Have you ever worked up the courage to submit a piece, only to have it rejected? If so, then you will appreciate this little poem by Verla Kay:
Rejection
It hurts to get a simple form —
You wanted so much more,
A note extolling your great work,
A check, and “We want more!”
Instead you read a form that says,
“We’re sorry this is not —
Exactly what we’re looking for….”
You shout, “IT WAS! (I thought.)”
Okay, let’s get real: Not everything we write is fit for publication. I honestly believe many of the things I wrote in the early years were my “teaching tools.” They were never meant to be read by the masses. They were meant to teach me how to write.
But, oh! The pain of those first few rejections. They were like a knife in the heart! My tender spirit was bruised. How could that mean editor not fall in love with my little baby? Didn’t he/she know the value of my piece? Could he/she see the brilliance? Wasn’t the world waiting in anticipation of the release of my words?
You might not go through as many rejections as I did before you finally get “that” letter or “that” call. You must just experience one or two rejections. Regardless, it’s good to understand the rejection process.
Here are some basic facts about rejections:
They are simply opportunities:
- To re-analyze your work
- To submit to other houses
Editors rarely (if ever) relish in hurting feelings
- After all, they have feelings too!
You can remove the word “rejection” from your vocabulary and replace it with the phrase, “Not right for our house” or “Not right for us at this time.”
- Publishing has everything to do with timing and placement.
Rejections make you a “real” author (they’re part of the package)
- All authors go through rejections. In fact, I was told at my first writer’s conference that Stephen King went through 500 rejections before selling his first novel. At that time I probably had 20 or 30. Didn’t sound so bad in comparison!
A rejection might be painful, but placing your piece with the “wrong” house could be even more painful!
Did you know that rejections grow character? It’s true! And believe it or not, dealing with rejections gets easier with time. Whenever I get a rejection letter, I say to myself, “Oh, wow! If that publisher doesn’t want it, I can’t wait to see who does!”
Now that’s the way to reject rejections!
