What? Impossible. It's a form letter saying something about their being sorry but your manuscript doesn't meet their needs. How could this happen? Your mind grapples for some rational explanation and, failing that, comes up with something approximating the following:
a. the editor's a flake
b. the editor's going to steal my idea
c. I'll never make it

In all probability, the correct answer is d. none of the above. Most likely, your manuscript contained one or more of the fatal flaws that marked you as a novice. When an editor sees these errors on a manuscript, it's as if a neon sign were flashing "EXTRA WORK! EXTRA WORK!" Like everybody else, editors don't like extra work, so unless they're really hard-up for copy, that manuscript is going in the reject pile. The more desirable the market, the pickier editors can afford to be.

So how do you know whether your manuscript contains any of these fatal flaws? Your first tip-off should be when you mail it the very next day. Editors don't want your first draft--or even your second or third if you do them all in one sitting. Give your ideas some distance before you attack your final draft. You may know what you're saying when you're writing it down, but often you'll find that when you come back to it later, you didn't say what you meant.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A LETTER MAKES:
Spell checkers will catch some spelling errors; a combination spell checker and grammar checker will catch even more. But the following slips will slip right through: Gums kill, so the right to bare arms is not in the pubic interest. Pretty funny--but not if it costs you a sale.

Proofread your manuscript word-by-word--but again, not right away. The mind sees what it expects to see, so wait until the words are no longer fresh in your mind (at least a couple of days). And don't proofread on your monitor screen; for some reason, errors show up more easily on paper copy.

ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH
Here's a trick professional proofreaders use: read the copy once for sense and structure; read it a second time, backwards, to catch spelling errors. Another method professionals use requires the help of a friend. One person reads the copy aloud, including punctuation and font style, while the other person checks the copy against what the first person is reading.

IT'S AS GOOD AS A MATCH
Beginning writers often have trouble with parallel construction, that is, making the elements in their sentences match. For example, the following construction is not parallel: My favorite sports are golf, tennis, and to horseback ride. The phrase "to horseback ride" doesn't match, and here's why: golf and tennis are both nouns; to horseback ride is an infinitive phrase.

Here's the correct way: My favorite sports are golf, tennis, and horseback riding.

Too technical? Then do away with the grammar-speak. You can still see that the first part of the sentence doesn't match with the rest of the sentence. You would not say, for example, "My favorite sports are . . . to horseback ride." Not on a good day, anyway.

Let's look at another sample sentence:
I like to leap tall buildings in a single bound, change my clothes in phone booths, and my X-ray vision.
Take the first part: I like to
And match it with the other parts, one at a time:
I like to . . . leap tall buildings in a single bound --Okay.
I like to . . . change my clothes in phone booths --Okay.
I like to . . . my X-ray vision. --Uh-oh.
Here's the corrected sentence: I like to leap tall buildings in a single bound, change my clothes in phone booths, and use my X-ray vision.

COME TO SOME AGREEMENT
Some beginning writers stumble when it comes to subject and verb agreement. The more complex the sentence, the easier the fall. You can remove these stumbling blocks by identifying the subject in each sentence. Read the following two examples and choose the correct verb in each one: Not one of the rose bushes [is/are] in bloom yet. A computer, along with a modem, printer, and a fax machine--not to mention the requisite paper, pens, and pencils--[is/are] imperative in a home office. The answer in both cases is is, since both sentences have singular subjects (one and computer). Don't be fooled by the words between the subject and verb. And whatever you do, don't go by how it sounds. Simply identify the subject and match it to the verb. If you're not sure whether the subject is singular or plural, look it up in a dictionary.

CHOOSE YOUR WORDS WISELY
There are many ways for a writer to begin an article. And "There are many" is the most boring way to do so. Every time I pick up a manuscript that begins with There are many, I get annoyed. I get annoyed because I'm disappointed. I'm disappointed because when I picked the manuscript up, I was hoping I had something I could pop right in. That opening tells me I don't.

So don't start your article that way--or even a lead sentence. Boring. Boring. Boring. Having said that, I will tell you that if you look hard enough you will find an exception to that rule, especially now that I've stuck my neck out. But it's still a good general guideline.

PRACTICE PASSIVE RESISTANCE
Wait. Did I say that "There are many . . ." is the most boring way to begin an article? Actually it's only first runner-up. The most boring way to start an article is "It is believed that there are many . . ." ZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Please, don't use the passive voice unless you have a darned good reason. Here are the darned good reasons: use the passive voice when you don't know or don't want to identify the doer of the action (My wallet was lifted); use the passive voice when the action is more important than the doers (Ken was voted most likely to annoy an entire country); use the passive voice (maybe, sometimes) when anybody could be the doer (After the meat is dropped on the floor, it is picked up and put back on the conveyor belt ).

Use the active voice unless you can't get around it. The active voice is direct, dynamic and easy to understand. The passive voice is stilted, bloodless and hard to grasp. The active voice propels the reader forward. The passive voice drags and pulls and hinders the reader with two steps forward, one step back. Never give your readers pause. You might lose them.

PUNCH UP YOUR PROSE
Sweep the reader along with active verbs. Your prose is sapped of energy with passive verbs. There, you see? Go back and reread the first two sentences of this paragraph. The first one employs an active verb, the second, a passive verb. Feel the difference as you read them.

Weed out passive verbs and replace them with their active cousins. And while you're at it, check for an overgrowth of the verb "to be."

While you can't get by without ever using the verb "to be," I'll bet you your next assignment that you can seriously cut down on the number of times you use it. Strong verbs make for strong writing. You will much improve your writing if you work hard to make verbs work hard for you.

BE AN ARTISTE
Up until now, we've been talking about technical skills. Now let's turn to the other aspect of writing: artistry. When we read good writing, we respond to the writer's ideas, but perhaps even more so, we respond to the particular way the writer expresses those ideas. The artistry is in the details. So choose words whose connotations tickle the senses and titillate the imagination.

If your writing is technically perfect, but lacks artistry, you'd better say your piece quickly because your reader will soon be asleep. Don't worry about this artistry when you write your first draft though--that is the time to let your thoughts flow. Later, during your rewrite, cross out clichés, trim the trite and turn stale phrases into fresh prose.

YOU'RE ONLY AS GOOD AS YOUR WORD
Some writers eschew the thesaurus. I say buy a big one and wear it out. Use the thesaurus when you're looking for the perfect word to convey just the right shade of meaning. If the word comes to you willingly, that's great, but the thesaurus will help you to coax those bashful words into the forefront of your memory.

Use the thesaurus to help you jump-start your creativity when you're just plain stuck. The next time your blocked, flip through its pages at random. As your eyes light on words, your mind will automatically free associate and ideas will come forth. Soon one of those words will act as a springboard for your next paragraph.

Do not use the thesaurus to find a twenty-five-dollar word when a two-dollar word can say what you mean. With words, bigger definitely isn't better.

PUT THEM ALL TOGETHER
Read something you wrote aloud. How do your sentences flow? Do they move you through the piece with a rhythm that's regular enough to dance to? Well, cut that out. It's boring.

If your sentence structure falls into a predictable singsong pattern, get in there and edit. Break some sentences into two. (Short, choppy sentences deliver impact.) Join other sentences together to improve the flow of yourideas. Turn others around backwards. As a general rule, the important ideas belong at the end of the sentence where they pack a bigger wallop. If you don't surprise your readers now and then, you won't keep their attention.

Okay, we've covered the seven most common manuscript mistakes that stand in the way of sales. So the next time you have that perfect idea, before you put your manuscript in the mail, check it for 1) spelling, 2) parallel construction, 3) subject/verb agreement, 4) word choice, 5) active voice, 6) strong verbs, and 7) varied sentence structure. And make that editor beg for more.

Linda Avey Bullock is co-author and editor of Effective Business Writing, former editor of Women as Managers, and editor of the forthcoming Survival Guide, a women's ezine that covers trends, travel, health, and the best and worst on the Web--with a touch of sass and a lot of class. She is currently working on her second humor book.