There's another issue all poets and writers should be aware of:
* * Oftentimes a defunct journal or an indie press will go defunct, yet still appear in Submittable.
* * Their fee-driven "contests" will still be recycled, year after year, in Submittable.
Especially if a contest FEE is involved, do your homework by going to the website and check the dates of the last books they published (and how many books were published).
. . .
Sometimes scam artists seem legit - - and the website still seems current when you submit.
I've been scammed out of a $20 submission fee by Midnight Oil when I submitted a chapbook for their contest that was supposed to be "judged by November 2022."
Midnight Oil did not look defunct at the time.
However, Midnight Oil does not reply to emails - - and Chill Subs and others continue to list it in their database.
Hi LindaAnn, we are still developing our badges system to create a checks and balances for these sorts of things. We are just a very small team so updates take time. We can pull them 'for review' for now if you'd like. We'd rather develop a system where warning labels are applied so that when people search they find these magazines and can educate themselves. Rather than removing them and only having their media be what is found. It's a tough balance with a small team and 3000 magazines. But we are paying attention and have plans to account for this. I can remove any magazine for review now if you email us evidence of bad behavior.
Why not? Your work has been published, something still available, and the editors deserve thanks and acknowledgement even if they have given up the struggle.
Yeah, I am not sure I agree to leave out defunct journals from acknowledgments. It would depend on the journal for me. But it would matter to me because when a magazine goes defunct, their reputation stops there. They're no longer growing, attracting readers, getting recognition that would increase the value of the publishing credit. Also, many stop paying for web hosting, or vanish altogether after going defunct, so you're left with a 'previously published' piece with nothing to show for it.
Many defunct zines will stop paying for web hosting, vanish (thereby erasing your content), and this is a new trend I'm seeing more and more, Ben.
If the site does stay up, often it's someone else who will be retaining the literary journal's name - - and the defunct site can host porn, gambling, crypto scams, and even malware.
With heaps of appreciation and immoderate applause for CHILL SUBS in the first part of my sentence, I never mean to sound like an ingrate, Ben.
Just voicing frustration with the worst offenders - - the fake contest presses [Midnight Oil, et al].
I realize the literary landscape changes so fast that even a team of a three dozen could not keep up.
A badge system with "warning labels" would be excellent.
How about a SKUNK for the worst offenders?
There's another issue all poets and writers should be aware of:
* * Oftentimes a defunct journal or an indie press will go defunct, yet still appear in Submittable.
* * Their fee-driven "contests" will still be recycled, year after year, in Submittable.
Especially if a contest FEE is involved, do your homework by going to the website and check the dates of the last books they published (and how many books were published).
. . .
Sometimes scam artists seem legit - - and the website still seems current when you submit.
I've been scammed out of a $20 submission fee by Midnight Oil when I submitted a chapbook for their contest that was supposed to be "judged by November 2022."
Midnight Oil did not look defunct at the time.
However, Midnight Oil does not reply to emails - - and Chill Subs and others continue to list it in their database.
Hi LindaAnn, we are still developing our badges system to create a checks and balances for these sorts of things. We are just a very small team so updates take time. We can pull them 'for review' for now if you'd like. We'd rather develop a system where warning labels are applied so that when people search they find these magazines and can educate themselves. Rather than removing them and only having their media be what is found. It's a tough balance with a small team and 3000 magazines. But we are paying attention and have plans to account for this. I can remove any magazine for review now if you email us evidence of bad behavior.
A follow-up question: how much does it matter to you and to your work that a lit mag you were published in is now defunct?
If you are assembling an "acknowledgements" page for a book, I suggest you do not list any defunct literary journals.
Why not? Your work has been published, something still available, and the editors deserve thanks and acknowledgement even if they have given up the struggle.
Yeah, I am not sure I agree to leave out defunct journals from acknowledgments. It would depend on the journal for me. But it would matter to me because when a magazine goes defunct, their reputation stops there. They're no longer growing, attracting readers, getting recognition that would increase the value of the publishing credit. Also, many stop paying for web hosting, or vanish altogether after going defunct, so you're left with a 'previously published' piece with nothing to show for it.
Many defunct zines will stop paying for web hosting, vanish (thereby erasing your content), and this is a new trend I'm seeing more and more, Ben.
If the site does stay up, often it's someone else who will be retaining the literary journal's name - - and the defunct site can host porn, gambling, crypto scams, and even malware.