Keeping on keeping on.
February 24, 2007
I received word this week that something I submitted will be published in The Boston Literary Magazine. I’ll post the link once it’s up.
I sent my work there as part of a new rule I have: for every rejection, I must tweak my work (if needed…usually it doesn’t…I’ve only sent the piece if I feel it’s as close to perfect as possible). Then, I make myself send the piece out to two more places.
The reason I do this is two-fold: it keeps your energy from faltering and from staying poised on the rejection. And two, I’m learning more and more that rejections are sometimes about opinions or about unsuitability for a market: your work will get published if it is good and you keep sending it out for review. It will eventually resonate with someone and voila! … you get an acceptance.
Don’t you love how I make it sound easy? It may not be, but the pretense keeps me going.
February 25, 2007 at 1:27 am
Perhaps this is a good rule. Better than my “instinctive” one in the past: If something I submitted got rejected, there’s probably something wrong with it, so I give up.
Very positive advice, thank you.
February 25, 2007 at 9:45 am
Thank you, James! Don’t give up…keep sending your stuff out!
mj
February 25, 2007 at 2:38 pm
It is comforting to know that last year a newspaper submitted two chapters of one of the Australian Nobel laureate, Patrick White’s most famous novels. Not only were they not recognised but they were also rejected…
February 25, 2007 at 4:33 pm
Oscarandre: YES! Comforting, and a bit scary. It makes one think that all the stars must be perfectly aligned to get something published: right place, right time, right submitor, right submitee (market), right story, right editor, etc., etc. It’s all a bit daunting…but when it comes together…bliss!
February 28, 2007 at 9:05 pm
Hi Mary
Congratulations on getting accepted at BLM, and thanks for the note on my blog!
March 1, 2007 at 3:14 am
“It is comforting to know that last year a newspaper submitted two chapters of one of the Australian Nobel laureate, Patrick White’s most famous novels. Not only were they not recognised but they were also rejected…”
(Oscarandre’s comment)
Saw a funny variant of the “pearls before swine” quote today that would go well with this:
http://worldsowide.blogspot.com/2007/03/on-subject-of-pearls-before-swine.html