Rejection. That word conjures up a lot of negative energy for most of us. You’ve waited weeks, maybe even months to hear back from the person you sent your query letter. You have  placed your hopes, dreams, and ambitions for becoming a writer inside that envelope. Your expectations are high. You’ve written the best manuscript you could, you’ve edited and re-edited and you’re ready to send it out as soon as you get the word that it has been requested.  And then it comes. The SASE (self addressed stamped envelope) with your writing on the front. This is it. The moment of truth has arrived. Do they want to read my manuscript? Am I one step closer to my dream, or am I back to square one, having to start the process over again?  You tear open the envelope in anticipation and read the words, “Sorry, your manuscript is not for us, at this time.” Or words to that effect. Dissappointment rises. You feel like a failure. You’re writing is not as good as you thought. In fact it stinks because they didn’t like it. I might as well give up! WAIT ONE MINUTE!

Rejection is not the end of the road for you! In fact it can be a new beginning. Remember, that letter came from ONE PERSON and it is ONE PERSON’S OPINION! Now is not the time to throw in the towel. There are hundreds of editors and agents out there,  get busy and send out another query. If you’re lucky, the person who wrote the rejection will add a line or two telling you why they didn’t like your submission. In my case, the agent told me,  my narrative was cold, and didn’t make him feel like reading any further, and that he didn’t care for writing that included religous themes. I was crushed for a moment. I threw the letter up on a shelf and refused to read it, or my manuscript for a couple of months. But then I got over it and remembered that a writer has to have patience and perserverance above all else. (Developing a thick skin will help also) I had to remember that rejection isn’t personal, it is business. It was right then and there that I decided to make that rejection letter work for me. I took it down from the shelf and read it again. The writer said my narrative was cold. If he was right, I could fix that. I got out my manuscript and began reading. I decided he was right, it did read a bit cold and emotionless. So I set about revising it and spicing it up a bit with dialogue and action.  I began another REWRITE. 

Next I looked at his other reason for rejecting my manuscript. He didn’t like works that included religion.  Well that was an integral part of my story, so I knew I wasn’t going to change that. But what I did decide to do was more research on which agents WOULD like a book that featured religous backdrops in a book. I looked at books that were similar to mine and began making a list of who the agents were who represented the writers of these kinds of books. I did some research on each one and picked the one I felt most closely reflected my ideas and goals. Then, I revised my query and sent it out to that person. What happened? She asked for a synopsis and the first three chapters of my manuscript! Eventually she asked for the entire manuscript and ultimately decided to take me on as a client.

I made the one rejection letter work for me and as a result got picked up by and agent and she was able to get me picked up by one of the big ten NY publishers!  I can’t promise you that your story will end like mine did, but I can tell you that you will GREATLY increase your chances of getting accepted instead of rejected time and time again if you make your rejections work for you as I did. Don’t take rejection personally. Learn from it, revise your submission and send it out again.  And the most important thing: NEVER GIVE UP!

Key Number 2  Rewrite! Rewrite! Rewrite!

This should really have been Key number one.  Okay, so you’ve labored long and hard and have finally written “the end” to your very first novel. Congratulations! Finishing is your very first hurdle and is not to be taken lightly. You love your book, your family and friends rave about it.  But is it time to begin sending it out to prospective agents or publishers? Absolutely not! Surprised, hunh? Once you get your story down on paper, this is just your first draft.  Your manuscript should go through second, third, fourth, or even more drafts before it’s polished enough to begin sending out. Even bestselling authors must edit the first draft and revise it before submitting it to thier editors.

Rewrites are part of t-phe business. This is a fact of life.  And it is a process that will make a poor writer better, a good writer great, and a great writer a best selling author! (well, sometimes.) Writing is just like any other craft. You must work on your skills to become the best you can be.  The common misconception among beginners is that “If they like my story enough, THEY will fix all my errors and make my story better.” Nothing could be farther from the truth! Most professionals are extremely busy. Most credible agents and editors, have multiple clients that they currently represent and must shuffle through hundreds of submissions per day to find new clients. Put yourself in thier shoes. Would you read a submission that is sloppy, riddled with errors, some so common that a simple spell check would fix them, and just overall unprofessionally put together with the thought, “That’s okay, I can fix this for them later?” Not hardly. Chances are you’re so busy taking work home each night and on the weekends has become a course of business for you. Why would you add correcting spelling and grammar so that I can read this, to your already long list? A well written,  revised, error proofed, manuscript  together with a story that takes thier breath away, is every agent or editors dream.  Doing your best to deliver what they’re looking for should be the goal. This will go a long way in setting your work above the rest. Remember, a submission is the first impression  the agent or editor gets of you. If your submission is sloppy and carelessly thrown together, that’s how that person will view you. If you don’t take pride in your work, why should anyone else?  That’s all for now. More on this later. Take care! Mari

Hi,

I was working on my website and I thought about my journey to become an author. I got a lot of mis-information along the way, which made an already difficult journey even moreso. So I thought that I would start this blog to share information with others just beginning the journey, to try to make it easier for you.  Let me know if it helps and if you have had experiences that are different than mine,, please share yours as well!