I'm new to Medium and have been getting discouraged by the *crickets* I've received from my first couple of submissions to partner publications. I'll definitely try Illumination in the near future.

As the poetry editor for my MFA program's online litmag, I know how hard it is to choose among hundreds of deserving (and less deserving) submissions. And I know how painful (and how tedious) it is to send out hundreds of rejection emails. But it's simple courtesy, the very least we owe to every writer who shares their creative efforts with us.

Frankly, I'm surprised and disappointed that Medium does not require their partner publications to commit to that same courtesy.