THIS is amazing! Getting rejected for submissions is part of the process, and most of the time a quick automated letter rejection is a great favor publishers can do for you. (They are super super busy.) This rejection took a bit longer, because A) it's a huge well  known publisher with a ginormous backlog and B) the submission staff thought to take time out and give me the holiest of holy grails of rejections, a personalized note with helpful advice.  

Dear Ms. Kurisato,

Thanks so much for submitting to (redacted), and for your patience while

we evaluated your story. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that "Redacted"

isn't quite right for us. This is unique and has a nice savvy voice.

Stories with really direct exposition are a difficult sell here, even

when it's necessary to the style, as I believe it is with " Redacted."

This is also probably a wee bit too experimental for our readership,

though that alone isn't enough to garner a rejection--the right story

is the right story even if it's weird! I do wish you the best of luck

placing this one elsewhere.

Please send us more of your stories in the future. I've read some of

your other stories and was excited to see your name in our inbox.

Best,

(Redacted)  Submissions Staff

How cool is that? That submissions group is a nice bunch of folks, and it's heartwarming to get a personal note rather than a boilerplate response.  Yay me. Now to tinker with the story and send it back out while I work on the novels and the other shorts.