Taking the Sting Out of a Rejection

You know, Twitter is an interesting....thing, program, or maybe a media outlet? What ever you want to call it the one thing that is true is that we can learn a great deal from it. I should correct that; we learn a great deal from those who are active on it.

As much as I like typing little updates and sharing with friends; that pales to the enjoyment I get from simply reading what others have to say. You can learn so much about the human thought process, emotions, and how people view the world around them. I am getting off topic but then again, this is the processes that lead me to my topic.

Today I was reading a number of tweets about agents and rejection letters. I know, we all say 'booooo' to rejection letters but this had a little more to it. The agent who was tweeting sympathized with authors and writers because of their frustration; not of getting rejected but of not having a reason for the rejection. We, who have submitted a manuscript, have received a rejection letter and we know first hand what she is talking about. After you receive a handful of those e-mails you begin to wonder what's wrong with your manuscript. It truly is a mystery because there is no guidance offered. This particular agent concluded that we, as writers, should continue submitting our work but to not expect anything to change - agents will not give guidance or reasons for rejections. This is a harsh truth we need to live with.

I don't know, maybe it's me, but I wouldn't say that I've been frustrated with rejection from agents. I see it as being a part of their job. That is what they do; they reject manuscripts until they find a handful that move them or can be sold to a publisher quickly (this is usually associated with a name that many recognize). No, I understand this is a business and agents must do what they have to survive in the world of publishing.

To be honest I would be much more frustrated if a critique group took my manuscript and tore it to shreds. Why is that? It is true that a critique group cannot get you published like an agent can but an agent's rejection leaves us hanging. It is very easy for us to think 'it didn't work for them but the story is good and well written.' Even after we get a dozen or so rejections we can still say the same thing because no reasons are given. In contrast to this, a critique group will give you reasons. You will not be hanging and wondering why they didn't like a part or why a section didn't flow smoothly because they will give you reasons.

Which is worse; being rejected with no reason or having problems identified with reasons? This could be seen as the chicken and the egg scenario because if we submit our manuscripts with the problems still in it then we will get rejected flat out but I'm looking at the process in which we get that information and how we react to it. This I find surprising, many will get angry and frustrated by an agents rejection but will either disregard or happily accept the negative feedback of a critique. For me it is a little opposite, I disregard the rejections from agents because there is simply nothing there to work with and really ponder on the feedback of critiques.

I really sweat when my work is in the hands of those critiquing it. That, in my opinion, is the moment of truth. If they come back with a truckload of negative feedback then I am faced with a possible major revision instead of celebrating the completion of a project. When I receive a rejection from an agent I usually read it a few times, file it away and move on to the next agent.

What I am really getting at here is this - getting rejected by an agent is not the end of the world or your project. Yes, it does sting because we know our manuscript is good but without guidance or a reason for the rejection it is just not helpful. With that said, if a critique group shreds our manuscript this too is not the end of the world; we just haven't reached the finish line yet but thankfully we now have some input to think about that just may get us there.