# That First Submission - Devastating Letdown or Status Quo?



## The Scribbler (Mar 14, 2012)

I don’t know if this has already been done recently so forgive me if someone has beaten me to the punch. I just thought it might make an interesting topic for those who haven’t yet sent in their first love. Perhaps my humble experiences can help prepare you for that inevitable event.

I still have my first submission stored away in a specially labeled folder. It’s a historically based fictional story set during the American Revolution. I have to admit that it’s still "my baby" even after all these years, but more like a precious ring that gets hidden away only to display its glimmer on rare occasions. I still even have the 3.5” floppy disk that I used to store the files on.

It doesn’t take much to transport myself back again; printing out the final draft, signing my cover letter… packaging everything carefully into a big envelope. I make sure to send it Priority, and as I walk from the post office I cling to the mailing receipt like it’s already money in my hand. Then comes the frustration of waiting.

First month rolls by, but I figure the editor is just too busy to get to it. Third month passes away and I begin to wonder if it might have slipped behind a desk. Fifth month comes and goes and in my despondence I am forced to conclude that I never even got the courtesy of a form letter. Then, six months after the package was mailed, an item appears in my mailbox that looks strikingly like the return envelope I had included with my submission. Like a long lost friend who has risen from the tomb it stares back at me. Can it be? Has my moment finally arrived?

I take it into the house and nervously set it on the table (I should also admit that I had already come up with a few ways to celebrate). I then peel the top of the envelope back and my eye carefully slides down the page as it rises into view.

“Why would we publish historical fiction of the battle when we just published a regular history?”

… Six months of waiting for _this_! I drop it on the table and it sits there for a couple months before I finally force myself to file it away.

"If a toddler wants to walk, he's going to bump his bum."


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## dale (Mar 14, 2012)

lol. yeah. i used to let rejection slips drag me down. but i don't think there's a writer alive submitting work that hasn't gotten a fair share of them.


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## squidtender (Mar 14, 2012)

This is quite possibly the stupidest thing, any person has said, ever: If it wasn't for the rejections, getting published wouldn't be as sweet. There. I said it. It might be true (it really is), but it still sounds stupid. Hang in there, my friend. It's worth it.


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## stellar (Mar 15, 2012)

So what do you do with your 'baby'? 

I have my first novel and I've decided it's in shambles and needs loads of revisions before I bring it into the light again. But i work on it and rework it. 
I work the same parts over again and they keep coming out different evey time. It's like working with clay or silly putty. 

And I love my concept and everything about it but I don't think I can whip those 150 pages into shape. And it's so much love and effort put into it!

Should I just lock it up, throw away the key and force myself onto the other ones?
It's just so tempting (and frustrating) to go back!


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## squidtender (Mar 15, 2012)

stellar said:


> So what do you do with your 'baby'?
> 
> I have my first novel and I've decided it's in shambles and needs loads of revisions before I bring it into the light again. But i work on it and rework it.
> I work the same parts over again and they keep coming out different evey time. It's like working with clay or silly putty.
> ...



Do both. Don't give up on it, go back and do your rewrites, but also don't let it consume you and keep you from moving forward. You need to write new stuff as well. Personally, I would put your "baby" away, and start another project. Doesn't have to be a novel, could be just a short story, but move on for awhile. That will give you a new perspective and maybe help you finish it.


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## Jon M (Mar 15, 2012)

The Scribbler said:


> “Why would we publish historical fiction of the battle when we just published a regular history?”


This sounds like you might not have researched the potential publisher before submitting. They might have rejected it for that reason.

Have you submitted the story anywhere else?


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## The Scribbler (Mar 15, 2012)

I stand with you on your comments Squidtender. You don't need to worry about me falling victim to the rejection blues (though it did hit me hard when I was just starting). I am in the process of collecting as many as Stephen King talked about in his book on writing. In that sense my rejection pile has become like a selection of scout badges sewed onto my writing career. I am curious though how you handled your own first rejection.

Stellar, I have never completely locked away any of my ideas. My file cabinet has become more like a storage vault than a prison. In my humble opinion, nothing written is wasted. It's all an investment toward the future, regardless of whether or not we have the good fortune of getting a response from a publisher. Every now and then I run into a roadblock (those tough days when nothing works, when the first sentence of a chapter is lost in the void, or when no word can properly describe an emotion.) They are easier to overcome with time, partly because we have a nice storage bin to draw from. I am a believer that everything we write goes into the vault, a magical place from which we can draw inspiration. The bigger our vault, the more material we have to fill in those empty spots in future projects.

In hindsight I made lots of mistakes Jon, but the biggest was letting my emotions stop me from continuing. I also had a vain belief that I was somehow above the curve. The competing article was printed three months after I had sent in my submission so there was no way to know that. However, the magazine only rarely printed historical _fiction_... but... I was above the curve back then (a sentiment I seem to have lost with time). Also, and this is the hardest part to admit, the editor had a handwritten note on my piece (maybe he was impressed with the organised nature of the entry, I don't know) that suggested I try writing about a lesser known battle, and then suggested a few possibilities (I know now that 99% of rejections are simple form letters). I was too stuck on my pride to notice when oppurtunity was knocking. If I knew then what I know now, I would have immediately started on one of those other possibilities, if not all. I never did submit it elsewhere.


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## Jon M (Mar 15, 2012)

The Scribbler said:


> Also, and this is the hardest part to admit, the editor had a handwritten note on my piece (maybe he was impressed with the organised nature of the entry, I don't know) that suggested I try writing about a lesser known battle, and then suggested a few possibilities (I know now that 99% of rejections are simple form letters).


Well that's encouraging. If the editor thought you sucked as a writer I'd imagine he wouldn't bother with a personalized note.

I have to say, reading this, I'm kinda getting the urge to polish one of my stories and send it out -- not because I hope it will get published, but because I want that First Rejection™ experience. Haha. That's weird, I know.


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## philistine (Mar 15, 2012)

Scathing stuff. You should pick up the week's worth of fast food leaflets you've acquired, mail them back, and see if it takes them another six months to get back to you. 

In all seriousness, chin up. I save all my rejection slips, and believe me, I have a _lot_ of them. I'm still waiting for the day they accumulate to a volume great enough to warrant dropping onto my head.


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## felix (Mar 15, 2012)

Maybe WF should publish a book of rejection letters? 


I save mine too, but thus far they've all been standard rejections. I'm not surprised, as I now consider my submission to be premature. They gave me the blues for a while, but it was a valuable experience, and provided a very steep learning curve.


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## philistine (Mar 15, 2012)

felix said:


> *Maybe WF should publish a book of rejection letters?*
> 
> 
> I save mine too, but thus far they've all been standard rejections. I'm not surprised, as I now consider my submission to be premature. They gave me the blues for a while, but it was a valuable experience, and provided a very steep learning curve.



Or perhaps a retrospective of the most scathing, derisory and insulting rejections a person might have received. 

A lot of them do seem to be form rejections, though I have had the occasional 'personalised' rejection. :razz:

As for submitted work prematurely, I can definitely side with that. I think any piece, regardless the genre it may be written in, should undergo several weeks, perhaps even months of lockdown; that is, it should not have eyes set upon it for a long time. When one does eventually reread after such a lengthy period, all the jarring sentences, unnecessary verbiage and other peccadilloes will seem to greet you like a car salesman in Atlanta.


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## Potty (Mar 15, 2012)

I got my first the other week and the other half binned it! I went through the rubbish looking for it... It's got some bean juice on it but it's still worthy of starting the collection!


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## The Scribbler (Mar 16, 2012)

I'd be curious to hear some of those other rejection experiences. All of this talk about the rejection collection has caused me to dig through the vault again.

Here are a couple more samples taken from the "choice" collection;
- Saturday Evening Post, return addressed postcard; "No thank you. Editors". That's it.
- Military Heritage Magazine sent me a standard form letter, but added a line at the bottom to appreciate the path I took (using pictures of arranged miniatures to represent a battle); "Interesting approach, but doesn't really fit our profile."
- American History Magazine, attached notice; "Thanks for your submission but we shy away from this type of 'personalized' history. All Best."

And Potty, bean juice? That's awesome. It's already got character enough to be the start of a story.


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## Kyle R (Mar 16, 2012)

"Dear Sir or Madam,

Thank you for your interest in our publishing house. Your short story/novella/novel about PREMISE is ADJECTIVE, but not what we are looking for at this time.

Wishing you the best of luck in your future endeavors,

XXXX"

No effort to even personalize the form letter! LOL


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## philistine (Mar 16, 2012)

KyleColorado said:


> "Dear Sir or Madam,
> 
> Thank you for your interest in our publishing house. Your short story/novella/novel about PREMISE is ADJECTIVE, but not what we are looking for at this time.
> 
> ...



Ouch!

That's it; I'm starting a thread on this topic right away. ride:


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## Foxee (Mar 16, 2012)

KyleColorado said:


> "Dear Sir or Madam,
> 
> Thank you for your interest in our publishing house. Your short story/novella/novel about PREMISE is ADJECTIVE, but not what we are looking for at this time.
> 
> ...


LOL! It's Mad Libs!


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## Cefor (Mar 16, 2012)

I want to submit, just so I can get my first rejection letter. I think it'd be fun. Now, Duotrope, find me somewhere that will shoot down my dreams...


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## Gamer_2k4 (Mar 16, 2012)

And I'm motivated now to power through the last three chapters of my story just so I can get some feedback from publishers (even if it's rejection).


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