And I might ask, “Did the editor decide when they read your work that it was it too much like something they published last month, or too different from what they’ve done late, or they already had a submission this quarter from someone with the initials ‘TL’ and they hit quota, or was the coffee burnt and dammit why is the half-and-half always gone and that stupid headache is coming back…” IOW, stars not aligned. Yet. (And tell me you NEVER read a piece that must have come in when the coffee was perfect and they had those flavored creamers the editor absolutely loves and there was a spare seat on the subway and seriously, there can’t be a better reason why this crap got printed when yours got turned down?) Keep plugging, dear lady, keep plugging, for you are a force for Good in the universe and you have a voice that will be heard.