Bad Week for Rejections

I go for months with no word on my submissions, and then the dam breaks and I get three rejections in a row. I can't lie and say it doesn't affect my mood. I sink into a funk and hate my own writing.

Here's my statistics at this point:

• 22 short story submissions.


• shortest response time: 5 days - Small Spiral Notebook


• longest response time: 217 days - storySouth


• rejections: 17


• still out: 4


• acceptances: 1


• acceptance/rejection ratio: 6%

The statistics for my first, fatally-flawed, never-to-be-published, novel are much worse, and I prefer to forget about it.

The statistics for my current novel, the one that I am modestly pleased with:

• queries: 7


• rejections: 1


• request for a partial: 1


• still not heard from: 6