the rejection book

hey, sorry to be stuck on a kind of depressing subject, but I got another rejection letter yesterday (right after that last post. Honestly!) and it had to be dealt with.

And besides, this post is all about positivity!

See, getting the letter was really quite depressing, so of course I found myself in my favourite bookshop trying to make it all better by buying books, lovely books. And then I thought:

This is going to keep happening over and over throughout my career, and I can’t just fall apart each time! I need some effective way to deal with it.

So I bought myself a notebook and started a Rejection Journal! And it immediately made me feel better. This is what it looks like:

It may sound a bit defeatist, but the whole point is to acknowledge rejection. (And it makes rejection look fun!) (Sort of.)

My feedback for Kristin Nelson Agency. (I printed the email and put it in an envelope, so that it’s really like a letter.)

Feedback for Suzie Townsend of Fine Print Literary Management. (This one was fresher, so there was more to say/rant.)

And these two are still possibilities/disappointments in the making.

I love my rejection book, because it puts each attempt in context, and it makes it feel more professional – like getting rejected is part of a process that I document.