If you are new to the submission process, you may inadvertently label yourself as an amateur. Certain statements can set off an alarm in an editor’s mind. Here are just a few that have crossed my desk in cover letters and on poems and short stories:
“I’ve never been published before, but…” Every writer has to start somewhere. But if you’ve never been published, there’s no need to call attention to the fact.
“I’ve been published in the National Library of Poetry’s anthology…” The National Library of Poetry is known in the publishing world as an organization that publishes anyone and everyone and then attempts to sell you an expensive anthology containing your work. It’s not considered a genuine publishing credit. There are many other such operations in the publishing world. If you’ve been published in an expensive anthology and you weren’t given a free contributor’s copy, simply refrain from listing it as a credit.
“I took a creative writing class in 10th grade…” Information that pre-dates college is generally not considered relevant, unless you are a high school student submitting to a youth publication.
“Copyright 2004, John Doe.” You don’t need to put a copyright mark on your work. You own the copyright to your work the moment you set it down on paper, and every editor knows this. Some editors may interpret a copyright mark as a signal of distrust at worst, or ignorance of copyright procedures at best.
7. Insufficient SASEs
When submitting a manuscript by mail, be sure to include an SASE, that is, a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Always use a no. 10 or larger SASE. Don’t force an editor to fold your reply and manuscript eight times in order to cram it uncomfortably inside a tiny envelope. If you only want a reply, a no. 10 envelope is sufficient. But if you want your entire manuscript returned, use a larger size envelope. For a reply only, one first-class stamp will cover postage. If you desire to have your entire manuscript returned, however, make sure to affix sufficient postage to your SASE. A single stamp covers only one ounce. Editors receive hundreds of manuscripts, and they can’t afford to use their own postage to reply to writers. If your SASE has no postage or insufficient postage, you risk receiving no reply at all. Make sure your outgoing mail has proper postage as well. I once received a submission with a postage due stamp on it! Naturally, I was instantly inclined against the submission.