Pick yourself up, dust yourself off (the art of rejection)
This notable list came via Nathan Bransford today from http://www.onlinecollege.org/2010/05/17/50-iconic-writers-who-were-repeatedly-rejected
In respect of my previous blog on the possibility of being judged for progressing down the independent route, I loved that at least three of the listed writers, now unarguably illustrious mainstream headline authors, had trotted down that route themselves. They are:
Zane Grey: Zane Grey self-published his first book after dozens of rejections.
Marcel Proust: Marcel Proust was rejected so much he decided to pay for publication himself.
Beatrix Potter: The Tale of Peter Rabbit had to be published by Potter herself.
But in addition, in this gloriously freeing article which gives hope and inspiration, are others:
William Golding: William Golding’s Lord of the Flies was rejected 20 times before becoming published.
James Joyce: James Joyce’s Ulysses was judged obscene and rejected by several publishers.
Isaac Asimov: Several of Asimov’s stories were rejected, never sold, or eventually lost.
John le Carre: John le Carre’s first novel, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, was passed along because le Carre “hasn’t got any future.”
Jasper Fforde: Jasper Fforde racked up 76 rejections before getting The Eyre Affair published.
Kenneth Grahame: The Wind in the Willows was not intended to be published, and was rejected in America before appearing in England.
Ursula K. Le Guin: An editor told Ursula K. Le Guin that The Left Hand of Darkness was “endlessly complicated.”
Pearl S. Buck: Pearl Buck’s first novel, East Wind: West Wind received rejections from all but one publisher in New York.
Louisa May Alcott: Louisa May Alcott was told to stick to teaching.
Agatha Christie: Agatha Christie had to wait four years for her first book to be published.
William Faulkner: William Faulkner’s book, Sanctuary, was called unpublishable.
Patrick Dennis: Auntie Mame got 17 rejections.
Meg Cabot: The bestselling author of The Princess Diaries keeps a mail bag of rejection letters.
Richard Bach: 18 publishers thought a book about a seagull was ridiculous before Jonathan Livingston Seagull was picked up.
John Grisham: John Grisham’s A Time to Kill was rejected by 16 publishers before finding an agent who eventually rejected him as well.
Shannon Hale: Shannon Hale was rejected and revised a number of times before Bloomsbury published The Goose Girl.
Richard Hooker: The book that inspired the film and TV show M*A*S*H* was denied by 21 publishers.
Thor Heyerdahl: Several publishers thought Kon-Tiki was not interesting enough.
Vladmir Nabokov: Lolita was rejected by 5 publishers in fear of prosecution for obscenity before being published in Paris.
Laurence Peter: Laurence Peter had 22 rejections before finding success with The Peter Principles.
D.H. Lawrence: Sons and Lovers faced rejection, and D.H. Lawrence didn’t take it easily.
Robert Pirsig: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance faced an amazing 121 rejections before becoming beloved by millions of readers.
E.E. Cummings: E.E. Cummings named the 14 publishers who rejected No Thanks in the book itself.
Madeline L’Engle: Madeline L’Engle’s masterpiece A Wrinkle in Time faced rejection 26 times before willing the Newberry Medal.
Rudyard Kipling: In one rejection letter, Mr. Kipling was told he doesn’t know how to use the English language.
J.K. Rowling: J.K. Rowling submitted Harry Potter to 12 publishing houses, all of which rejected it.
Frank Herbert: Before reaching print, Frank Herbert’s Dune was rejected 20 times.
Stephen King: Stephen King filed away his first full length novel The Long Walk after it was rejected.
Richard Adams: Richard Adams’s two daughters encouraged him to publish Watership Down as a book, but 13 publishers didn’t agree.
The lesson learned? ‘Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and start all over again.’ With a little help from great names. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBUFIcs-zzo
The timing of this post is great! I will definitely be passing this along to my writer’s group!
Isn’t it great, Lester? Even the mighty have their moments.
Which goes to show that one should believe wholely in oneself, and not be deterred – though that’s easier to say than put into practise!
It’s a terrible industry to work in. There is very little reason to believe in oneself for much of the time, when editors dissect one’s words like the best surgeons and agents and publishers constantly knock one back. But I did love that list . . .
..sorry.. practice.
Easy to see you’re in editing mode!
Thank you for sharing this Prue! I know the list looks depressing and dark but I also find it hopeful, they all DID get published and their works were loved by many… This shows that the opinions of few people should not be a reason to stop.
I agree Lua, it’s actually really heartening. And in a way, it’s quite funny. That so many agents and publishers passed up some really top stuff.
I mean, imagine being those publishers who knocked back JK Rowling. Heavens, you’d be kicking yourself to a bloody pulp, wouldn’t you? And good on Bloomsbury I say!
Well, at least the publishing world sends rejection letters. In Italy you get either silence or vanity press offers. It’s what turned me off the Italian market – and Hollywood. Producers and movie agents don’t answer either. I treasure my collection of rejections I got from French publishing houses when I submitted a project for a graphic novel (with an artist who is now making it her own way)…
Trust me, rejection is better than total silence| 😉
Happy writing
Does make one feel better, doesn’t it. And humming the song from your title when I started reading this led to me humming ‘High Hopes’ by the time I’d finished…
Oh yes! You mean the ‘he’s got hiiiigh hopes, he’s got hiiiigh hopes’ one? Love that!
Then there is ‘I have confidence in sunshine, I have confidence in rain, I have confidence that spring will come again!’ from the Sound of Music.
Or ‘Climb every Mountain!’
Or . . .