4 possible reasons why your article submission was rejected
It might be that the writing was wordy, too self-promotional or just plain bad.
You’ve sent your pitch, and now you wait for a response.
Wait, why isn’t my article being accepted with a parade or a cavalcade of merriment?
Here’s what we mean when we say, “Sorry, this one’s not for us.”
1. It was too long. We here at Ragan like our copy lean and tight as a drum. Unfortunately, many writers send us “Free Bird” when “Blackbird” would do.
If you conflate wordiness with substance—or if you think repetition is persuasive—we shan’t be working together anytime soon.
Editors differ in their willingness to wade through webby, flabby text. If you’re sending something to me, shoot for under 800 words. Better yet: Take what you were originally going to send, then cut it in half.
Brevity outweighs a multitude of other pitching sins.
2. You were promoting, selling or hiding something. You sneaky rascal!
Did you think we wouldn’t see those seven links to your “About Us” page? How about that entire paragraph extolling the virtues of your specific product or service? Does that ever work to pitch one idea and then send something entirely different?
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