Back again after only two weeks....I'm really starting to apply myself to this blog writing caper, but I don't expect it to ever become daily - I just don't know if I could commit to that.
So, anyway...
The title of this episode is In fine Company or The mandatory rejection letter explanation blog and probably explains itself. Yes, for those who haven't guessed, I just received ejection letter/email for Jack Be Nimble from one of the major Australian publishing houses. I'll admit that it's not the first one from an agent/publisher and I don't expect it to be the last one that I'll ever get either.
While I'd be a liar if I said it was just water off a ducks back, in all honesty, it comes close.
For better or worse, when I started writing a few years ago (and still to date), every Australian writer/editor/lecturer/publisher/agent I have encountered has felt the fervent need to bemoan the difficulty to get an agent/get published/make a living. I can't remember how many time I've been told the number of manuscripts written each year verses the number that are actually published and that the average income for an Australian writer is $15k or less. These dire warnings no doubt tell the truth, and are issued with good intent I'm sure, but to me, they always conjure up the image of a 18th century black-cloaked figure, walking the streets, crying 'Bring Out Your Dead! Bring out your Dead!'
Fortunately, instead of being overwhelmed by this deluge of negativity, like a lot of writers before me, I've taken it as a challenge and picked out the important facts. Little gems such as:- Stephen King's Carrie was rejected 30 times before being accepted, Jodi Picoult had 100 rejections by agents and has gone on to write 16 best selling novels, J. K. Rowling was rejected by 12 publishers before Bloomsbury took a chance, and Mathew Reilly was rejected by every major publishing house in Sydney before self-publishing his first novel Contest.
What did I learn? Obviously, rejection letters are par for the course, and if internationally renowned writers like the ones above have received them, then I'd have to be stupid (or a God of writing!) to believe it's not going to happen to me.
So, what are the positives that I can take, and what advice can I give, from this rejection letter?
Firstly, that I did the right thing in paying for a copy editor and manuscript assessment. The publisher I sent the manuscript to does not take unsolicited manuscripts unless they come through an agent or have been assessed by a recognised manuscript assessor. This is what got me a foot in the door. Think about it...after all, you've got to spend money to make money.
Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, even though the email I received was on a form template, it did include that it was a 'well-written' manuscript. Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but the email was sent from an actual person with a 'reply-able' contact, and I'm choosing to believe that this publishing house wouldn't advice every aspiring writer that their manuscript was 'well-written'. I admit that I may be grasping at straws, but whatever gets you through the day, know what I mean?
Thirdly, while I may not be kicking my heels up in the Med, with the ink drying on a ten book deal, the rejection letter reminds me of the most important point.
It means that I'm still in the game. I'm still playing, and although I might not have won today, may not have even managed a draw, tomorrow is another day...
Which is all logical, and easier to say then believe, but despite these points there's one other reason that I can't take this rejection, or any other, too much to heart.
It's simple. I'm a writer. That's what I am and no rejection letter will ever change that.
Cheers
