Publication: Something that every writer dreams of attaining. Whether it be publishing articles online or stories in the form of a book, publication is a big deal in the world of writing. It is something not really discussed until you are an active writer or college, whichever comes first in your life.
This being said, the process of publication is easy. You simply write something, revise and edit a few times until you are satisfied with the result, send it to a publisher, and wait. (Sure, there may be a lot of smaller steps in the mist of that, but you should get the bigger picture.) It is only a few weeks or months after sending a piece of writing in, will you get a response to your work. This is the tricky part.
Believe it or not, most times you submit a manuscript in for publication, it comes back as a rejection. "A rejection? Why?" you may ask yourself, "I think what I wrote is great." And I am sure it was, but maybe just not what the publishers were looking for that moment and time. Heck, the first few pieces I sent in for publication were rejected. I was rejected through a fancy email.
As a writer, you may feel discouraged and confused.
"They didn't like my work. Maybe no one will like my writing. Am I just not good enough?"
There is no doubt that thoughts like these may run into a young writers mind. Because, well, you tried your best to produce a dream that was crushed for the first time it was presented. I know, I definitely had these types of thoughts towards my first rejections. But I can promise you it gets better.
Just as mountains have their peaks and valleys, so will our lives. There have been moments for each and every one of us where life has not been in our favor. Times where we may have lost loved ones or failed a class or gotten sick. Even though we may not enjoy these moments, they are always followed by a "peak." Something great that comes along and brightens our spirits. A successful job application, an "A" on the paper you spent all night writing, or something like a simple "hello" from a friend.
This cycle occurs all the time, especially in writing. If something's not right with our pieces, we simply go back and revise until we are satisfied. This is the same concept with rejected publications. Maybe it just hasn't found the right home yet? Maybe something about the characters isn't quite working with the audience? Or maybe, hopefully not, it just wasn't the greatest of ideas. Whatever the case. If something you want to publish doesn't make it through the first time, just keep trying until something does. It's better to try than not to try at all.
