This is 100% true. As a former Illumination editor, one of the onboarding messages was to nurture writers as much as possible. Even when you can't publish their material, kindly tell them how to make it better instead of a flat out No.

I had a writing student from Portugal who was struggling with advanced English. He got his best pieces published here with the help of THE EDITORS. And they stressed how he should relate to the audience better. It's relational all-around.

So thank you for these insights. Illumination is a fantastic place!