Dear John Scalzi:
When I first read your "privilege" comment on my post about professional rates for short stories, so many responses popped to mind. I thought about pointing out I was unable to respond until now because I've been working all day to support my family, which meant I didn't have the privilege of an immediate answer. Or that of course $250 is better than $100--especially on my family's tight budget--but sometimes people defer short-term gain so we can reach our long-term goals.
And most importantly that yes, I am privileged, as is anyone with a full-time job these days. But that you are also privileged to have worked your way to such writing success that you can draw a line in the ink and say below this cash point, I will not publish.
But I don't have to respond with any of that because of Jeff VanderMeer's amazing comment (pan through the comments section to find it), which to me is the final word on all this. He described so perfectly the reasons and strategies which cause writers to submit to different publications. So please read Jeff's words. And let me simply add a small "Hell yeah, Jeff! Wish I'd said that!"
Yours in privilege,
Jason Sanford