CH 3 WRITING THROUGH REJECTION

Learning from Rejection DRAFT

Learning from Rejection

You need to learn to analyze comments as feedback without taking them personally. People are not always eloquent, especially when taking a moment to leave you a remark about some of your writing. Sometimes their comments carry extra baggage you may not know about.

Recognize that feedback is useful when it’s objective, but it’s not always objective. It can be personality-driven and sometimes due to another piece of writing or even another author altogether.

We need to find ways to turn rejection into opportunities to refine our craft.

What Rejection Teaches Us

It is possible to turn rejection letters into useful critiques. I know that letters from some publications only let you know that your submission does not fit their requirements at that time, but anything beyond that may turn out to be a useful suggestion that would have made your story better in their eyes. Revise your bad impression with a growth mindset.

Rejections often push writers to create their best work. You might also try keeping a "rejection tracker" as proof of your persistence, and a way to see any patterns you can try to correct.

Last words

Not to beat a proverbial dead horse here, but lemonade can be produced if you find yourself in possession of some lemons. For many years, I experienced a season of irritation at the occasional bad comment. Whenever it happened, I was sure the person who responded thusly must be a jerk.

Eventually, I went through a period of an even more destructive reaction, that sent me deeper into self-questioning, followed by a time of nearly crippling impostor complex.

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