"What I used to get done in a day of working on submissions,
I can now accomplish in an hour"

When I finally got my MFA last year, I started sending my stories out to publications. I used The Writer's Market (primarily) while cross-referencing which ones submitted to The Best American Short Stories anthology (this group is considered to be the "best" out there).

This process was tedious at best (and often frustrating), and The Writer's Market did not lend itself to determining where my stories would best "fit." And sometimes when I finally read through the listing, made sure it was in the anthology, printed off my story and typed the editor's name and address to my cover letter, I'd finally realize that they weren't accepting submissions right then!

So, I called my brother who is a computer guy and database expert. He created a database for me which is so clear and concise that -- at a glance -- I know exactly when and where to send my stories. Where I used to spend a day doing submissions, I could now get the same work done in an hour.

It was never my intention to market the database, but anytime I told my writer friends about it, they wanted a copy. My brother converted the database into a PDF format and I gave it to them. With their feedback, input, and overwhelming praise, Literary Database 2008 was formed and we recently decided to offer it to the writing community.

Literary Database 2008 now lists over 400 publications, and the ~200 which submit to The Best American Short Stories anthology are highlighted.