Dear Father,
Thank you so much for your dedication to my life. It was truly touching that you felt so strongly that you wrote me a seven-page letter detailing my faults and flaws. Your observations were beautifully conducted, and I only noticed a few spelling errors. I felt your two handwritten pages were an especially personal touch – I could feel your concern pouring off the page to the point it almost choked me.
Unfortunately, I cannot take your considerations into account at this time. You see, while I read your letter, I could not help but remember you kneeling before me, apologizing for all of your own flaws, only to stand a moment later and not change an inch. You have asked for violence so many times and caused so many tears, I can’t help but feel that your thoughts were a bit incomplete and biased.
Aside from content problems, your grammar was not all there. Your spelling errors weren’t too many to be concerned about, but I would think more about sentence flow in the future. Your sentences were often fractured and stagnant.
Once again, it was an entertaining and heartwarming read, but for your next submission please put more time and thought into it.
Best of luck,
Your Tired Daughter
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Amber Beck is a writer that lives in Pittsburgh, PA. She is a graduate student at Chatham University, studying for an MFA in Creative Writing and Publishing. She has been published in Zephyr and won 2nd place in a statewide writing contest at the SF Florida Collegiate Honors Council Conference. She has a poem forthcoming in Calliopeand is currently the editor for Chatham’s MFA Newsletter and is as an Assistant Editor for The Fourth River.
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image: MM Kaufman
Rejection Letters 