So, I submitted a short story or two to an online publisher and got rejected. Not only did I get rejected, but I got slated. According to the publisher, I wasn’t taking writing seriously. I can handle criticism about my work and what needs to be improved. I relish it in fact. This is what helps to make my work better and is what I strive towards. However as an aspiring writer, it’s quite hard to hear that you’re not taking it seriously. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. I write all of the time and have been too afraid to call myself ‘a writer’ or even to tell the people around me that this is what I want to do. Am I taking it seriously when I write each day, have joined a writing group, am researching the market, am outlining my stories, have many stories in development and carry a notepad with me where-ever I go just in case I have a wave of inspiration? How do you know when you’re a good writer and when you really suck? How do you know when you should leave it to the professionals and just read instead? Perhaps, I should write for my pleasure and not inflict it on anyone else? Or, maybe, I should work harder, prove the publisher wrong and show my dedication? Has anyone else had experiences like this? I’d love to hear them.
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I’ve been publishing a small press magazine in Australia for almost ten years and I’ve had a few simialr experiences and heard a few stories similar to yours. And, in several cases, the work that was so harshly slated went on to be accepted by someone else or won a competition. You seem to have a healthy attitude toward rejection so please don’t give up. Some editors are so good they almost make you feel honoured to receive their rejections but others are like the one you encountered and the power has gone to their heads. Sounds to me like the publisher is the one not taking his job seriously, letting ego override common decency, destroying instead of nurturing. Submit somewhere else, and remember the scene in Pretty Woman where Julia Roberts goes back to the shop assistant who rejected her. Perhaps one day you’ll be famous and you can go back to that publisher š Good luck!
Thank you for your comment! I won’t be giving up that easily. š I do think that publishers should nurture instead of being so harsh and deliver their feedback in a constructive way.