Handling Rejection

I have read many books on writing and heard from editors from different countries about my attitude towards handling rejections of short stories. I want to share these experiences with you here.

Some of you may have had stories accepted or rejected for publication. Others may wish to start writing and submitting short stories. I hope what I have to say appeals to both audiences.

There is one basic fact about writing: you will have stories rejected, for most of us, much more than having them accepted. I measure my tenacity as a writer on how I handle rejection. It could be the difference between having a writing career and wishing I had one.

ejection isn’t a matter of taking advice on the chin. It is what you do with it. A boxer doesn’t like to get hit. They learn from it so they understand why they were hit in the first place, and build their skills in attack and defence so they don’t get hit again. Invariably, they will, no matter how high their skill level. It is the same for writers.

As a writer, you will get hit, as sure as you will get wet in the rain. A writer who receives criticism with a rejection slip is lucky. In my personal experience, there are three levels of rejection with the fourth being the acceptance:

Stage 1 – Rejection ‘No thanks … it doesn’t fit’
Stage 2 – Rejection with personal but general comments ‘I liked … I didn’t like …’
Stage 3 – Rejection with critique/some editorial work

Then, of course, are the idiots of the world, those mightier-than-thou editors who throw you comments which are nothing short of lunacy.

Writing is a self-improvement program. It is a constant intellectual and creative evolution I believe all writers endure. If an editor is kind enough to send through rejection comments, then take them on board. Work with those comments. Make your craft better. Don't whine because you disagree.

One must take into account editorial style when digesting these comments. What is good for the goose is not necessarily good for the gander. Like writers, editors have different styles and guides. They may have certain expectations but they only want to publish the best. If an editor doesn’t like your story, the probability that the readers won’t like it is high.

So: how do you handle rejection?

Thank the editor for their time. Theyread your work adn they weren't paid for it. Some may take time out to give comments to improve your story, so improve it, move on, and submit it to the next market on your list.

If you handle rejection badly, try and see it from the editor’s viewpoint. They receive hundreds (perhaps thousands) of stories for thirty or less slots. If your work isn’t the best it can be, you won’t make it in. Even the best stories sometimes don’t get in for no other reason than space limitations.

For one particular anthology, I submitted thirteen stories until I was accepted. The editor was kind enough to give comments on some of them. For one of the stories, the editor suggested I expand on the ideas because the story did they little justice. I took that comment on board, and it is a novel in progress.

Many (if not all) famous authors have been rejected. I understand Harry Potter was rejected over a course of eight years. Some receive hundreds or thousands of rejections.

The reason you were rejected was because you made a submission. Refine the rejected story and place it elsewhere. You will learn from your experiences, and the stories that follow will be better off for it. It will improve you as a writer and a person to accept criticism. All artists have their critics.

I will leave you with the ‘bottom line’ of rejection. If you don’t agree with my conclusion, perhaps you shouldn’t be writing. The conclusion? Simple.

Get used to it.