Chronicle of Higher Education: “Fourteen minutes. That’s how long it took Prestigious University Press to reject my proposal to edit a book of new essays on an early-modern philosopher. Apparently that’s the time it took the acquisitions editor to receive my e-mail message, open the 10-page attachment, make a professional judgment, and then write back with a curt one-sentence rejection stating that my proposal was ‘too specialized’ for the press’s successful series of handbooks on individual thinkers. That’s also how long it took me to go into the kitchen, eat a sandwich, and return to my computer to find his reply.”
You know, most of the time, a writer doesn’t get any kind of reply at all.
(via John Fox)
Dude shoulda had at least a couple of chapters in hand before sending in the proposal, then kept the press apprised well in advance of any extensions he’d need in meeting the deadline. Also he might have known that coming in under the proposed length would most likely be seen by the press as a money-saving blessing rather than a breach of promise.