There are lots of reasons a submission might not be right for a fantasy market. The following is just a few of the most common (and often easily avoidable) mistakes.
Check market/editor rules for electronic submissions. Often markets will simply delete any submission that comes in as an attachment, rather than straight text in the body of an e-mail.
Most often editors (or more likely slush readers) will choose to avoid the potential risk of opening attachments by simply deleting them. It's not wise to tempt the Fates too much by opening thousands of attachments sent from all over the world.
The story doesn't match the theme of the market.
Just because your story is in the same genre does not mean it fits the goals of the editors. Stick to telling good stories. Create memorable settings (use all the senses) and interesting characters (give readers a reason to care about them) and sales will come easier. Be as original as you can in plot and setting without violating verisimilitude or the genre norms. The odds are stacked against an all-too-familiar setting or theme.
Know your market audience.
Editors have a responsibility to honor the promise their page, paper, or magazine has made to their subscribers. They won't buy a story that does not fit or that would alienate potential readers. When it comes to Fantasy (and most SpecFic) niche markets are hard to write into. Keep graphic scenes of violence, gore, sex and profanity to a PG-13 (as well as relevant and important to the plot). When it comes to fantasy there is always a more creative way to do the mundane without alienating readers.
Avoid the slow start. Short stories, regardless of genre, don't have the same freedoms of longer work. Get things movin'!
Don't waste the first 500 words of your 5k story to describe the history of the plant life. Readers of short stories are not going to spend a lot of time reading this one story. Editors will spend even less. If the reader doesn't care by the end of the first page, you may have to rewrite. Give your readers a reason to care... a reason to turn the page. This usually means a character or a question they care about.
Pay attention to your characters (or great story/idea/premise, but I just didn't care about him/her/them/it/etc).
The most brilliantly written plotlines will fail if the reader/editor doesn’t give a hoot about your MC. Worse yet, if they actively take a disliking to the cast you've created.
Over-used plot devices.
Almost anything that is derivative. Fantasy means a lot of things, but if most readers are faced with yet another hero slaying dragons, a deal-making devil, elves or fairy private investigators, or ancient gods who rent apartments in the city or (god help you) another sparkly vamp, you have increased the odds your story gets bounced in the trash. Sure, there are always exceptions, but odds are against you. Good rule of thumb: the less your story reads like ANY gaming session, the better your odds.
Deus Ex Magic (machina).
Editors tend to buy realistic fantasy in which magic is a believable tool that is useful without being the center of attention. Dueling wizards with wands and fireballs at fifty paces fails to grab most editors' interest. It can also be a sign of lazy writing when an author simply waves his hand or wrinkles her nose to fix the universe or put the planet right again. If it was that easy then the story should be very short.
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