Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The Big R

As I may have mentioned previously, I'm currently on submission through my agent with my latest manuscript. Many writers - myself included - look forward to the day when rejections are no longer a fact of life, and it's not hard to think that once you have a good agent, your days of hearing "I just didn't love this" are over.

This is sadly untrue. Yesterday my agent and I received the first rejection for this submission.

I'd been expecting it, but rejection still hurts. One of the writer's greatest challenges is to realize and accept that not everyone is going to like everything you write - and that goes for editors, readers, peers and reviewers. There will always be someone there to say no. It's inevitable.

Rejection never gets easier to take . . . but the time it takes to get over it does become shorter, the longer you stay in the game. It only took me a few hours to stop stinging and feeling resentful, and jump back into my latest WIP - a sequel to the novel that was rejected. After all, there are tons of other editors out there.

It helps, too, that I have Bernard's Letter to lift my spirits. Go ahead, click the link. You'll feel better too. :-)

In closing, I have just one thing to say:

PISS-MIDGET!

5 comments:

Julie Ann Shapiro said...

I've come to the conclusion that rejection always exists for the writer, that is, if you are prolific. Some weeks I've had rejections for a novel, stories and essays.

Whenever a rejection comes in I try to always send something else back out into submission land. It lessens the sting.

Kim Smith said...

Piss midget indeed. Sorry to hear your bad flow SW but you know what they say, "it only takes ONE yes".
hugs!

Aaron Paul Lazar said...

Re. the video - haven't we all wanted to write a response just like that to the rejectors???? Great video and article, SW. But as I always say (as your number one fan...), those that say nay to your books are missing out on potentially the biggest sale of the year. Too bad for them. The idiots. (whoops! Did I say that out loud???)

Diana Raabe said...

Well, that's another one out of the way then, right?

Good luck!

Marta Stephens said...

When one door closes, another will open. Something better is on your horizon, my dear. I know it!