According to Wikipedia (so it must be true) : The word "rejection" was first used in 1415. The original meaning was "to throw" or "to throw back". Makes sense to me.
Every author has a tale about that first rejection. I've told my story numerous times...an outrageous, 120K manuscript and 27 rejection letters...I barely knew what I was doing back then. That book didn't get published until I knocked it down to a tight 60K.
Instead of rehashing that tale, today I'm going to talk about reviews. Obviously the word rejection shouldn't go hand in hand with the word 'reviews', but occasionally, ouch. In my defense, I've received many more good and decent reviews than negative ones. But those first few bad and so-so comments stuck with me.
There was the man (I'm picturing a middle-aged, paunchy man) who didn't care for my first romantic suspense novel and said it read like a romance novel intended for women. Huh? Excuse me? He was obviously not my target audience.
Some reviewers haven't liked my sex scenes, thought the supposedly sexy dialogue was cheesy, and didn't think I'd rounded out my characters enough. These are all points other people/reviewers have loved about my writing, which goes to show taste is subjective. An early reviewer rated my story in an anthology very low, suggesting it smacked of incest because my ghost was acting promiscuous in front of her ghost father.
Oops. My ghost bad. Okay, that one's not available anymore.
A while back I opened my email to another review. I'll share the last line with you.
It is short, which made it easier to get through and fans of the author’s writing may enjoy this story, as it’s typical of the writing and plot of her offerings.
Typical. Ouch.
One of my critics said, "That's just not the type of book I like to read." (I hate to break it to you, Mom, but that's the kind of book I like to write.)
Fortunately, there are people (and reviewers) who like my work and seem to get what I'm trying to do.
Some of my favorites include:
The talented Jamie Hill creates a story of romance and suspense that is both sensual and realistic.
A short story that will have readers seeing the light that is Jamie Hill.
Jamie Hill is at the top of her game with her new release and I look forward to reading more from her in the future!
Bottom line for me...rejection sucks. It stings, but I try not to sweat the small stuff and take joy where I can find it. The 'light that is Jamie Hill' line brings a smile to my face every time.
Find all my titles here: http://www.jamiehill.biz/ or at my publisher's website, Books We Love: http://bookswelove.net/authors/hill-jamie/ and if you've enjoyed something I've written, please leave a review on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0044DJ9TM
Go ahead, make my day.
Jamie, needless to say, I can more than relate. I've often reminded myself that if I let a negative review get to me too much, that could definitely undermine my self-confidence and sabotage my WIP. Looking back on the days of traditional publishing, I think I was better able to handle a rejection letter from an editor than (more currently) a nasty review.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post. Love it.
ReplyDeleteJamie, I LOVE your work. Your writing style is amazing and yes, writing is subjective but I've seen reviewers be VERY rude. There is no reason to shred a writers work to bits just because it's not their cup of tea.
ReplyDeleteI thought more about your post and realized that rejection is like walking your child on a sunny day when someone comes up and peeks into the carriage and tells you how ugly your baby is. :(
ReplyDeletewouldn't it be wonderful if all reviewers were like Val Pearson?
ReplyDeleteHey, thanks for commenting Sydell, Ginger and Val! Reviews have certainly changed over the years, now some 'reviewers' on Amazon even give away the plot of a book, which is bad. I appreciate all your comments and yes, I wish Val had time to review all books because she's the best!
ReplyDelete