Tag Archives: Rhinoceros

Resilience from Rejection

This article in The Guardian is worth a read:

Rejection is the norm for authors. So why do we hide it? | Sophie Mackintosh

Sophie Mackintosh mentions “steadily getting rejected from every creative writing MFA (master of fine arts) I applied to, and then by dozens of agents,” but doesn’t specify how many times.

Her one published novel is The Water Cure:

The Water Cure

I was rejected (or ignored) 750 times from 2013-2019, before attracting the interest of Hodder & Stoughton’s The Future Bookshelf submission scheme in July. I’m still waiting to hear back from them. I have a feeling that I won’t!

I’ll be slightly disappointed if they reject me, but not destroyed, for after so many rejections, I’m as resilient as a rhinoceros wearing Kevlar armour! I’m ready to self-publish on KDP Select, which will at least offer immediate feedback on the worth of my Cornish Detective series.

There’s more than one way to climb the publishing mountain, so don’t be discouraged.

You’re So Vain

I was looking through the articles on books in the Guardian newspaper, finding this interesting piece in the archive about writers and vanity, written by Julian Baggini, a British philosopher.

Image result for Julian Baggini, a British philosopher.

http://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2015/feb/25/writers-vain-egotism-julian-baggini

(some great stories on writing beneath this article, and do read the comments section)

One of the first pieces of advice that I’d give to anyone considering writing a book, is to develop a hide as thick as a rhinoceros. Everyone thinks that they’ve got a book inside them, but nobody considers what will happen when the book is released into the wild!

Being an author is setting yourself up as a target for criticism and rejection. These brickbats will come from complete strangers, friends, family, readers, publishers, book-sellers and critics. That’s if they say anything at all, for being completely ignored is the usual fate of a freshly published book. This is why writers welcome adverse criticism, as at least it means that someone has noticed you.

Ego and self-confidence aren’t the same thing. We have to believe that we can write a story, or it simply won’t exist. As Rumi observed:

Image result for rumi 'Don't be satisfied with stories, how things have gone with others. Unfold your own myth.'
Being over-egotistical is a sure way of suffocating any talent that one may have. Talent needs cold and clear objectivity to be honed until it’s sharp and bright.

How do you deal with self-confidence, ego, arrogance, hubris, self-belief and vanity?

 

Seeking Divine Inspiration

I haven’t ever heard of anyone praying for divine inspiration from the patron saint of writers and journalists, Saint Francis de Sales, but I’d hazard a guess that authors ask his boss, God, for help—or seek it in alcohol.

As comedy writer Jane Wagner observed:

When we talk to God, we’re praying. When God talks to us, we’re schizophrenic.

Some writers rely on a mascot for solace, keeping it nearby when they’re working. As we’re advised to develop a hide as thick as a rhinoceros, to cope with criticism and rejection, little plastic models and stuffed rhino toys are popular.

Image result for rhino toy on computer keyboard

Whatever deity or muse you seek creative inspiration from, it’s still syphoned through your inner psyche as an author—and you’ve got the hard work of actually interpreting your ideas in words.

I refer to a folder of quotes, aphorisms and poems that I’ve collected over the years when I’m in need of a boost to my fortitude. Observations such as this from Andre Dubus III help to keep me going:

I think what I love most (about writing) is that feeling that you really nailed something. I rarely feel it with a whole piece, but sometimes with a line you feel that you really captured what it is that you had inside you and you got it out for a stranger to read, someone who may never love you or meet you, but he or she is going to get that experience from that line.

I recall the enjoyment that I got from reading Dennis Lehane, Barbara Kingsolver, Anne Hoffman and Michael Connelly and knuckle down to write something decent. Another way of motivating myself is to recall terrible writing, such as Jeffrey Archer or Dan Brown—this really lights a fire under me!

Do any of you send out prayers for inspiration?

Or, do you turn to famous writers as a way of recharging your own creative batteries?

Why all writers are vain

There was an interesting article in The Guardian newspaper by Julian Baggini, about how sensitive writers are to criticism.

jb

http://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2015/feb/25/writers-vain-egotism-julian-baggini

( some great stories on writing beneath this article, and do read the comments section )

One of the first pieces of advice that I’d give to anyone considering writing a book, is to develop a hide as thick as a rhinoceros. Everyone thinks that they’ve got a book inside them, but nobody considers what will happen when the book is released into the wild!

Being an author is setting yourself up as a target for criticism and rejection. These brickbats will come from friends, family, readers, publishers, book-sellers and critics. That’s if they say anything at all, for being completely ignored is the usual fate of a freshly published book. This is why writers welcome adverse criticism, for at least it means that someone has noticed you.