From a rejection I got last week:

"I liked the writing here, but I'm afraid I felt there wasn't enough to the story beyond the ground situation and the protagonist's character."

and from a rejection (for a different story, from a very different market) I got this week:

"It's well-written, and there are some brilliant flashes of humor here. The characters are well-developed and interesting. That being said, we feel that the story relies too much on characterization and too little on plot, at least for our purposes."

So, within a week, two rejections saying nice things about prose, well-developed characters, etc., but indicating insufficient external plot.

Now I'm not complaining here...I mean, sure, the least flattering acceptance is better than the most flattering rejection, but if you have to get rejections, it's much better to get rejections like these than the "did not meet our current needs" kind....*but*....this trend is very funny to me, what with my much-observed affinity for everything pulpy and ridiculous and all. This not a problem I'd ever expected to have. I mean, come on, my last published story actually had the phrase "Zombie Apocalypse" in the frickin' title! But I guess...somewhere down the line...maybe I've been over-correcting lately?

In any case, note to self for future stories: Less coffee-drinking conversation scenes, more laser-gun battles with bug-eyed aliens!