Had my first rejection today

[rubberglove]

Does this mean I can't write, or my book isn't marketable?

Or should I submit to another agent?

[LadyMaryCreepyCrawley]

It means just keep going! It doesn't mean anything. Think of it as dating, you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince. It's the same with agents; you have to keep sending that MS out.

[LFCisTarkaDahl]

Didn't JK Rowling get dozens of rejections for Harry Potter

Think she went on to do ok

[LadyMaryCreepyCrawley]

13 or 18. Just keep trying.

[OneHandFlapping]

Well done on actually getting to the point of sending your book out. Submit to another agent.

Did you get any feedback?

[rubberglove]

Thanks!

I suppose seeing that first rejection resurfaced the doubts. What if my writing is rubbish, why am I wasting my time etc.

But I know it is only my first rejection, likely there will be more!

They didn't offer feedback but it was a very polite letter. How do you know if they read it, liked it but it wasn't for them or they chucked it straight on the slushpile whilst laughing hysterically at it?

[Britchic]

I had my first rejection 4 years ago.... and then the next... and the next.... I have lost count, endless rejections!

However I have my first children's book coming out next year!

I gave up so many times, thinking that I wasn't good enough. My advice: keep going with as many agents as you can, and in the meantime start on something new. I know that's much easier to say with children's stories as they are so short, but the more you write, the better and better you will get, and the more ideas you will have. My story coming out next year is about the 18th I'd written!!

Most of the letters I got were standard ones, I think they do read your stories, but they have so many to read they don't have time to respond personally, and I'm sure they didn't laugh hysterically!

Really good luck, if you want it badly enough it will happen x

[Mintyy]

When I worked in a literary agency we received about 4 or 5 unsolicited manuscripts per day. 99% of them or more get rejected, there just isn't the publishing capacity for everyone's books to be published.

[ImperialBlether]

OP, have you read this rejection letter to Gertrude Stein? It's very, very funny. If yours was better than that, you're doing fine!

[GrendelsMum]

I had my first rejection letter today - I feel like a 'real author' at last!

[TunipTheVegedude]

One thing that changed my view of rejections was reading about Sylvia Plath, and how in the Hughes-Plath relationship she was the organised one that made sure stuff got sent out again immediately it got rejected, and that was important to the success of both of them.
Sending stuff out repeatedly, without allowing yourself to get disheartened, is just part of the deal, even for genius poets, let alone the rest of us.

[GrendelsMum]

Good old Sylvia Plath - that's not something I expected to hear about her!

[TunipTheVegedude]

Exactly

[sadeyedladyofthelowlandsase]

I got rejected today - YAY! I have been expecting the rejections to pour in (submitted to five agents), and when it appeared in my inbox, I felt 'Finally! Something I've been expecting to happen!' and laughed about it to DP.

Then I went upstairs, reread the letter from ex that inspired the whole bloody book and sobbed for a bit. But tomorrow I will submit again! And again! And again! But I need to get pissed and feel a bit maudlin tonight. I have been rejected. They don't love me.

[TunipTheVegedude]

Congratulations on your first rejection

Read 'On Writing' by Stephen King. He had a special spike on his wall for keeping his rejections on but it got full up. IIRC he quite liked getting his first rejections because it made him feel like a proper writer.

And (assuming you have already made it as good as it could be) send it straight out again, yes?

[sadeyedladyofthelowlandsase]

Thank you for your congratulations

Onwards and upwards... Time to hit the next round of agents!

[ImperialBlether]

Sadeyed, you can submit to several at once, you know. Some don't even reply (personally I think that is really rude not to send at least a standard rejection letter) so don't put all your hopes in one agent.

I've had some rejections lately but then I sent someone three chapters of a book I wrote a couple of years ago and I've been asked to send it all in, so we'll see.

You have to have really thick skin, don't you!

[sadeyedladyofthelowlandsase]

Imperial, yes I've sent it to about five different agents, thinking that rejection would sting less if I had other people still to hear from! I've had to really toughen myself up every time I check my emails.

Congratulations on getting so far as getting someone interested! Hope you get good news

[ImperialBlether]

Thanks, but I'll probably never hear another word from them!