What? You're thinking I'm crazy or had a momentary lapse in judgement. Why would I embrace a failure? Well, it's not a failure, if you put your work out there and one publication rejects it. There could be a number of reasons your work was rejected:
Rejection is not bad. You can learn valuable information from rejection. Sometimes an editor will take the time to tell you how to improve your writing. They may also steer you towards another market, if they really enjoyed your story and think it would fit better with another press. You learn how to research markets, write better letters, and write better stories from submitting to an editor and being rejected. You learn how to accept a rejection. It's just one letter. There are plenty of markets.
My chapter of the Horror Writers Association asked members to share their favorite rejection letter or their most recent letter. I think this is a valuable learning tool for any writer, so I am going to share my latest rejection letter here. Enjoy! *snickers* Seriously, read your rejections. They won't bite you. They're just words. They're not a reflection of you as a person. Rejection isn't scary; it's an opportunity. I've deleted the editor's name and the publication for professionalism, but here is the exact email:
Dear Nora,
I greatly appreciate you sending in your story for consideration in --; unfortunately, I will not be using it for the anthology, though I did enjoy reading your work and I wish you all the best in finding an excellent home for your piece.
Take care and keep writing ...
Guess what I have been doing? I've been writing and you should too.
No comments:
Post a Comment