The Gift of Rejection?

Posted by Marian Lizzi

I stumbled upon this wonderful essay by Kathryn Stockett (author of The Help), which appears in a collection called The Best Advice I Ever Got. In it, Stockett describes enduring—and learning from—no less than 60 rejections from literary agents before the novel found an agent and, shortly after that, a publisher.

We've all heard stories of bestsellers that, at first, no one wanted. Harry Potter comes to mind—and I've published a few long-rejected projects myself, including Gavin Pretor-Pinney's The Cloudspotter's Guide, which was rejected by 28 publishers in the UK before finding a home on both sides of the Atlantic. Conversely, like every editor who's been in the business for a decade or two, I've passed on projects that went on to great glory (but let's not dwell on those).

In a way, these slush-to-success stories are like fairy tales for the creative set—and for anyone else who longs for things to finally take a turn for the better. Stockett's story also serves as a reminder for those of us who reject submissions for a living (OK, we publish them for a living, but in doing so we have to reject all but a select few). Within every submission lies the potential for a great success story. It might not be obvious. It might not be "fully baked." It might not be "for us." The potential might not ever be realized—or even have a fighting chance to be. 

But in the same way that a tough primary season makes a candidate stronger, more focused, and more battle-ready for a general election, the submission process, with its ups and downs (OK, it's often mostly downs) can help an author refine a proposal or manuscript in ways that can make all the difference.

If you read Stockett's essay, you'll see that she didn't simply re-submit the manuscript, in its original form, over and over until she found a willing agent.  Nor, for that matter, did she decide to self-publish it as-is. She revised and retooled, with painstaking persistence. In short, she never stopped working to make the book better.

If you're an author who hasn't yet gotten to Yes, think of this trying, humbling process as the best writing workshop you'll ever attend. It will require flexibility, humility, and determination. It will bruise your ego, consume your waking hours, and require you to shift gears and dig deeper at the very moments when you most feel like giving up.

While I can't guarantee you'll have a  mega-bestseller in the end (side note: the movie version of The Help hits theaters August 12), I can assure you that your book, and your writing, will be better for it.

Comments

[Michelle Witte]

I've come to realize this in my own writing, as well as in reading books that were accepted probably too early. The refining process that happens through rejection is invaluable if you use it well. While no one wants rejection, it can be the greatest tool a writer can have.

[Susan Arscott]

True but painful.

[Lucy Tomkins]

This is useful advice. Having submitted the first 3 chapters + synopsis and blurb to 2 agents and 1 publisher, I shall now pour over my manuscript whilst I wait for replies so that I have a good feeling about where next to try if & probably when my manuscript comes back.