The Value of a Good Rejection

When you’re on the publishing trail, it can sometimes get frustrating to receive rejection after rejection in the mail. A skinny envelope comes back to you and your heart sinks when you see the small, unsigned, impersonal slip finding your work inadequate, right? However, it’s important to look up and remember that there’s a wide range of rejection, and some of it is very positive indeed.

I always think fairly positively about rejection slips. At a bare minimum, it’s an acknowledgement that my work is out there, getting read by editors (or at least their interns). And more and more these days, I’m getting a range of what I call “good rejections.” Those are when the customary slip is included, but an editor has taken the time to write a note on the slip. Every now and then a handwritten message will be jotted down: “nice work, but not for us” or “lovely writing, but too long”. There might be a message about what’s wrong with the story, and even this is positive; the editor liked the story enough to take the time to tell you how to improve. What’s most encouraging is when the editor says “not for us, but send another.” This means the editor liked your writing. The story you sent, possibly for topic or length problems, isn’t what they want, but they like you enough to ask for more. This is a very positive sign and I always save these good rejections, reminding myself to immediately send another story to that publication. When you get a good rejection like this, reference it in your cover letter so they’ll remember how much they liked you. It’s a little bit of a foot in the door.

Be sure to save your good rejections and look back on them whenever you’re feeling down about your publishing prospects. They’re a useful barometer of your progress — if you start getting more and more good rejections as you go along, you know you’re on the road to publication.