Rejected

Day 195

“A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit.”

~Richard Bach

Did your parents ever say to you, “Quitters never win?” Or “Winners never quit?” The same thing is true for authors. I find the stories of famous authors that were rejected inspiring as an author. I mean, just knowing that the original Chicken Soup For The Soul book was rejected by over 140 publishers – and now it has sold over 100 million copies and is a best-selling series. I mean, what author wouldn't be inspired by that? My favorite author, Lori Wick, had her first book rejected originally by the company that later picked it up. Did you know the famous T.V. show, M*A*S*H was originally a novel that was rejected by 21 publishers? True story – google it.

Carrie by Steven King – rejected by 30 publishers

Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell – rejected by 38 publishers.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle – rejected.

The original Harry Potter book by J.K. Rowling – rejected.

A Time To Kill by John Grisham – rejected.

The Diary of Anne Frank? Rejected by over 15 publishers, one saying: “The girl doesn't, it seems to me, have a special perception or feeling which would lift that book above the 'curiosity' level.”

Well, you get the point. Just don't give up. For a lot of authors, the success comes from marketing. Even landing a traditional publishing contract won't make your dreams of being a big name author come true. So self-publisher, small publisher, or big name traditional publisher, keep marketing your book and see where it takes you.

Marketing prompt:

Write about where you are now, and how far you've come since you first came up with the idea for your book. It might make a good blog post or extended author bio for your website.

Days to go: 170