A Writer's Guide to Rejection Letters

The reality of submitting poetry to literary journals is that there are so many incredible poets doing it, and editors only have so much room in their magazines. All of us are inevitably going to face rejection in the writing world, and if we’re equipped to hit it head-on, we won’t be beaten down when we get that first “thanks but no thanks” letter. And bracing ourselves for rejection, or reframing it as proof of effort, makes us better writers in the long run.

Magazines typically accept less than 1% of the submissions they receive. In Submittable (as of March 2026), my rate of acceptance versus rejections is 174/1801, making my acceptance rate  about 10%. I find that knowing this motivates me to submit more—for about every 10 pieces I send in, one will probably be accepted.

Editors are looking at thousands of submissions and can’t always provide feedback or respond personally to submissions. You’ll often see editors acknowledge this in a rejection letter. But if you volunteer to work on a literary magazine (which I highly recommend), you’ll quickly come to understand their perspective. I have read for a few magazines and contests, and when I have, I notice how quickly overwhelmed I can become. It doesn't take long for me to engage or disengage with a poem. Patterns begin to appear:

• Careless errors
• Misnaming the editor or reader
• Not following the submission guidelines
• Stylistic or aesthetic differences (readers are subjective with subjective tastes! And that's OK, but this is why magazines tell you to read before you submit; you may quickly realize just how much they vary in aesthetic interests.)

Understanding these patterns can help improve the likelihood of your work not being rejected. 

To read the full article on poetry.arizona.edu, click here