by Katherine Hutchinson-Hayes, Ed.D. @khutch0767

The next time faced with rejection, embrace it. Know that we’re one step closer to becoming a better writer, securing that coveted publishing deal, or acquiring an agent. We’re in good company if we struggle with an insatiable desire for acceptance and admiration. The need to be liked can be especially challenging for creatives. When someone rejects our work, we often personalize it and then feel rejected as a person.

Not everyone will like or get your work. I often repeat these words like a mantra when faced with rejection. One truth I’ve learned through my experience as an editor and member of three critique groups is that we can’t please everyone. Our role as writers is to find favor and please a narrow percentage of readers, not to be weakly okay to everyone.

Facing a blank screen or an empty sheet of paper after hearing no or some other unfavorable response to our writing is difficult. It takes courage to embrace rejection and move past the crippling impact it can have on our confidence and motivation. It can be done. I can’t say I’ve been thrilled by lost opportunities, silence, or form letters telling me, “This isn’t a good fit for us.” By facing each closed door, I’ve grown. It may’ve been through tears, late nights, and early mornings, but the growing pains eventually paid off. The following list shares actions we can take to help us while we wait for the right—yes. These tips will also help us prosper as writers despite the circumstances:

• Commit to being a professional and getting work done even when we don’t feel like it (don’t wait to feelinspired).
• Work on growing our author platforms.
• Seek ways to help and network with other writers.
• Consistently develop our voice and skill by regularly writing.
• Meet deadlines, even the ones we create for ourselves.
• Secure a mentor.
• Join a critique group.
• Enter writing contests (especially ones that provide feedback).
• Attend writer’s conferences.
• Read books on the craft of writing, in the genre we write, and outside the genre, we write.
• Improve self-editing skills.
• Write creatively and edit analytically.
• Don’t trust our emotions regarding our writing (whether good or bad) while in the process.
• Befriend our inner critic. Use our inner critic to our advantage by allowing full reign during editing and revisions but not during the creative process.

There’s room in the marketplace for each of us, even though the marketplace is rough and filled with rejection. But there’s a designated space on bookstore shelves for those of us who don’t give up.

Soak up advice that encourages and speaks to our writer’s heart. Ignore advice that discourages us from writing. Professionals offer constructive critiques, not mean-spirited disparagement. Whatever we do, we must not stop writing!

More important than ability, good fortune, or anything else, this journey is for those of us who persevere. Much like our walk with God, we’re in it for the endgame, and the only sure way to be defeated is not to play. By persevering in our relationship with God and our writer’s dreams, we will eventually—embrace success!

Author, speaker, educational consultant, and editor–Katherine Hutchinson-Hayes, Ed. D. has had her hand in leadership for many years. She loves speaking to groups and delivering messages with a quick wit and real-life stories. Katherine is a freelance writer/content editor, a content editor/writing coach for Iron Stream Media, and a sensitivity reader for Sensitivity Between the Lines. She is a review board member and contributor to Inkspirations (an online magazine for Christian writers), and her writing has been published in Guideposts. Her work in art/writing is distinguished by awards, including the New York Mayor’s Contribution to the Arts, Outstanding Resident Artist of Arizona, and the Foundations Awards at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference (2016, 2019, 2021, 2022). She was a finalist in the Genesis Contest ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers/Romantic Suspense 2022). She is a finalist for the Claymore Award 2022 (Thriller Division) for the best-unpublished manuscript. She is a member of Word Weavers International and serves as an online chapter president and mentor. She belongs to FWA (Florida Writers Association), ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers), CWoC (Crime Writers of Color), AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association), and AASA (American Association of School Administrators). She serves on the board of the nonprofit organization Submersion 14 and is an art instructor and virtual exhibition specialist for the nonprofit organization Light for the Future. Katherine is the host of the podcast Murder, Mystery & Mayhem Laced with Morality. She has authored a Christian Bible study for women and is currently working on the sequel and prequel to her first general market thriller novel, “A Fifth of the Story.”