My first rejection came

when I was 18

I don’t recall the

publication, but I

remember reading it

early in the morning

after getting off work

from a grave shift

as a security guard

I wanted to frame it;

a publisher of note

(not the New Yorker,

but I submitted to them

as well) had taken

me seriously enough

to send a pre-written

rejection

almost all of them

do this, and t hey all

read more or less the

same

“Dear Mr. Brock,

thank you for your

submission. Unfortunately

your writing does not

meet our style\standard

for publication. We wish

you luck in future

endeavors,

sincerely,...

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