Never Underestimate the Power of a Rejection

[Dennis]

When submitting his book in 1990 to publishers, Henry Petrofsky, author of "The Point of the Pencil : THE PENCIL: A History of Design and Circumstance," was criticized by a publishing house editor for using the word 'pencil' too many times in his book!

Check out this great essay by DiAnn Mills.

A writer writes.
A writer edits.
A writer submits for publication.
A writer is rejected.
A writer . . . ?

How do you handle rejection?

http://www.bookdaily.com/authorresour...

[Ellis]

I suppress my reactions and let them gnaw at my soul.

[Carole]

lol. I don't even hear them. I know something better is on it's way!!

[J.M.]

I received many rejections over the years (before self-publishing was a viable option). The first couple naturally really bothered me, like I wasn't good enough. But over time, I just kept writing and reading, and learning, and I think rejections were part of that learning curve. I think eventually I developed thick skin, so I almost expected the rejections (not sure if that's a little defeatist!) and they never bothered me when they arrived. I count myself as lucky though, as I received quite a few favourable rejections (if there are such things!), from both publishers and agents, who said they thoroughly enjoyed my submissions, they just weren't suitable for the lists at that time (ah, don't you just love the publishing world?). I used those to spur me on, knowing that if they liked it, then I had to be doing something right!

[Carole]

Great post JM. I think it gears up our drive and determination. I think indies are special. They don't take no for an answer and find a way to do what they think is right.

[Rayne]

Great article Dennis, I love your acronym! I just finished self-publishing my first book (gulp) and was given some excellent advice. I was told to give it (pre-release) to 20 people for feedback and gather 3 "publish-able" reviews.

The feedback I received from friends was incredibly helpful and I found it easy to edit the book based on their comments and suggestions. Then I paid for 3 reviews and was given one. Three of the reviews were great, but the review I paid the most for ($450 Cdn.) gave me an awful review! But, the main point they made had been made by one of my friends and I hadn't fully implemented it. So, while it stung at the time, it turned out to be a blessing. I edited it and the story is more fluid and has less redundancy. I'm much happier with it.