already, I believe her name is Nicole Aragi (though I don’t know her, she is very well respected). Good luck with everything.

Best,

A***

Sobel Weber Associates, Inc.

146 East 19th Street
New York, NY 10003
212-***-**** (phone)
212-***-**** (fax)

And here's the response I just sent her:

Dear A***,

Thanks for taking the time to read a partial of my near-finished novel. Since we will never work together, I guess I can be frank and come out and say that I'm sad and disappointed, but it's a business, so I'll do my best not to take it personally (though it's hard not to). Yes, I've certainly heard the Junot Diaz comparison before + I query Nicole Aragi annually but she only takes referrals. I will say, though, that I've never heard someone suggest that Junot Diaz, or a writer who has certain stylistic similarities to Junot Diaz, has a limited readership though. I haven't checked his Nielson bookscan stats in years, but I have this feeling that Junot Diaz's sales are probably very good. If I can achieve half the success that he has, I'd consider myself a prodigy. Since I am myself of mixed Asian ancestry (a quarter Japanese) but I don't look Asian (much like Hidashi), I feel that I have an awesome platform for ". . .", which, as Nat himself has pointed out, is becoming more + more necessary, even for fiction writers + I want to find an agency that will support my (future) career of writing Asian-American fiction with strong male characters that defy stereotypes of Asian masculinity while also challenging the cliché of minimalism in Asian-American literary fiction, which has become the norm. I know now that Sobel Weber Associates isn't the right literary agency for me but I thank you wholeheartedly for your honesty + your willingness to read partial of two of my novels. I wish you and Nat much future success. I also look forward to proving you wrong.

Affectionately + with Much Gratitude,

--Jackson Bliss

I've Reached the 400-Page Mark with My Second Novel, The Ninjas of My Greater Self!

It's interesting: Originally, I felt like I wasn't as efficient as I wanted to be this summer. But after talking to friends + other classmates in my cohort + in my program at SC, I'm realizing that I actually had a really productive summer after all, even though it didn't feel like it.

The three basic things I did this summer were:

1. Spend 9 days in China

2. Knock Off 25 books from my three reading lists for field exams

3. Double the size of my novel, writing exactly 200 pages in The Ninjas of My Greater Self. When I'd finished up last semester, I was at page 200 + now I'm at page 400. Even better, based on my flexible outline, I only have 5 and 1/2 chapters left before I'm done with a definitive draft, which is fucking crazy considering I wasn't planning getting there until sometime next summer. Of course, anyone who knows my work ethic with my writing, knows that I could easily spend another six months just revising my second novel, over + over + over + over + over again, both local + global revisions. But that doesn't fucking matter, I'll be revising my novel while being able to say I've finished writing it (even though technically, revision is a type of writing).

Now that I'm teaching again + football season is about to bloom from its summer germination, I'm worried I won't have as much time as I'd like to, to read + write + revise. But still, 5 and 1/2 chapters, that's like 6 weeks, 8 at the most until I'm done, unless my flow gets cockblocked by grading papers or some other shit. Suddenly, I went from feeling like the marathon had just begun to being able to see the finish line. And I'm telling you, this novel is going to fucking be huge, man. It's going to launch my career, just you watch.

(Yet Another) Good Rejection from Slice Magazine

Dear Jackson Bliss:

Thank you for sending us " . . . "

Unfortunately this particular piece was not a right fit for Slice Magazine, but we were very impressed by your writing. We hope that you will feel encouraged by this short note and send us something else during our next reading period.

We look forward to reading more.

Sincerely,

The Editors of Slice Magazine

2011-08-15 03:53:55 (GMT +1:00)

Good Rejection from the Antioch Review

Jackson Bliss: Sorry for the delay. Though this piece is not for us, I would like to see another. Give my regards to Tom Boyle + Aimee Bender.

Regards,

B** F*******

Good Rejection + Open Door to Read More Material from Nat Sobel

There's good news + there's bad news. Here's the bad news (though it comes with a decent rejection):

Dear Jackson Bliss,

Thank you for sending us the first 50 pages of . . . , which Nat Sobel asked me to read. I have discussed your work with Nat prior to sending my response. I think that this is an innovative approach to a novel, and I enjoyed the setting you have chosen. However, I’m sorry to report that I have too many concerns to request the balance of the manuscript . . . I admire the energy and style of your prose, but at the same time there is a self-conscious quality that prevented me from being completely drawn into these pages.

Please know that my reading is a subjective one, and others may feel differently. Nat and I both think that you are a talented writer, and we hope that you are able to find a publisher through your current literary agent. While we don’t feel that BLANK is the right novel in which to launch your writing career, should things not work out with The Irene Goodman Literary Agency, we’d be happy to consider more of your work in the future.

Best of luck,

A*** W*****

And here's the good news: After I clarified to A*** W***** that that the Irene Goodman Literary Agency isn't, in fact, representing me at all (they'd actually sent me a rejection letter months ago that mysteriously never showed up in my inbox or spam folder, so I had to write them + ask them what's up--lame), then I asked her if I could send her a partial of what I'm working on now, The Ninjas of My Greater Self + she said hell yes. Okay, actually, she just said yes. But as many of you know, Ninjas is the best thing I've written yet. I'm 320 pages into this motherfucker + I'm telling you, it fucking rocks the joint. I have no doubt that I'll publish BLANK eventually--frankly, despite its various + sundry flaws, it's still a breathtaking novel that's ambitious, innovative, smart, compassionate, multicultural + kinetic. It deserves to--and will someday--be published in an excellent indie press that rewards ambition, vision + heterodoxy. But Ninjas is going to be the novel that helps me launch my career from an emerging unknown novelist to an up-and-coming novelist with national implications. That may sound arrogant, but it's not, man. It's just what's going to happen + I'm gonna work my ass off to make sure it does. Stay tuned. In a month, I'll have a better idea of what's going down.

(Almost) Good Rejection from Crazyhorse

Dear Jackson Bliss,

Thank you for sending your manuscript " . . . " number 30679, to us here at Crazyhorse via the online submission manager.

We are sorry this particular manuscript was not selected for publication in Crazyhorse. We hope you will send us another soon, though. We could not publish Crazyhorse without the fine writing submitted to us. While we regret that the large number of submissions we receive makes it difficult for the editors to respond personally, we want to emphasize that an editor personally read your manuscript. Devoted reading is part of the Crazyhorse editorial mission; it is also our own personal one.

Thank you for supporting the journal with your reading, writing, and subscribing,
The Editors

Short Story from A Travel Guide to the Broken World Published in Quarterly West

Por fin!

My short story "30 Roofies" was recently (finally) published in the issue #70/71 Winter 2010/Spring 2011 issue of Quarterly West. If you want to read about forbidden, cross-cultural love, strong limeña women drugging clueless, rich tourists in Lima + falling in love with California surfer boys, then go out + get yourself a copy today of QW. My story is the one with acoustic Spanish guitar music playing in the background.

Good Rejection from Electric Literature

Dear Jackson,

Thank you for submitting your story to Electric Literature. I apologize for the long wait and appreciate your patience. I very much enjoyed reading " . . . " though it was not chosen for publication in our journal. The way that the cryptic ransom notes came together at the end of the story was especially satisfying, and the prose was fresh and engaging.

We are committed to publishing short stories by both new and more established writers, and hope that you will consider sending us more of your work in the future.

Sincerely,

H*** M***,
Assistant Editor, Electric Literature

Good Rejection from the Georgia Review

THE GEORGIA REVIEW

The University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602-9009

Editor: Stephen Corey
Assistant Editors: Managing Editor:
David Ingle + Douglas Carlson Mindy Wilson



Although your manuscript engaged our attention
through several screenings, it was not ultimately
selected for publication. We thank you for letting
us consider this work, and we wish you the best
in placing it elsewhere.

sorry for the delay--caused by offic relocation

dc

Good Rejection from A Public Space

Dear Jackson Bliss:

Thank you for thinking of A Public Space for your writing. We aren't the right magazine for this work, but we read it with care and interest, and we encourage you to send new work later this year.

To learn more about goings-on at A Public Space, please visit your local bookstore to find our latest issue, visit us online at www.apublicspace.org or join us on Twitter @apublicspace.

With very best wishes,
A Public Space

Solicited Manuscript from Construction

I'm tempted by this email I got today to send David Plick, the editor, something, even though I generally shy away from online journals these days. Still, I'm flattered by the solicitation.

Dear Jackson Bliss,

You and I were published together in the last issue of Fiction (my piece was called, "The Right Words for a Eulogy"). Anyway, I read your story, "The Great Fall" and loved the energy--the language was alive, rhythmic, the narrative had a heartbeat, and I felt like I was taken somewhere. I used to tutor kids in Spanish Harlem and live in Washington Heights, but I always felt like an outsider. I wondered what it felt like to be a part of all that. I think it's an accomplishment to capture that world, and you did it not just with references, though they helped, but with the way you crafted your sentences and stayed close to Jean Boy's fascination with the whole thing.

I just launched the inaugural issue of my quarterly online magazine called Construction (we'll also do a "Best of" print edition annually) with a few peers from my MFA and would love it if you would submit something to us. Here's the site:

We're a cultural journal so we also publish interviews, political essays, book reviews, etc. If you have anything you're looking to place I'd love to take a look at it: a novel excerpt, memoir, or an essay, anything, please send it my way. The next issue would come out in late August/early September so if you could get me something in the next month or so that would be great.

Congrats on all your success. I hope to hear from you soon.

David Plick

Good Rejection from the New England Review

Dear Jackson Bliss,

Thank you for giving us the chance to read " . . . " We appreciate your interest in our magazine.

While in the end we have decided against publishing this piece in the New England Review, we thought the writing had merit, and we wish you the best in placing it elsewhere.

Sincerely,
The Editors
New England Review

Lou Matthews Writes Back

If you know me, you know that one of my favorite stories back in the day was Lou Matthew's "Crazy Life," about a headstrong latina who falls in love with a cholo named Chuey, written with love, tenderness + strength. In fact, I loved this short story so much that I made my students read it in my workshop while I was working on my MFA at Notre Dame, + time + time again, this story was one of their favorites. Not only do I love the story, but I love the conceit of a white dude writing what is essentially a dissolved love story from the point of view of a smart, strong, low-income latina, something that critics/intellectuals would argue he can't/shouldn't do, but in this case, they'd be completely fucking wrong. Anyway, I was chatting with Aimee Bender before classes ended + I told her how important his story had been to me + she was like: Oh, you have to write him + tell him that. He'd really appreciate it.

So, she sent me his email address because Aimee knows practically everyone in the business, + a few days ago, Lou responded. This is what he said:


Hey Jackson,

Your e-mail was a great greeting for me on my return home. Thank you so much for your kind words on “Crazy Life.” That story has pretty much had a life of its own. It’s now been published about eight times and a young San Antonio film maker, Dora Peña made a short movie based on the story about four years back. Gets used a lot in L.A. Unified High Schools. One of my former students from UCLA used it in her Honors class at Long Beach Poly – a class composed of 16 young chicanas. Dorothy mentioned she’d had me as a teacher. They accepted, finally, the possibility that I might not be Chicano, but refused to believe I was a guy. I had to show up and talk to them. Interesting discussion. I describe that story as “involuntarily researched”, a phrase I stole from Carolyn Chute. It was where I grew up and who I grew up with – A place called Toonerville and I didn’t date an anglo girl until I was out of High School - Dulcie is based on a couple girlfriends from that era and Chuey on a whole lot of guys that I knew.

Glad to hear about your own experience writing from a Latina P.O.V. I find it immensely freeing, as I am sure Flaubert did, to put yourself in someone else’s high heels, and if it crosses cultural boundaries as well, so much the better. You can’t worry about identity politics – or as we used to say on my block, “The Fri-jolier than thou.” One of my other favorite stories, “The Garlic Eater”, is the story of a Korean grocer (That one I did have to research. Heavily) and I ended up feeling the same way about Mr. Kim as I did about Dulcie. I liked the time I spent in his head very much. I’m sending you an archive link for that one, from one of my favorite magazines. Failbetter. Love publishing on-line, doesn’t cost your friends anything to read you:

"The Garlic Eater"

Delighted to hear you are working with Aimee. She’s the real deal. You couldn’t be in better hands. Great writer but also an excellent human being. Please give her my love. I’ll be writing to her shortly. One of my former UCLA students is also teaching in your program, Dana Johnson. Introduce yourself if you don’t know her already. And if you see me at some literary gathering – I’ll be the fat guy with a beard older than you are – introduce yourself. I owe you a beer for making my day.

All my best,

Lou

The guy you met at the café, was Hafeez Lakhani, my PEN “Mentee” (such a strange word). Great guy, I’m really enjoying working with him. I’ll send you an invite to his final reading for PEN

My Second Solicited Email from a Literary Agent

Yo, what a great way to start my day with this email:

Dear Jackson Bliss:

I very much admired your story, “The Great Fall,” in Fiction and thought that you might enjoy hearing from a fan of your work who is also an established literary agent. I don’t know if you are even at that point in your writing to start exploring representation, but this story made me feel that you have the talent to write a publishable book

If you’re at work on a novel, one of my colleagues in the agency or I would be pleased to read the opening chapters. We can tell, with a brief synopsis (1-2 pages), and around fifty pages, if we are engaged by the material. If so, we’ll encourage you to keep going. If not, we’ll explain why. These days, many editors never read further than the opening chapter or two of most novels before rejecting them. That’s how overloaded we all are with reading material. You must grab our attention, early on, either with plot or characters.

If you are assembling a short story collection, or undertaking a non-fiction book, visit our agency website (www.sobelweber.com) for our submission guidelines and suggestions. In the current market, publishers are unlikely to take on a short story collection unless the author can provide a novel to follow. If you do not have at least 50 pages of a novel ready, it’s worth waiting to put both book projects together, believe me. You may find our submission guidelines helpful whether we ultimately represent you or not. Or you may write us an email describing the book you are working on. We can then let you know, quickly, our response. Please indicate that I have read some of your work in that letter.

If you already have an agent, please excuse this approach, as our agency does not take on previously agented writers. If you are unagented and would like to discuss your writing before sending me anything, give us a call. The author/agent “chemistry” is vital in a long-term relationship. If you don’t have anything to send us at this time, hold onto this letter. My invitation to read more of your work is open-ended. Recently, we sold a first novel to Knopf by a writer I originally contacted ten years ago after reading his story in The Georgia Review.

Because we offer editorial work on all the projects we take on, at no additional fee to the writer, we do ask for one month exclusivity of your submission, but generally respond sooner. We do not send out form rejection letters on work submitted, but try to provide a fair evaluation of the work, including any editorial suggestions we may have.

Looking forward to reading more of your work.

Best wishes,
Nat Sobel


Sobel Weber Associates, Inc.
146 *** ********
New York, NY
212 ***-**** (phone)
212 ***-**** (fax)
www.sobelweber.com

A fan who is also a literary agent? How amazing is that shit? Now, the question is: Do I call him or do I send him an email or both?

Good Rejection from the Boston Review

Dear Jackson Bliss:

Thank you for sending us " . . . "

Your essay is well-written and the story is touching, but after careful consideration, we have decided it is not what the Boston Review needs at this time.

We look forward to reading more.

Sincerely,

The Editors of Boston Review

Putting Myself Out There because I Have to

Becoming an emerging writer is a Quixotic, blunt, heart-breaking delusion where art is actually more like head trauma than vocation. Personally, I recommend people stay away from the fallout as much as possible. Even so, I've got it bad for writing, so I'm a hopeless case. You may not be.

Anyway, I've proven this before, but like I said, I don't know how to fucking listen. Which is why I'm setting myself up for heartache again. It's how you put yourself out there, you enter contests + hope you come back with the biggest stuffed panda at the state carnival. Eventually someone does, why the fuck shouldn't it be you? Besides, I have to do this: This is how writers do: They put their asses on the line again and again for some whimsical, half-finished idea + you know, it's absolutely fucking worth it too, even with all of the drama, rejection + nausea. It's worth it. We have to write, we can't stop the dream, even when it's turned dark + beastly and demented and sore, it doesn't matter. We have to write + so we do. And when we've got something, eventually we decide it's time to find our audience, which is all publishing really is.

So I sent out some new full + partial manuscripts to a few great, indie presses in the East Coast + entered several contests too. I mean, if we're going to do this, then let's do it all the fucking way, no compromising, nothing half-assed, nothing guaranteed, the opposite of evasion, shyness + silence. Let's do this, the voice inside my head tells me.

Here are some recent book submissions:

1. The Ninjas of My Greater Self (James Jones First Novel Contest) 28 April 2011

2. A Travel Guide to the Broken World (Coffee House Press) 29 April 2011

3. A Travel Guide to the Broken World (Flannery O'Connor Award) 23 May 2011

4. BLANK excerpt (Beacon Press) 3 June 2011

5. A Travel Guide to the Broken World (FSG) 3 June 2011

6. A Travel Guide to the Broken World (Drue Heinz Literature Prize) 20 June 2011

7. A Travel Guide to the Broken World (Milkweed Editions) 5 July 2011

And of course I'm waiting to hear from Irene Goodman, the literary agent that solicited a whole manuscript of BLANK + the outline of Ninjas, I'm waiting to hear from Electric Literature for almost a year, waiting to hear from McSweeney's for 8 months, waiting to hear from the Paris Review, Black Warrior Review, Fence, waiting to hear from the Chicago Review for 13 months now (including 2 ignored emails I sent them), but I'm still going strong. I have absolutely nothing suggesting I'm going to win shit, nothing suggesting I'm gonna get a new piece published in a new journal anytime soon, but I'm good + I'm strong. Something is gonna work out, something is happening, if nothing else, momentum. If nothing else, some fucking momentum.

My Summer Schedule Fucking Rocks

Now that I'm back from Beijing, it's time to get back to working on The Ninjas of My Greater Self + beginning my reading for my Field Exams--otherwise, how the fuck do I plan on reading 80 books by December? My awesome/exciting summer schedule by next week will be:

7:30 am-8 am: Wake up, check emails + glance at the Huffington Post

8 to 8:30ish: Do yoga/push-ups, meditate +/or crunches

8:30ish until 12:00 pm: Write the fuck out of my Ninjas

12:00 until 1ish: Eat lunch

1ish until 1:30ish: Walk the pooches

1:30ish until LB gets home: Read, read, read!*

6:30-7:30: Running

7:30-8:30: Yum!

8:30: More writing + revision, Xbox, watching Glee, Californication, Friday Night Lights + Buffy on Netflix, working on electronic LP, watching foreign flicks, making out with LB, reading FB, playing with the pooches + blogging!

*Except for Mondays or Friday, when I'll take weekly field trips to the post office to sent manuscripts to Granta, FSG, Milkweed et al(l the usual suspects).

LA Times Festival of Books = Awesome

These past two weeks have been a blurry, pretty little mess of everything: Grading final portfolios, writing my final paper on Joan Didion for my Post-Western Representation class, waking up early on Saturday morning to go to the LA Times Festival of Books where I bought the new McSweeney's + Granta, attended a forum on literary journals with the editors of a Public Space, Granta, Black Clock + saw Tom read his short story, "The Lie." I also celebrated my--gasp!--37th birthday + went to Santa Monica with LB where we loitered around and smelled the Ocean air + bought a couple things for our upcoming trip to Beijing.

Here are a few highlights:

Gogo! Doing Yoga with his Daddy

LB's Genius for Gift-Wrapping

B-Day Vegan Cupcakes

Tomorrow! Tomorrow!

Proof that Part of America Still Reads Books

The Entrance to Bibliphilia

LB Magnetically Attracted to the Kinokuniya Kiosk

Where Cute Plastic Things Come to Be Reborn

Makes Me Dizzy

Tom Representing at the Bing Theater

Listening to the Enemy: Literary Journal Editors from Granta, A Public Space + Black Clock Tell You Why They Just Want a Good Story Even Though almost All of the Shit They Publish is Agented Fiction

The Endangered Species: Homo Literarius

Good Rejection from Graywolf Press (Yet Again)

Sad times at Ridgemont High, my friends. In the middle of my last workshop with Aimee + probably my last workshop ever--tragic irony sucks!--I scanned my emails, only to discover this rejection which kinda breaks my heart. I fucking love Graywolf Press + I felt very strongly that my collection of short stories would appeal to them because the language is beautiful, the collection is international in scope (Peru, Argentina, Burkina Faso, America, Canada, Japan, Mexico), deals with legitimate social and cultural issues, uses strong, spunky + smart female characters, creates art that is greater than just art for art's sake + most importantly, offers a series of cultural narratives that haven't been written yet, or at least not overwritten in any meaningful way. Saying nothing of the fact that I've either lived in those countries as a Peace Corps volunteer + English teacher or I've visited them + that I've already published many of these stories in good literary journals. And yet, none of that shit matters.

I'm totally bummed, frustrated, a potential victim of pigeonholing? Would my collection have been more seriously considered if every story was about China? Or written from an African point of view? Is my collection too all over the globe? Do you know how many collections of short stories I've read in the past 10 years that don't have a thematic thread at all? Why does Nam Le get to write stories in Iowa, Colombia, Japan, Vietnam? Granted, he's probably a better short story writer than I am, but I still honestly feel like the stories in my first collection give the readers a beautiful, powerful, touching piece of the world that hasn't been written enough, or at all. For example, how many short stories have you read that take place in Burkina Faso? Or that follow the story of a letter traveling from West Africa to California? Or that deal with race + class in SoCal? Or that are about a Peruvian pepera who falls in love with a tourist she drugged? A hipster who falls in love with a hallucination in Buenos Aires? An obscure fiction writer whose greatest fan is a porn star? Two strangers who meet with the help of their love beepers in Tokyo? A girl who falls in love with a painting in the Art Institute of Chicago? Two teenage basketball players in Kansas who fall in love? A nerd who gets his revenge by inventing a paint bomb that covers his attackers in paint? A woman who cheats on her husband with the female tango instructor in Argentina? An insurrection of teenagers that loot Muncie?

I'm not pretending my stories are technically perfect, because they're not perfect. But on many levels, they are unique. They're touching, powerful, beautiful, slightly off-beat stories about the human condition, + I hoped that a press like Graywolf would want to publish something fresh, socially-conscious + international like this. But they didn't. And now I'm bummed.

Anyway, here's the gracious letter:

Dear Jackson Bliss,

Thank you very much for submitting " . . . " to Graywolf Press.

There's a lot to enjoy here in terms of the diversity and range of the stories, and we felt like you inhabited these characters well--you made their voices your own. I'm afraid that we did feel that stylistically there were several stories that seemed a bit out of place, such as " . . ." or " . . . " Despite the strength of some of the work here, it didn't feel cohesive enough as a collection. So we've decided against this.

Sorry to disappoint, but you've done some good work, which deserves recognition. Thanks for thinking of Graywolf, and best of luck in finding a good home for this elsewhere.

With best wishes,

The Editors
Graywolf Press

And my response:

naive question, but is removing those two stories too cosmetic to resolve the lack of cohesiveness? just curious.

okay, well, since i'm not expecting a response back since i know you have many submissions to deal with, thank you graywolf press. you're a kickass press + it would have been great to work with you. i just wish i had more books to submit to you, but sadly i don't.

peace, blessings, thanks,

--jackson bliss

Anyway, as much as I admire you Graywolf Press--+ I do, I really do--you had your chance to publish something by Jackson Bliss before I became big + famous + now you've lost your chance forever. It's time we parted ways. But of course now I sound like the dude who says I quit after he's already been fired, which of course, is exactly what happened. My consolation: I get the last word.

Good Birthday

You know you're having a good birthday when:

1. The sun appears out of the gloom, rescuing the day from the grey, casting warm, soft, beautiful light your way

2. You get 50 greetings on facebook, two of which are from your newly discovered Japanese cousins you've been searching for for over 10 years

3. Robert Olen Butler personally wishes you a happy birthday

4. Maxine Hong Kingston sends you a private FB message + tells you she hopes to see you at the LA Times Festival of Books

Life is good.

It's Way Too Fucking Quiet around Here

When I'm not listening to the ubiquitous sound of helicopters in LA, hounding after escaped convicts and armed cholos running off with grandma's jewelry, I have moments like these about my writing career: This is the sound of absolutely nothing, which scares the shit out me. I haven't heard from a single journal, agent or publisher in like weeks, which only means one thing: It's about to get loud + nasty + fucked up soon. I'm cringing just thinking about the barrage of rejections. There's a giant shadow blocking the sun, hoovering over my head somewhere in outer space, ready anytime now, in an instant, to crash down to earth like a kaput satellite that arrives half-incinerated, a clunky piece of yesterday about to crush me under the California sun.

Nicole Aragi('s Assistant) Writes Back

Dear Jackson,

I’m sorry to say Nicole is not taking on new clients at the moment.
All best,

-Christie Hauser
Aragi Inc.

Good (Standard) Rejection from Harper's That Feels Special (even though it's Not)

Yesterday, I received the following rejection letter from Harper's Magazine in the mail + though it's their standard rejection letter, the fact that they typed my name up + signed the letter makes me special, even though I'm clearly not. Still, considering Harper's publishes one unsolicited short story a year, I knew my odds going in. On the other hand, I'll gladly be in the company of other rejected writers also sending Harper's Magazine material considered truly impressive and such good work. At least I'm in good company. See, I'm that kind of writer: Devoutly idealistic, ambitious, intrepid, unafraid to take a risk, delusional, the kind of writer that doesn't know how to take no for an answer. And someday, that's why I'm gonna publish my shit.

HARPER'S
MAGAZINE
_____________________________________________________________

March 29, 2011

Dear Mr. Bliss,

Many thanks for sending your story to Harper's Magazine. I'm sorry to say that it's not quite right for us. Please do bear in mind that we publish only twelve stories each year, + receive hundreds of submissions, many of them truly impressive works of fiction, for those spots. Turning away so much good work is a frustrating task for any editor--it is, also, alas, unavoidable.

We wish you the best of luck in placing the story elsewhere, + thank you once again for thinking of us.

All best,


James Marcus
Deputy Editor

German Novelist Patrick Findeis Gives Props to The Ninjas of My Greater Self

Yesterday in workshop we had several visitors, one of whom was Patrick Findeis, a visting German novelist staying at Villa Aurora as a Winter Quarter Fellow whose debut novel, Kein Schöner Land (No Land More Lovely), has been making headlines. Aimee was kind enough to forward me Findeis's flattering words about the excerpt of Ninjas he read last night, which is included down below. Cool, man. At least I know that one German will buy my book when it comes out. Danke!

Hi Aimee,

good to meet you too!
I really enjoyed the class, the level was very high and the writing strong.
I read the excerpt from Jackson's book in the evening and I think it's great. The little I heard of the first story made a big impression on me as well.

Take care,
Patrick

Freedom + Hope: My Last Workshop + Sending a Query to Sandra Dijkstra

1. While I still have five more weeks of this semester, I'm officially done getting my shit workshopped forever! What an amazing feeling: Ah, the tangy taste of freedom! No, it's true, I'll be doing a private writing class with Aimee next semester, but that'll be one-on-one, the very opposite of workshop, in fact. Talking with Aimee is sort of like talking with a very insightful friend of yours who carries a pair of sheers with her wherever she goes + who is also way better published than you are. Not only do I not mind this private writing class next semester, I'm actually looking forward to it because it will force me--structurally, speaking--to keep working on The Ninjas of My Greater Self as I prepare for fields, which will be fun but also crazy stressful too. And while my workshops at SC were a 100 times more helpful for me than the pissing contests/genealogy of morals gang-bang I used to go through at Notre Dame, at the same time, I think I've plateaued with workshop just in general. I know what my strengths + weaknesses are as a writer. Now, it's really just about creating work that is its best version of itself. Through workshop + other venues, I've become very aware of what I do well + where I need help. So, thanks workshop. But now I'm gonna peace out.

2. I just sent Sandra Dijkstra a 25-page sampler of BLANK with a query letter. Hopefully she'll be intrigued enough that she'll want to read the entire manuscript. Based on her client list, I think she'll appreciate the strong, smart, independent female characters, the multicultural crew, the ambitious + intersecting plotline + above all else, the novel's return to history + culture, the love of language + the joy of storytelling in BLANK. But if for some--tragic--reason she rejects BLANK, I'm still planning on asking her if she'd like to see $67 for My Favorite Dictator, my collection of short stories +/or whether she'd be interested in reading Ninjas once it's finally done--whenever that is.

Talking Field Exam Reading Lists + Agent Referrals with TC Boyle

Since he's my thesis adviser + also a former teacher of mine, TC Boyle told me to stop by his office soon after the recommendation snafu to talk about my Post WWII reading list for fields. I also wanted to talk to him about getting a referral to Sandra Dijkstra. Stop on by, he emailed. After teaching, that's exactly what I did, a slight spring in my step. Must be the sunshine.

1. Field Exams

When I walked into his office, the dude looked fucking exhausted.

I shook his hand + said: —You look fucking exhausted.
—I am, he said, leaning his head back.
—I saw you on Bill Maher's Real Time.
—Oh yeah?
I nodded. —Yeah, it's the only time I've seen you in a group of people where you're not talking the whole time.
We both laughed.
—I don't like dealing with talking heads.
After chatting a little more, I handed him my proposed reading list for the field exam I'll be doing with him, post WWII literature. He read the list + nodded: —Well, this looks great.
—I'm not sure what critical connections I'll make yet, but once I've read 1/4 to 1/2 of them, I'm sure I'l see them.
—Well, I've read almost every book here.
—I haven't a read single book on that list. That's why I picked'em.
He looked up.
—I thought it would be a perfect excuse to read a bunch of books I've always wanted to read but haven't.
—That's brilliant.

2. Sandra Dijkstra

Once we'd finished figuring out the details for my reading list, I paused, turned to Tom + said: —So can we talk about Sandra Dijkstra?
—Sure. It's time to get you an agent so you can get your books published. What's up?
—Well, I'm still waiting to hear from the Irene Goodman Literary Agency but I'm getting antsy + I don't want to wait anymore, so I wondered whether you might give me a referral.
—Of course. I told you I'd be happy to.
—I took a look at her client list + it's pretty rad.*
—Well, I already talked you up to her.
—Awesome.
—Okay, how about this? I'll write her a letter right now. When will you send her a manuscript?
—Tomorrow.
—Great. Okay, are you going to send her Ninjas?
—I'm not sure. I kinda want her to take a look at BLANK before I send her Ninjas. But I haven't decided yet.
—Okay, well, he said, pulling out a piece of SC stationery + scribbling a note to Sandra Dijkstra, I'll send this today, should get to her by tomorrow + you'll send your manuscript to her tomorrow + a short letter mentioning some of her clients you admire. . .
—Okay, great.

I'm not sure what's going to happen with any of this + I haven't closed the door to the Irene Goodman Literary Agency at all, but a little competition won't hurt anyone. Besides, from reading literary agent blogs, I get the very strong impression that agents are naturally fierce with each other + accept competition because they have to (it's part of the industry), even embracing it sometimes. So we'll see what happens. Even so, I'm flattered that Tom actually talked me up to such a big agent. That shit is flattering.

Now, back to The Ninjas of My Greater Self



*Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Lisa See, Susan Faludi, Maxine Hong Kingston, Amy Tan