An Apologetic Rejection?

[Dave Bara]

I've never received an apology for a rejection before. I wonder if the pros out there have any opinions on this being legit or--- something else?

Either way, it makes my rejection Hall of Fame.

db

Dear Dave -

I hate writing this letter.

I deeply regret to inform you that "The Nightwalk" did not make the

final cut for Volume 30/3 of XXXXXXXX. Please understand that we

received nearly 400 submissions for this issue and narrowed that down to only 19 finalists. ALL of those finalists are strong, quality stories - any of which we would be pleased and honored to publish.

The final decision is made by comparing the stories, more with an eye toward issue balance than the merits of one story over another. Your tale is a GREAT piece, and I'm very very sorry that we can't use it.

For whatever it may be worth, we would like to include your name and the title of your story in the Honorable Mentions section of our fiction page. Feel free to use this as a recommendation of your work to other

markets.

Again, my apologies. And good luck with your writing efforts.

- Xy Xyyyy

- Editor

- XXXXXXXX