Romance Weekly

If you’ve hopped over from the marvelous Brenda Margriet, welcome!

This week I wanted to know:

What is the worst rejection you ever got? And what was the best? Or the funniest? And how did these help you in your writing?

Rejection is as much of a writer’s life as … writing. Even the most famous authors have stories of how many times their work was dismissed by the people at the gate. So, I suppose the first thing you have to have if you choose this career is a tough skin.

My first memorable rejection came from a Hollywood producer. I had submitted an idea for a TV series to her, in hopes of getting that first ‘big break’. She wrote back to me, saying I should “get a real job” since I had no talent as a writer. Ten months later, my idea was a TV series with her name on it.

Obviously, her comments were devastating. But then, I realized my idea was good enough to steal and that was very encouraging. It taught me to look beyond the rejection itself to see what I could gain.

When I submitted one of my books to an editor, she rejected it because it was in first person. She was absolutely right. I changed it and it sold almost immediately.

Now, of course, there are those that just hurt. So, I have to remember this is a very subjective business. So, when I feel like curling up into a fetal position and celebrating that pity party, I have to remember that giving up is the only way to truly fail. I have to use those rejections to motivate me, to encourage me to work harder.

I believe most editors want to read good books. They want to discover talent and nurture it. And it’s up to me to offer good writing, better with every story. I work at that every day.

And funny, how the sting of the rejections fades when you get that email that says…’we would like to offer you a contract’…

Let’s see what the wonderful Jenna Da Sie has to say about her rejections….

http://jennadasie.com/