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Here's another piece of advice for writers. (Or anyone else, but writers are who I see doing this.)

When you're sending out mass email about anything, don't send it to editors, unless you know them personally.

This doesn't happen very often, but the frequency is increasing. A writer who's sent us three or four stories might send us mass mail about their new novel coming out from PublishAmerica. A writer who submitted one story to us a year ago might send us mass mail about their political opinions. A writer who queried us once might send us mass mail inviting us to join a pyramid marketing scheme. A writer who once read something we published might send us mass mail about the birth of their child.

(All of those examples are more or less made up, but some are based loosely on true stories.)

And I always politely respond with a brief note asking the person to take us off their mailing list, and most of the time they do.

But I shouldn't have to even go that far. If you have a business relationship with someone, or even want to someday have such a relationship, do not send them unsolicited and irrelevant mass email.

I'm pretty sure that what happens is these folks are just sending the message to everyone in their address book. Do not do this, unless you're really careful about who you put in your address book and you're certain that everyone there will want to read what you're sending.

I know, I know, I'm preaching to the choir. Y'all know this. I guess I'm really just complaining, in the guise of offering advice.