"There is a notable sincerity to your writing which is very bright, but we feel it fades for want of polish."
*Bangs head on desk*
Would it make me a loser to admit that a rejection has left me with that sick feeling of disappointment in my chest?
And it was a great rejection letter even! Very complimentary. I am rarely complimented and rejected simultaneously... I am also rarely so determined to see my name in a particular publication, or so personally affected by rejection.
*sigh*
I think the thing that gets me is that I know they're right. I've been lazy lately, lazy and a little cocky.
Straighten your ass up Erin and ya might just eventually get in there!
Keep tryin' dear!
ReplyDeleteJust remember that editors are people too. They are subject to the same quirks and mistakes as the rest of us make. And, they can be downright wrong. I'm curious to know which publication this was...
ReplyDeletehaha I'll let ya know when I get in!
ReplyDeleteI don't think it's a point of right or wrong, but of subjectivity. To be honest, One of the pieces I sent them was just about my favorite of the poems I've written in the last year, and like I said, they were very complimentary, so they liked it too - just not enough to print it lol.
They offered to send me an 'example edit' which I'm very much looking forward to getting, not only to see what they'd like to get out of the piece they edit, but to get an even better feel for their taste in general.
I figure if they consider one of my poems, or my level of ability, worth taking the time to actually critique one of my pieces, I'll take that as a compliment!
I'm still sick about the rejection and banging my head on my desk over it, but overall, this is actually a positive thing.
Hey!
ReplyDeleteDon't know ya well, yet, but I feel ya got the spunk to weather this "rejection" out!
I'm reading "The Writing Life - Writers on How They Think and Work" edited and with intro by Marie Arana and, even with my years behind the title "writer", I'm learning to sigh about my rough spots in this crazy career. There're something like 56 different writers in the book and they range from novelists to poets to historians to .......
lol, yeah, I'll weather it just fine. God knows I've been rejected before and fully expect it to happen plenty more.
ReplyDelete