Consuela, I remember reading that bit and really enjoying it, too, and I don't climb. I say keep trying too.

Betsy, if you could tell us the author and title of that YA book, I can see if Greg can get the library system here to buy it. It's a little more tricky for YA, since he doesn't work directly with those buyers, but he's known them forever. One was his librarian when he was a kid. If you don't want to post it here, you could e-mail it to me.

Weirdly stressed out about the entire thing.

Submission SUCKS. Truly.

Don't send it to any more family. If they love it, you'll assume it's because they love you. If they don't, you'll assume it must be really bad, or otherwise they'd find something to praise.

Slap it in an envelope and send it OFF. Out into the cruel world.

On that note, does anybody know any women's magazines that might be open to a quasi-political poem? Does Ms. publish poetry any more? It's about the connection between cooking and turmoil, the war in particular.

Last I heard, yeah, Betsy.

Texas Observer also publishes poetry.

Not a woman's mag in the traditional sense, I know, but you still might find it worth a look for submission. I think the cooking/turmoil/war link would not be amiss there at all.

Texas Observer

Betsy, having read the poem, why not the New Yorker? Do they take unsolicited?

Insent, BTW, with a thanks and a question.

Okay, here's what the editorial guidelines for Dandelion say:

All submissions should focus on a specific type of department or feature, as follows:

The Dandelion’s Roar (all manner of short news items), Out There (travel), Whole Health (health and wellness), Sports Clinic (a sport introduction), Downtime (a sports personality profile), Relating (relationships as they relate to outdoor adventure), It’s Personal (a first-person essay), What Works (gear review), Full (food and nutrition), See Hear (media reviews), Balance and Strength (athletic performance), and Unsung (profile of a notable woman who is not in the media’s eye). There are no fitness, weight loss, or gym articles.

Features. Every issue features a theme to which all features relate. They include an outdoor fashion feature, an interview with a high-profile woman (actor, writer, performer, politician, etc.), an adventurous destination, a newsy, issue-related piece, and Yes You Can, where readers are challenged to undertake a new adventure.

...

Dandelion considers nonfiction manuscripts and queries. Writers who are new to Dandelion should send previously published clips and a resume. If these materials are to be returned, include a self-addressed, stamped envelope with adequate postage.

Thing is, the story is fiction. It might otherwise fit into one of their categories, but it's certainly fiction because I never took that climb on that route.

Also, clips? None of my previously published material (legal articles, environmental analyses, one story for a neighborhood newspaper) would be in any way relevant.

All the cool kids are into pretending their fiction is non.

Do they take unsolicited?

t laughs hysterically

Basically, your chances of making the New Yorker over the transom as an unpublished author are nil.

If your clips show off your writing skills, they don't have to be relevant. If they're dry government submissions, probably don't bother -- instead, make the cover letter show you off.

I think you can plausibly claim that this is nonfiction about the experience of climbing.

Um, unpublished?

"Read Elizabeth Hanes Perry's most recent work at Salon...."

Electronic publishing counts.