Cast a Wide Net by Sandra Merville Hart

Are you a writer who feels discouraged by rejections? Sandra Hart offers some wise advice and encouragement to keep trying. We would love to hear your comments! 

Wandering Wednesdays

Someone once told me, “You’re not a writer until you’ve been rejected.” Though this author obviously meant to encourage me, it did not remove the sting of a rejection recently received — the first of many.

If you’re a writer, your thoughts likely already traveled back to that first painful rejection. Perhaps the most recent one sprang to mind. Receiving refusals doesn’t grow easier.

A seasoned author gave me a bit of advice when I began writing. These words of wisdom probably saved my sanity in the past few years. What was this sage advice? Cast a wide net. Those weren’t her exact words, but that’s what it has come to mean to me.

When I first began writing, I wrote a short story, devotion, or an article. After researching for magazines looking for this type of writing on the Internet and my trusty writers guides, I submitted it to one editor at a time. Waiting to hear from that one publisher agonized me. Once the rejection letter arrived, it took weeks to summon the courage to send it to the next name on the list.

My friend encouraged me to submit to several publishers at a time, at least to all who accept simultaneous submissions. There’s always a feeling of hope and possibilities when submitting. Once it has been sent, she advised me not to wait idly but to write something else. Revise it. Polish it. Make it the best you know how to do. Whenever that work is ready, send it out after researching potential editors. Then begin the next writing project.

The rejections typically don’t hurt as much when other possibilities exist. In the meantime writing skills improve with each task, increasing our chances of publication. It’s like the basketball player who practices throwing hoops day after day. Continuous practice adds finesse and polish to already familiar tasks.

Will rejection always hurt? Unfortunately, it probably will. Some have crushed me. Focusing on becoming the best writer you can be may be the key.

If you are continuously applying all you’ve learned thus far to each new writing project, you will improve. You’ll be submitting your best work each time because you’re not the same writer as a year ago or even six months ago.

And someday your best will be good enough.

By Sandra Merville Hart

About the author:

Sandra Merville Hart loves to find unusual facts in her historical research to use in her stories. She and her husband enjoy traveling to many of the sites in her books to explore the history. She serves as Assistant Editor for DevoKids.com and contributes articles about history and holidays. She has written for several publications and websites including The Secret Place, Harpstring, Splickety Magazine, Pockets Magazine, Common Ground, Afictionado, and ChristianDevotions.us. Her inspirational Civil War novella, A Stranger On My Land, released on August 21, 2014.

Connect with Sandra:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sandra.m.hart.7

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/sandramhart7/lookout-mountain-civil-war-battle-above-the-clouds/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/

Book Links:

Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Stranger-My-Land-Sandra-Hart/dp/1941103278/

Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas: http://store.lpcbooks.com/product/a-stranger-on-my-land/

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-stranger-on-my-land-sandra-merville-hart/1120155194?ean=9781941103272