Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Spilt Milk

Don't cry over spilt milk. Everyone's heard that.

In fact, I have actually spilled milk. Depending on where it gets spilled, if you're not careful, it can leave a pretty sour smell, especially in weird corners of a car's carpet. Anyway, the best thing to do is clean it up and forget about it as soon as possible.

That applies to writing as well. I've received my share of manuscript rejections, as many authors have. That doesn't stop me. If the rejection contains constructive criticism, I follow the advise gladly and clean up my manuscript so it's ready to go out somewhere else.

What about you? Do rejections paralyze you, or do consider them challenges to progress as a writer? Please share.

9 comments:

  1. It's all in the attitude!
    I say feel the moment of rejection, take a deep breath, and then move forward!

    L. Diane Wolfe
    www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com
    www.spunkonastick.net
    www.thecircleoffriends.net

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous7:41 AM

    I keep all my rejection notices in a file and pull them out for inspiration. They motivate me. I'll show them, one day they'll be sorry for not recognizing genius in the making!

    Love the continued analogy - what's next - fine aged cheese? :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Cheese - no Marvin. Wednesday is worms. Hmm, Thursday could be cheese. Good suggestion. I'll have to think about it.

    Morgan Mandel
    http://blogtalkradio.com/booksandblogs

    ReplyDelete
  4. I wouldn't submit if I didn't want to hear "yes," but the "no's" make me feel like I'm that much closer. It's like weeding through the publications or agents or editors that really aren't right for your work. I just move forward.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've only received two rejection letters for my writing, but that has more to do with my fear of sending them out, than anything else. The books I did get rejections on I wound up selling to a different publisher. I guess it's all about finding the right market for your baby! Don't give up!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Rejections used to really get under my skin because I used to take them very personally. I know now that a rejection has nothing to do with me, and it may not have anything to do with my writing either. Unless there is clear feedback from an editor, there's no sense in worrying about why the piece wasn't picked up by that particular publication. It's better to just pop it into the next envelope and mail it back out the same day.

    Jenny
    http://theinnerbean.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  7. It wasn't that long ago that a rejection would send me into a tailspin. Now I can handle it a bit better. I might get a bit down, but I know enough to keep trying.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Grace6:30 PM

    Rejections don't stop me, they spur me on.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I was thinking of printing off all my good reviews and sending them to the people who sent the rejections letters. *grin*

    Barry

    ReplyDelete

Your Comment Is Welcome