Dealing With Rejection

Rejection is a common occurrence for writers. The more we submit, the more we feel its sting. However, we shouldn’t let rejection be a deterrent to writing or submitting our work. While rejection hurts initially (we are human after all), it doesn’t have to get you down. Here a few tips on how to deal with rejection as a writer.

1. Don’t take it personally.
   Editors, agents and their staffs are people, meaning the same daily tasks and annoyances influence them just as they influence you. Plus, they have a job to do. This job requires them to use their own judgment and biases to sift through material. As with any working professional, they are busy; therefore, a form letter is usually the easiest and most productive communication to use.
2. Know it is not a statement on Your Talent.
   A rejection doesn’t mean you are not a good writer. What it may mean is that your piece didn’t fit the idea of what that particular company or agent was wanting to find. Even the most talented and commercially successful writers had a hard time finding the right publisher for their first work.
3. Celebrate it and keep writing.
   One of the writer’s groups that I attend occasionally celebrates rejection letters. Why? It means they are submitting their writing not just writing. So see the letter as progress and submit to another place.

These same ideas apply even if you are a corporate writer. A business may have an idea of a certain style or a specific background. When you are passed over for another writer, it doesn’t always reflect on talent either.

Keep writing, keep looking. Eventually, there will be a match.

Notes from a Writer’s Group Meeting

Recently, I attended a writer’s group meeting. The guest speaker for the meeting was an editor, and the topic of the meeting was how not to kill your manuscript.  I wanted to share some points I learned from that meeting.

The following is a list of main points from the meeting.  

 

·         Nine in ten manuscripts are rejected with a majority due to using improper fonts or paper, having bad grammar/mechanics, or sending to the wrong agent (sending a romance novel to an agent that specializes in mysteries). Times New Roman in 12 point may be boring, but it is an industry standard and a safe choice.

·         The first page makes the impression, make sure it shines.  You want your manuscript to make it past the first stage of reading.  If the initial reader doesn’t like it, then it will definitely be rejected.

·         Good content in necessary, but something unique and fresh in invaluable.  Remember the adage there is nothing new under the sun, and plots are included.  What will make your story different is having a fresh approach to a tired plot. 

·         Avoid generalities. Be specific in your word choices – clichés and adverbs detract.   Don’t forget that images can be just as much of a cliché as phrases.

·         Evoke a strong emotion and use vivid images.  Remember it is better to show than to tell, and showing through dialogue can be the strongest choice in some situations.  A good journalist knows that quotes tell the story, and the same can be true in fiction. 

 

If you follow the advice in these bullets, then your manuscript has a better chance of standing out. 

 

In the coming posts, I plan to elaborate more on these notes and some of the others that I have left out of this post.

 

Feel free to comment with your thoughts and experiences. 

Find Great Writers to Emulate

One of the best tips I have received as a writer has been to read one author and emulate him/her.  Now, I don’t mean that a writer who is a fan of  Stephen King or Poe  should try to write exactly like them; rather, the goal is to be their equal – to write as good as they do. 

How do I do that?  Read everything you can by that writer.  If it is a news writer, Google to find his/her articles or go to the library to look for books by the author you have chosen.  Then, read to pay attention to the style.   Look at the word choice.  How are the sentences varied?  Does the writer manipulate grammar for emphasis (stylistic fragments and run ons).  How are things described – adjectives, similes, metaphors?  What elements are missing and why might the writer have left them out.  If it is a fiction book, how are the character developed and how are the themes developed.  It may sound like preparing to writer a paper for English class, but it will be worthwhile exercise. 

Next, try writing a paragraph or two using what you learned.  Do this as a writing exercise daily, and eventually, what you are learning will become part of your own style in your writing.

Have I accomplished this task? I would have to admit I have yet to reach my goal, but I am a much better writer because of this practice. 

Here are some writers that I read for this purpose: C.S. Lewis (for sentence variety and description), William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor (for style as well as character development and story development).

Anyone want to share others?