I don't think I'll ever get over the feeling of not being good enough as a writer. I just got another rejection for a short story comp that I thought I would at least be short listed for! Feeling so down about it.
Can anyone else relate? How do you get through it?
I know rejection is part of the process of submitting stories but it still cuts so deep!
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Joshua
It never ends. Remember that only between 0.1% and four percent get accepted. With several publications closing, it's only getting harder.
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Dennid
Just keep in mind, JK Rowling saw her Harry Potter book rejected by 26 publishers before it was accepted. Yes, it is demoralising.....but when you DO get an acceptance slip, cloud 9!
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Steve
I think about this in the same terms I regard relationships. If my best isn't going to work for you, then I have better lawns to mow. Wasting my time on sulking about something negative for me makes zero sense.
There's someone out there right now that will be tickled pink to see your efforts.
Find them.
Don't miss: Do any of you make decent income from short stories?
There's someone out there right now that will be tickled pink to see your efforts.
Find them.
Don't miss: Do any of you make decent income from short stories?
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John
Rejections aren't rejecting you in any way. They are simply a means to say the story you submitted doesn't work for them. That could be for any of a number of reasons. I've had some of my best work rejected -- with notes telling me how good the story is -- because it didn't quite fit the publication's needs, or because an antho had already accepted a similar story, etc., etc. I've also had rejections because my writing was crappy, or the story wasn't good.
it's not personal, it's a process. You may pour your heart and soul into the creation and editing of a work, but once it's done and you're sending it out, it's a product being sent to prospective purchasers, nothing more. At that point you should be jumping into the next story, putting your heart and soul into that.
Learn from rejections, help them make you a better writer, but don't attach personal feelings to them.
it's not personal, it's a process. You may pour your heart and soul into the creation and editing of a work, but once it's done and you're sending it out, it's a product being sent to prospective purchasers, nothing more. At that point you should be jumping into the next story, putting your heart and soul into that.
Learn from rejections, help them make you a better writer, but don't attach personal feelings to them.
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TW Robinson
"I got a lot of rejection letters in the beginning. After I started getting so many, I started hanging them on a nail on a wall where I wrote.
One day, I put one of the letters on it and the nail fell from all the weight.
So I got a bigger nail." - Stephen King.
Explore these too: I need a legit platform that pays for short and long stories
One day, I put one of the letters on it and the nail fell from all the weight.
So I got a bigger nail." - Stephen King.
Explore these too: I need a legit platform that pays for short and long stories
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Tracey
What comments are you getting please? I've had a few rejections so far and most say it didn't quite grip them enough.