Blog

Work that is rejected: one of the writer’s worst nightmares. It simply happens that we sometimes put hours, weeks, months and even years into our writing, but it keeps being rejected all over again. And very soon there is a background ‘cheering’ voice: “I completely suck! I should quit writing, there is no use. I’m just losing my time!”

And what to do then? Should we quit writing all together? Just sit in the corner and complain over our bad luck? Or is there something we can do to turn that process and experience into something positive and productive? Looking from psychological point of you, expert John Amodeo, PhD claims:

On a cognitive level, we may be afraid that rejection confirms our worst fear — perhaps that we’re unlovable, or that we’re destined to be alone, or that we have little worth or value. When these fear-based thoughts keep spinning in our mind, we may become agitated, anxious, or depressed.

A big part of our fear of rejection may be our fear of experiencing hurt and pain. Our aversion to unpleasant experiences prompts behaviors that don’t serve us.

Being human, we long to be accepted and wanted. It hurts to be rejected and to experience loss”

Further more, accepting that feeling of failure that is true for us can have a completely counter effect on our whole being, driving us away from what we are passionate about, what keeps us alive. It negatively impacts our health, our relationships and our life in general. How to turn all that experience into an opportunity to grow?

1. Acknowledge your fear of rejection

Once we acknowledge that there is a fear residing within us, that our work at this time maybe is not at its best-this is actually a first step to combat fear in positive way. By accepting that this fear doesn’t serve us, opens the door for us to move through that fear and explore what’s on the other side. By having that more gentle, kind and less criticizing relationship with our feelings that appear as a result of rejection,  we can “reset” our creative self more quickly and seize the opportunity hidden within our fear.

2. It’s a part of the process that every writer has to go through.

Nobody is born as an excellent writer. Every writer has to work on their writing craft, refining their style, improving and editing every word they write. It takes time, courage and a lot of effort –  it’s simply a continuous work in progress.

Joshua F. Millburn in his essay How to improve your writing: 3 tips says that if your want to improve your writing: ”Sit in the chair.” Sounds to easy?

These four words changed my life. For a long time, I was an aspiring writer—which meant I didn’t write much. Sure, I aspired daily, but I didn’t make writing a priority. Instead, I spent time passively parked in front of glowing screens: watching TV, perusing Facebook, checking email. I didn’t become a writer until I developed a writing habit. People don’t learn how to write via osmosis; it takes work. So forget word count or page count—focus instead on sitting in the chair distraction-free, writing for at least an hour a day. Do this for a month and you will improve more than you thought possible.

3. By embracing your rejection graciously, you are already improving your writing.

Once we become grateful for our experiences, we are more able to let go. It gives us clarity and our willingness to learn and put additional effort comes to forefront. Give back yourself permission to enjoy writing. It fuels our persistence to improve ourselves, not only in writing. No matter how many rejection letters pile up, you can use them to improve your skills. And not only will you improve skills, you readiness to write under certain conditions will improve: time you need to write something with a deadline; you get better acquainted with the writing market and that will shorten your time you need to do the research. You become familiar with your fear and with ease you recognize possible mistakes you can mitigate on time.

With each rejection you learn how to be better – as the quality of your writing improves, so does your efficiency.

How do you deal with rejection? Does it impact your writing? Please, share your experience in the comments below.

If you liked this post and you are interested in getting more inspiration for your creativity, sign up for our free bimonthly newsletter.