The Losing Game: The Numbers
Happy 2019, comrades! It's nice to see you on this side of hungover. Your skin is glowing. I hope you enjoyed your transition into the new year in whichever way you like celebrating best. I like New Years. Always have. I like gallivanting with friends, I like night time, I like noisemakers, and I like the wholly manufactured feeling of having a second (or 28th) chance. For the first time in many years, I made a New Years Resolution: I'm going to look out the window for one uninterrupted minute every day. I'm hoping it gives me something new to write about, and some new things to appreciate. I also hear it's bad for you to be constantly looking at screens, so I thought I'd let the world repay me for being so easy on the eyes and take it easy on mine.
(An accurate depiction of my unearned self-esteem. It's that Leo rising. Rawr.) Right now out the window, there's luscious moss robing the oak trees, whose fingers are all naked. There are two bikes with identical water bottles strapped to them. There are toques with pom poms on top. A little yellow school house that is, miraculously, still being used as a school house. I am looking at the back of it, but I think there's a big brass bell at the front. I'm sure they use a recording for announcements, but it's nice to think that they have a student whose designated job is to be the bell ringer. That's the kind of job I would've wanted when I was a kid, though I did enjoy walking the attendance sheet to the office, unless it was snowing. See? Just that minute unearthed some memories. I think it's going to be a good practice. I think it's going to be a good year. Speaking of good years, 2018 was, professionally, a super interesting year! I managed to set personal records for highest number of acceptances and rejections, which to me, feels pretty successful. I know you want to see those metrics, and I have them for you! Most of them! I definitely can't figure out either my rejection streak or acceptance streak due to a several month hiatus from facebook, which is how I tracked them previously. Smaller goal: in 2019, keep a folder of all journal responses instead of deleting every email that has the audacity to pop up in my inbox.
[2018 OVERVIEW FOR WRITING SUBMISSIONS] Total submissions: 62 Number of individual pieces submitted: 83 Highest # of times a single piece has been rejected this year: 5 Highest # of pieces accepted in a single submission: 2 Total Rejections: 50 * (note some may carry over from 2017 submissions) Total Acceptances: 9 Total Pieces Accepted: 15 Pieces of Fiction Accepted: 2 Pieces of Poetry Accepted: 13 Have not heard back from and will roll over into the 2019 rejection/acceptance count: 15 Ratio in 2018: 5.5 rejections to 1 acceptance. How does that stack up with the previous year, you ask? I have you covered! [2017 OVERVIEW FOR WRITING SUBMISSIONS] Total submissions: 54 Number of individual pieces submitted: 68 Highest # of times a single piece has been rejected this year: 4 Highest # of pieces accepted in a single submission: 2 Total Rejections: 46 * (note some may carry over from 2016 submissions) Longest Rejection Streak: 24 Total Acceptances: 6 Total Pieces Accepted: 8 Longest Acceptance Streak: 2 Have not heard back from and will roll over into the 2017 rejection/acceptance count: 15 Ratio in 2017: 7.6 rejections to 1 acceptance.
The countdown is back to 0, friends. I think this year might be different in terms of my creative goals, and so The Losing Game might look a little bit different. But one thing that won't change? The NO of it all. Here's to you, me, everyone we know, and our NOses.
Wishing you a year of triumph and tostadas, - E.B. Kirsh