Let’s talk about success.
Two years ago, I signed my first literary contract. Today, August 18th, 2018, the day of my writevesary, I signed my 18th contract. These include poem’s, flash fictions, short stories, novellas, and novels, and range in age from YA to adult, genres from action, to dreampunk fantasy, to deep scifi.
The only reason I got to where I am, though, is because I did not, and I DO NOT (Note the change in tense) let rejections get me down, and nor should you, and nor should you think rejections only come from without. They can most certainly come from within, too.
To all of you who say to yourselves, “I have an idea for a story.” I say this. “Write it!”
To all those who have finished writing a story, I say this. “Submit it.” Send it to people who you can trust to give you honest and constructive criticism, or send it to a publisher or agent, or, if you think it’s a polished literary diamond, publish it yourself.
What I’m trying to say is, “Continue going forward.”
“But, (what if I get / I’ve received a) rejection / harsh review(?/.)”
Well, suck it up, buttercup. Welcome to the world of the creator. Almost every published author has gotten/ still gets such to this day. The difference between those who succeed vs those who fail is simple.
Winners try again.
And again
AND AGAIN.
As they say in the venerated USMC: Improvise, Adapt and Overcome. You get a rejection:
- Adapt, see why you got rejected. Sometimes you have to send to a different party, sometimes it’s your style.
- Improvise, edit, make the changes or find a new publisher.
- Overcome, Get published.
You won’t succeed if you fear failure, and while victory is not guaranteed if you continue to advance forward, failure is a certainty if you stop. Case in point:
- In 1923, George Herman “Babe” “The Bambino” Ruth Jr. Led American baseball records as both the player with the highest number of homeruns, AND as the leader in Strikeouts. Yet, because of his all-or-nothing batting style, he is still lauded and remembered almost any time baseball or chocolate bars come up in conversation.
He was not afraid to try to achieve his goal.
Now, Because I’m Canadian, let’s also include a quote from The Great One, Wayne Douglas Gretzky himself.
“The day I stop giving is the day I stop receiving. The day I stop learning is the day I stop growing. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
My point, once more, is the ONLY REASON that I feel comfortable calling myself a published, multi-genre, spec-lit author is because I moved forward. I wrote a book. I got rejected. I learned. I edited. I adapted. I looked for new publishers, and I finally signed a book deal.
Then I did it again.
And again.
And so on, and so on, for 18 times so far, and I intend to do so for as long as I can.
Don’t be afraid to write, to submit, to be rejected. Learn from it, adapt, and get creating.