And Then What?

So you've sent me your pitch, and then...what happens? When it's time to set the issue contents, we look through everything to come up with a good mix that will make a really interesting and varied read. Eventually, after some pie throwing, we get an issue set, and I'll let you know if we want you to write something for us.
But what about the pitches we don't use? Ask gets a lot of pitches, many of which are really excellent, but we can't use everything.
In a perfect world, I would write a thoughtful personal email to everyone who sends in a story idea--but if I haven't managed to keep up with my email, you can check the status of issues here.