The Worst Part

For me, the worst part of writing is the waiting... for a reply from editors. I don't blame them because they are busy people with more than just my contribution to consider but that doesn't alter the fact that I hate it.
I remember reading once in a book produced by the Writers Bureau that if you hadn't heard from an editor in 6 weeks it was a good sign. It meant that your piece had made it past the initial read and rejection stage. Unfortunately I don't think that the same holds true today. It seems that a wait of three months or more is the norm - at least for those of us that haven't built up an individual one to one relationship with an editor yet.
It is weeks since I heard anything - good or bad - about aomething that I submitted. Espresso fiction said to give them a nudge if I hadn't heard from them in six weeks. Well it's two weeks since I gave them that nudge and I still haven't heard from them.
I look at my list of when I sent what to where and try to work out if there's a pattern to the acceptance/rejections that I've received in the past but so far I haven't come up with one. There's an Australian magazine that I submit to and in the past they have taken between 2 and 6 weeks to reject a story. I've had one with them for 10 weeks now but I'm trying not to get too excited as this could just be a new rejection record. It took them the best part of 7 months to accept the last story that they took from me so I might still have a bit to wait. They pay well so it will be worth it in the end.
I think that it's the not knowing that bugs me. Obviously I want an editor to want what I have sent them but if they are going to reject it I'd rather know so that I can look at it again and resubmit. By that same token I want an editor to give my work due consideration. My mother (should that be a capital M) would say that I want to have my cake and eat it. She wouldn't be wrong.
I understand why I have to wait but I don't have to like it.