Having work turned down is one of the hardest aspects of the writing life. But you can learn from it, and move on, with Sophie Beal’s advice

Rejection sucks. I don’t know anybody who enjoys it. However, it is an almost inevitable part of the writing life. This article is about how to prepare yourself for it, survive the initial blow and move on to write another day.

Short stories

Short stories are deceptively hard to write. Sometimes it’s a matter of selecting the right publication. Another magazine or literary journal may appreciate your achievement. If they don’t, as soon as you can see the point of living/continuing to write, start a new project. The old one may have taken weeks or even months to produce. It may now feel like a complete waste of time, but you will have learnt something by writing it. Ray Bradbury famously advised people to: ‘Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad short stories in a row.’

Seek critique. Absorb any feedback you receive. Understanding why you’ve been rejected and what you can improve will help you move on. So does having something new to submit and knowing it wasn’t your only opportunity to see your name in print.

Non-fiction pitches

There are good and bad ways of approaching editors with an idea for an article, but pitching is mainly a numbers game. I’m frequently surprised which of my ideas find commissions and which don’t. But editors often explain why they’re passing: it’s not quite right for their readership, or the magazine are doing something similar already. They have decided the idea isn’t suitable for their magazine at the moment. The rejection is hardly ever personal. Keep sending ideas out – to that magazine as well as others.