In a very honest essay about persevering as fiction writer (and having the faith to try it in the first place), Eva Lomski discusses how she manages the submissions and rejection process:
The best way I found to avoid misery over rejection was to ensure I had as many stories on submission as possible, so that when the inevitable email arrived, my emotional investment was left relatively unscathed. Every so often, I went through the spreadsheet, counted my “successes” and calculated my hit rate. It remained stable.
Click here to read Eva’s entire essay, in the latest Glimmer Train bulletin.
Read more essays on the writing life at Glimmer Train’s site:
- Some Things I Didn’t Realize About Myself Before I Wrote Them Down by Stefani Nellen
- Write Locally by William Luvaas
Jane Friedman has spent nearly 25 years working in the book publishing industry, with a focus on author education and trend reporting. She is the editor of The Hot Sheet, the essential publishing industry newsletter for authors, and was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World in 2023. Her latest book is The Business of Being a Writer (University of Chicago Press), which received a starred review from Library Journal. In addition to serving on grant panels for the National Endowment for the Arts and the Creative Work Fund, she works with organizations such as The Authors Guild to bring transparency to the business of publishing.
I’m heading over now. Thank you, in advance, as this is something I am experiencing at the moment!
Jane, I like the idea that you’re trying to teach social media without making those who implement social strategies “feel like marketers”. I’m sure you may already know (or know about) Scott Stratten at http://www.unmarketing.com. It seems as though the best types of marketing in the digital age seem like anything BUT marketing; they seem more like, to use Scott’s URL, “un”marketing. Happy new year. Joe Kovacs
That is excellent advice!
Thank you for great suggestion! I recognize myself in some moments 😉