What happens to a typical manuscript when it arrives at Shenandoah?
Manuscripts are opened, sorted, dated and logged in according to genre by work-study students and interns. The editor reads all submissions and divides them into two categories: those which seem strong possibilities for Shenandoah and those which seem less strong. In a second round of reading, the editor selects the work which he believes Shenandoah should publish. Once a manuscript has been eliminated as a possibility, it is returned to the interns, who place the manuscript in its SASE, along with a form expressing regret that the work has not been selected. The manuscript is then mailed back to the sender. Sometimes the editor writes a note on the rejection slip; occasionally he writes a letter asking to see more work. The entire process usually takes six to eight weeks. Due to the current volume of submissions, Shenandoah asks that writers not submit more frequently than twice a year.
