Editing Tip #30: Handling Rejections

Kathy Ide’s Editing Tips
© Kathy Ide, 2010

In this column, freelance author, editor, and speaker Kathy Ide shares tips on self-editing your manuscript.

~ HANDLING REJECTIONS ~

Rejections are part of the process for every writer who wants to get published. Louis L'Amour received 350 rejections before he made his first sale. James Joyce's first book of short stories was rejected by 22 publishers. C. S. Lewis wrote over 800 things before he made his first sale. Gone with the Wind was rejected by more than 20 publishers. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle was turned down 29 times.

John Grisham was rejected by about 15 publishers and the same number of literary agents. When he finally found an agent willing to shop the book around, it took the agent a full year to secure a publisher. The initial press run was 5,000. And Grisham bought 1,000 of those himself.

I don’t know a single successful author who does not have a folder full of rejection letters. The keys to overcoming rejections are:

1. Show your manuscript to readers in your target audience. Solicit their honest feedback on the content. Make revisions based on their comments. If you get positive responses, ask permission to use their statements as endorsements in your book proposal.

2. Buy, read, and study as many books as you can find about writing, particularly the type of writing you are doing. Also study books on writing queries and book proposals.

3. Proofread your manuscript carefully, looking up in Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary (11th edition) any words you aren’t absolutely certain are spelled correctly. Brush up on your grammar skills.

4. Send your manuscript to a professional editor. (If you need help finding one, e-mail me!) Make every correction noted, and take very seriously all suggestions and recommendations for improvement.

5. Study the market. What else is out there similar to what you’re writing? How does your book fill a needed niche? Make note of your findings in your book proposal.

6. Attend writers’ conferences. This is one of the best venues for new writers to market their manuscripts. Find a conference where staff includes editors from publishing houses that print the type of book you’ve written. Pitch your idea. If an editor asks you to send a proposal, you can send it as “requested material,” which will put you above the unsolicited “slush pile.”

7. If you plan to write more than one book, seek an agent.

8. If you have a way to sell lots of copies yourself, consider subsidy publishing.

9. No matter what, be persistent. Don’t give up. If God has called you to write, He will prepare the path to publication. You must simply follow that “yellow brick road” one step at a time. God knows who He wants to reach and speak to with the words He has called you to put to paper. He also knows how long it takes to get a manuscript accepted and then published and then made available to the general public. He called you to write at the exact right time for His plan and purpose. Trust Him, and trust your calling. Missionaries don’t quit when the going gets tough. Neither should you.


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NOTE: It is an infringement of copyright law to reproduce this
publication, in part or in whole, without the express permission of the
author. To request permission, please e-mail Kathy@KathyIde.com.

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AUTHOR BIO:
Kathy Ide has written books, articles, play and movie scripts, short stories, devotionals, and curriculum. Her books include Polishing the PUGS and Fiction and Truth. Kathy is a full-time freelance editor, offering a wide range of editorial services for authors and publishers. She also speaks at writers’ conferences across the country. She is the founder and coordinator of The Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network (www.TheChristianPEN.com) and the Christian Editor Network (www.ChristianEditor.com). To find out more, please visit www.KathyIde.com.