Rejections

            All writers fear it. All writers experience it.

            That doesn’t make it fun – except, perhaps, for sadists.

            Writing is hard work. Trying to sign with an agent can be painful, but the pain has been and still is shared by many.

            “Chicken Soup for the Soul” was rejected by 144 publishers. “Carrie” by Stephen King was rejected multiple times. J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter efforts were turned down a dozen times. Even “Gone With the Wind” and “Lord of the Flies” received multiple turndowns. There are many, many others.

            I think I hold a record, though. Let me explain.

            Very few agents take hard-copy submissions anymore. Most queries and book proposals are made electronically, including through a program named QueryTracker. That program is what I 'm using to submit a book proposal to several agents on my list.

            QueryTracker lets authors and would-be authors know the average waiting time to get a response from each agent. The average time for getting a request for more pages varies, but generally ranges from several days to a few months. The average time to get a rejection generally ranges from a few days to no response at all.

            I got a rejection in less than five minutes! Talk about feeling rejected!

            But rejection just reminds me of the following poem by Edgar Guest:

          Keep Going  by Edgar Guest

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

And the road you're trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns.

And many a failure turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don't give up though the pace seems slow,

You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than it seems

To a faint and faltering man.

Often the struggler has given up when he

Might have captured the victor's cup,

And he learned too late when the night slipped down,

How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out,

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are.

It may be near when it seems afar.

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit.

It's when things seem worst that

You musn't quit.

it.