Favorite rejection quotes

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The Raen

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One I got a few months ago: "Thanks for submitting a great manuscript to XXX, but her tastes run a bit different these days."

What kind of self-proclaimed power-mad queen of the printed page delegates her rejections to THE HELP? I was tempted to resubmit with a role reversal. "The Raen would like to submit his manuscript for your review. No, I didn't write it, I just clean the toilets. But it's really good."
 

SueBee

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I was rejected by an editor who said my characters "Sophie" and "Ryan" didn't have enough internal conflict.

Well, that is true. Considering there is no "Ryan" in the book, Sophie wouldn't have any conflict with him.

Now "Reed" who is mentioned in the quoted text of the email, is the main character.

If you can't get the main character's name right, how do I know you even read the book?

The rejection came after I signed with another publisher which softened the sting a bit. Even so, ouch.

But, still!
 

kdaniel171

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“Failure is success if we learn from it.”
—Malcolm Forbes

“You have to know how to accept rejection and reject acceptance.”
—Ray Bradbury

And I love this one the most:
“Rejected pieces aren’t failures; unwritten pieces are.”
—Greg Daugherty
 

Becca Jay

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"Your writing is very skilled and professional, and we really liked the witty dialogue. However, we do not feel that it is a right fit for us at this time."
If it was skilled and professional, why was it rejected? I wasn't sure whether to be happy or depressed :/
On a more encouraging note:
"A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit." --Richard Bach
 
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mayaone

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That was a mean letter. Congrats on your success Aloha
 

Earthling

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This thread is hilarious. :D Are there any websites that post funny rejection letters? Would love to read more.
 

celticroots

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I just received a rejection for my romantic comedy that went something like this..

"Australians might be funny, but Americans just don't care or want to read about them"

nice.

I am sorry. That was a nasty thing for them to say." :(

:Hug2:
 

Qwest

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“Failure is success if we learn from it.”
—Malcolm Forbes

“You have to know how to accept rejection and reject acceptance.”
—Ray Bradbury

And I love this one the most:
“Rejected pieces aren’t failures; unwritten pieces are.”
—Greg Daugherty

All great quotes. I'm sure these ones might be in the archives, but I'll post them nonetheless:

"I love my rejection slips. They show me I try."
Sylvia Plath

"This manuscript of yours that has just come back from another editor is a precious package. Don’t consider it rejected. Consider that you’ve addressed it ‘to the editor who can appreciate my work’ and it has simply come back stamped ‘Not at this address’. Just keep looking for the right address."
Barbara Kingsolver

And my all time favourite by anonymous: "It only takes one yes!"

And in celebration of the one yes, read this incredible tale of hope - a querying writer was about to give up:

http://www.thebookseller.com/news/eleven-strong-queue-lido-507571
 

DreamBig2014

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Don't have any celeb quotes but I have a few of my personal ones:

(From a regional non-fiction publisher) "I'm afraid this has too much national appeal."

(From a small press): "I really hate this title. If I like the book, I'll need a title change."

Tri:flag:

I laughed out loud at your truce flag after "I really hate this title...." lol!! They don't hold back, do they? That's why it's good to find a blunt critique partner. Helps us with the thick skin thing before getting in the trenches where it can REALLY get ugly. Kudos on keeping your sense of humor. ;-)

- - - Updated - - -

My least favorite was "We do not publish memoir narratives, except posthumously."

Well, excuse ME for not being dead. I'll get right on that.

LMAO! Oh boy. They have high demands, don't they?

- - - Updated - - -

All great quotes. I'm sure these ones might be in the archives, but I'll post them nonetheless:

"I love my rejection slips. They show me I try."
Sylvia Plath

"This manuscript of yours that has just come back from another editor is a precious package. Don’t consider it rejected. Consider that you’ve addressed it ‘to the editor who can appreciate my work’ and it has simply come back stamped ‘Not at this address’. Just keep looking for the right address."
Barbara Kingsolver

And my all time favourite by anonymous: "It only takes one yes!"

And in celebration of the one yes, read this incredible tale of hope - a querying writer was about to give up:

http://www.thebookseller.com/news/eleven-strong-queue-lido-507571


I absolutely LOVE that Sylvia Plath quote, too. Amen!!
 

Tarley

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My favorite rejection so far is an email with just the word 'no'. That's it. No greeting, no sincerely such-and-such agent, just NO. I like to think maybe she meant to elaborate and hit the send button too soon...

I also particularly like the rejections (of which I have several and counting...) that go " I think your premise is fantastic, your writing is engaging, but I'm going to pass. I know someone else will snatch you up very soon." Really? :Shrug:
 

Director C

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My favorite rejection so far is an email with just the word 'no'. That's it. No greeting, no sincerely such-and-such agent, just NO. I like to think maybe she meant to elaborate and hit the send button too soon...

I know. Imagine if she had been writing, "Nothing can stop me from representing this brilliant book." And then she was embarrassed when she hit send so didn't follow up. :cry:Ha ha
 

blacbird

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I also particularly like the rejections (of which I have several and counting...) that go " I think your premise is fantastic, your writing is engaging, but I'm going to pass. I know someone else will snatch you up very soon." Really? :Shrug:

That is a slightly embellished form rejection. They come in a variety of tweaks on this theme, but they are simply form-rejects, nothing more.

caw
 

Alcasgra

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My least favorite was "We do not publish memoir narratives, except posthumously."

Well, excuse ME for not being dead. I'll get right on that.

OMG! I'M DEAD! No pun intended! :ROFL:
 

Alcasgra

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My favorite rejection so far is from a publisher who goes on and on about what is right and what is not right with my manuscript, but I can't make head or tail of what the heck she's talking about. LOL!

I sent her a follow-up e-mail, querying about which manuscript she was talking about, because I submitted three of them to the same publisher. Her reply was somewhere along the line of, "The one I mentioned in my previous e-mail." I thought to myself, "No, you didn't mention the title, the storyline, the characters, or anything distinctive that helped me identify which manuscript you were referring to." Anyway, I sent her another e-mail just to thank her and inform her that I appreciate the opportunity. Then, I submitted all three manuscripts to a different publisher and they were all accepted in less than two weeks. LOL.
 

abbyapplejack

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My least favorite was "We do not publish memoir narratives, except posthumously."

Well, excuse ME for not being dead. I'll get right on that.

:e2thud:How rude. (But also hilarious lol)


A quote I found that I really like:
"Was I bitter? Absolutely. Hurt? You bet your sweet ass I was hurt. Who doesn't feel a part of their heart break at rejection? You ask yourself every question you can think of--what, why, how come--and then your sadness turns to anger. That's my favorite part. It drives me, feeds me, and makes for one hell of a story." -Jennifer Salaiz
 

kaylim

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"We are pleased to inform you that we will NOT be publishing your story"

The person sending the letter, apparently, was angry because I had NSFW content in it. My fault. I should've probably read the guidelines more carefully. Supposedly the person let their kids read the entries. Oops. :(
 

Cyia

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I also particularly like the rejections (of which I have several and counting...) that go " I think your premise is fantastic, your writing is engaging, but I'm going to pass. I know someone else will snatch you up very soon." Really? :Shrug:
That is a slightly embellished form rejection. They come in a variety of tweaks on this theme, but they are simply form-rejects, nothing more.

caw

The correct translation of this is: "I have to tell you no, but I don't want you to mail me dog poop, so I'll compliment you first."
 

PaulieS

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"When going through hell, keep going..." - Winston Churchill

Not really rejection related in context, hell I'm not even sure if Winston Churchill really said it, but it's relevant advice all the same 😉
 

Old Editor

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I truly believe that editors/publishers have a "tickler file" with various rejection reasons that they pull from the file at random.
 
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