::headdesk::

[j_cheney]

I queried an editor who has had a story for 397 days.

I didn't actually intend to.

I located their confirmation e-mail yesterday just to check its date, and considered querying, but decided that their query e-mila addy wasn't likely to be the same as their automated confirmation addy, so I thought "I'll just close this and worry about it when it hits 400 days"

Except I must have hit "send" instead...

I got an e-mail from the asst editor today asking why I'd sent them a blank e-mail, so I figured I'd better go ahead and query...

Which means a rejection is soon forthcoming.

I feelz dumb.

Comments

[e-underwood.livejournal.com]

Oh, no. Can you just tell him what you said up there? :-) Tell him you weren't really querying? Oh, it sounds odd any way you slice it.

Querying is so worrysome!

[babarnett.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't worry too much. Email goofs happen, and I doubt any place would count it against your story.

[alaneer.livejournal.com]

I'm sure this sort of thing happens all the time. Try not to worry.

[orogeny.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't worry about it. Obviously, the universe intended you to query!

[reudaly.livejournal.com]

Wow, you've never gone above #9 in your markets? I'm jealous. I might average out about that between the ones that sell to the first 3 and the ones that go 15 - 20 before finding a home...

And what everyone else said - don't worry about it. Email goofs happen. Attachments don't get attached. Blanks go out. SEND ALLs happen. It's okay. There are more pressing concerns to the editors than that.

[pabba.livejournal.com]

Keep this up, and I'm going to have to take your email away until the end of the schoolday.

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

That's okay, an editor at one of the Majors sent me a rejection for another person's story. (grin) Turns out my story was rejected, too, just that the title hadn't been changed in between rejection letters. (double-grin) However, I now have a rejection for a story I haven't written...?

Querying doesn't produce rejections. More likely than not it uncovers rejections that they (thought they had) previously sent. Or else they like their slush piles more than a year deep.

Dr. Phil

[musingaloud.livejournal.com]

And then there was the time I addressed a submission to the wrong editor ... *still* don't know who the "other editor" was, and thank goodness the market must not have either. I got a hand slap, but the story did go on hold although it was ultimately rejected. But yeah I hates that stooooopid feeling.

But I've also heard rumors that queries do get the story rejected, which really isn't fair. 397 days is a LONG time.

[justin-pilon.livejournal.com]

Doh! That send button should really have a confirmation feature...

[melissajm.livejournal.com]

I can't see an editor passing up a good story over something like that.