Editor’s Letter: Every Story Has Its Place

One of the things I’ve learned from writing, reading, and editing this year is this: every story has its place.

I’ve submitted to places I deeply admire—beautiful zines, sharp editors, strong voices—and I’ve realized that some of them will probably never be a home for my work. Not because they rejected me. Not because they’re not wonderful. But because the kinds of stories I tell aren’t the kinds of stories they love. The aesthetic of my storytelling simply doesn’t live in their world.

And that’s okay.

As part of the Neon & Smoke team, I’ve read almost 400 submissions this year. Some were extraordinary—moving, daring, impeccably written. But they weren’t right for us. They carried a different temperature, a different rhythm. I admired them, but they belonged somewhere else.

It’s a humbling truth that applies to every side of this work:

Sometimes you send the right story, but there are ten other “right” stories and only five spots.

Sometimes you send the right story to the wrong place.

Sometimes your voice just doesn’t sing in their frequency.

That’s not failure—it’s calibration.

And calibration goes both ways. Sometimes rejection is about alignment—your story simply doesn’t live in that magazine’s aesthetic. But other times, it’s an invitation to grow. The truth is, not every story we send out is ready. Rejection can be a quiet teacher, pointing us toward stronger sentences, deeper stakes, or clearer intent. The key is learning to ask: Is it me, or is it alignment?

When we find the right home for a story, it resonates. The editor understands what you’re reaching for. The readers lean in. And you, the writer, feel seen in a way that’s about fit, not luck.

And here’s something I remind myself often: even when a magazine doesn’t publish your work, you may have still made a quiet connection—a reader, an admirer, even an ally in that editor. In the end, acceptance is a small alchemy—part quality, part alignment, and part luck. Rejection doesn’t erase resonance.

So as I continue to submit my own work, I’m reminding myself: it’s a journey of alignment, not approval. Every “no” brings you closer to the journals where your work truly belongs—and to the editors who get you.

And trust me, once you find those people, it feels like coming home.

We hope you find a home here.

— T