I’ll get to that very telling title in a second. First this:
I received a 1 month rejection from The Pedestal Magazine today. There was no notes or anything, just a regular old form reject. It was for a story that I have shopped around quite a bit, and although I particularly like this one, I have decided to trunk it for a while.
I recently had a couple other writers take a look at it, and after considering their feedback, it seemed to me the best thing was to just put it to the side. I may revisit it in the future, but it would need a massive restructuring, so if I do, it won’t be for a while.
I watched the Masters of Horror episode entitled, “Homecoming, ” last night. I originally rented it because I heard good things about it, and I was convinced after finding out it is a zombie movie.
While the latter is certainly true, the former can be debated.
This movie was made for one reason, and that reason was to slam the current administration and the Iraq war. Without going into my own political slant, I felt the movie failed at making its point as well as an enjoyable movie.
It was just too obvious. Here, you want the premise? You’ll be sorry.
During a speech, the president (though they don’t show him, he is obviously Bush–it sounds just like him) says that if he had one wish, it would be that the fallen soldiers could come back to tell everyone how proud they were to fall protecting our country.
Guess what. They do come back. Only they come back to vote the president out of office. Seriously. They don’t eat brains. They don’t maul anybody. But they vote. Oh, and some of them can talk. And they feel pain.
Yeah, this movie was scary all right, but for all the wrong reasons. They could have pulled it off if they went a bit more goofy with the whole thing, but the director and writer tried to make it a serious movie, and that just didn’t work.
I mean, really. I couldn’t help but laugh when a zombie, after being filled with bullets, lurches up to the guard and pats his shoulder, saying, “At ease soldier.” Come on!
Okay, I’m done. Any more of this and I might freak out.
This is spooky. I got a rejection from Pedestal as well today. When you got your rejection from Intergalactic Medicine Show I got one at about the same time. The same can be said about ChiZine and Heliotrope.
I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me though because both of us are HWA members and therefore realize the importance of submitting to markets that pay professional rates like the ones above.
Better luck next time.
Yeah, sounds like a terrible movie. I mean, it’d be cool if they came back and ate the Bush administration, but to vote?! Come on, no one believes that shit.
Yeah this one probably would have worked better if it was more goofy, but I think it was trying to send a message. Soldiers go where they are told to go. They don’t have a say in the matter and if they voice their opinions against the war, they get sent to military prison.
I think with this one they were trying way too hard to make it political and sort of failed.