I cannot deny my disappointment that my memoir-in-progress, Play Dead, Roll Over, did not garner an award in The Missouri Review's annual contest; however, I quickly realized that I have indeed been setting my sights on potential cash winnings rather than targeting the piece toward the most appropriate literary journal. Consequently, I sent it to a publication that, just last year, initially I had identified as the logical, top-priority choice to submit the unpublished memoir excerpt: J Journal: New Writing on Justice.
The editors at J Journal this past summer had expressed interest in seeing some of my work; whether fortunately or unfortunately, I did not complete the 6,000-word piece until after they belatedly decided to move ahead their submission deadline due to the overwhelming volume of work they received. Hence, despite their expression of interest (which I am not equating with a promise or agreement of any sort), I was forced to delay being considered for publication.
Having recently discovered that J Journal's current deadline is Jan. 15, I delivered Play Dead, Roll Over to them via priority mail. J Journal would appear to be the best place for this particular piece, though it remains unknown whether the journal's editors will agree with that contention.
