My First Rejection

 

Rejections.  Ugh!  No one likes them.  They are hard, they make you second guess your abilities, and they leave you with a question.  Do I quit or do I keep on going? 

My first rejection came at a very bad time.  It couldn’t have been any worse if I had penned it into one of my novels.

My mother had died the day before in a tragic car accident. I stood in my kitchen when my husband came in holding the day’s mail, which included the self-addressed envelope I recognized as the manuscript I’d sent to a publisher. I opened it and read the short letter telling me my manuscript was not what they were looking for.

As I look back on that day, maybe it was perfect timing.  I set the rejection letter aside and didn’t go back to it until several days later.  By then the disappointment had rolled off my shoulders like water off a ducks back in comparison to losing my mother.

When I finally returned my attention back to my manuscript, I had decided that I’ll keep on trying. But first I had to learn from my mistakes. 

Well, I’m still learning, doing my best to understand the industry, the craft, and improve where I can.

Your turn:  When was your first rejection?