A Writer’s Life: Failure is Not an Option, But It Happens

Every star performer has his off days – even when he doesn’t like to publicly admit it.

Sometimes we “fail” at what we are supposed to do. Perhaps an editor is just not happy with the product we turned out, maybe it’s his peculiarities or maybe we just “didn’t get it”. After you get over the initial self-loathing and labeling yourself a “screw-up”, it is time to take a few steps back and see how you can use this failure to your advantage.

Offer a do-over included in the original or reduced price. Be careful though that the circumstances are appropriate in making this offer and being able to come through this time. I once had an editor who assigned me a story, I did the work entailed, and submitted it to specification (I thought). It wasn’t the first time I had worked with him and my previous work had always been lauded; so this time I was surprised when he sent it back saying it wasn’t right. I re-wrote the article three times before I cut my losses and suggested that we pull the item. I wasn’t paid for the work. A few weeks later I heard (from a reliable inside source) that the editor’s boss had a nephew who wanted to get into print and my editor wound up with two articles on the exact same subject and no easy way to can mine without at least paying a kill fee. This was certainly an exception.

Being professional and accommodating can go a long way to salvaging your reputation. And hopefully the end result will be exactly what the editor ordered. Sometimes it does take a shot or two to write in the exact and specific style that is wanted by a particular publication. Quite often you will only get one chance to do the job “right” and when that happens it doesn’t mean that you can’t re-work the story for another market (so long as the “research” wasn’t collected under a work-for-hire situation). In the meanwhile, take the time to study articles that are printed in the first magazine or newspaper and learn the style so the next time your submission will fit better.

Use the experience to not only learn but to strategize your future moves. If you have “always” been a success and you attempted a foray into another field (ie: the romance writer dealing with a hard-news documentary), then maybe the new field is not for you, especially if this is not the first or only rejection you’ve suffered. Learn which areas you are strongest in and use that as a foundation to build on (ie: the romance writer dealing with a hard-news documentary about failed marriages?). See if there is some way to back your work up – maybe the photographer you normally work with isn’t available, so you borrow the camera… If you are not familiar with the equipment such as a camera, bring along a 2nd one that you are more familiar with even if the resolution isn’t quite as high (it still beats blur).

Share your experience with a writing group. You may very well find that a particular editor is difficult to work with. More than likely, though, you will find many helpful tips on the required style and formatting, maybe you’ll hear about an editor’s pet-peeve and you will know how to avoid it. Group critique can go either way, but most professional groups will offer solid and honest suggestions on how to tighten up your writing and make it a better fit for the market. If the discontented editor told you exactly what he was unhappy about, try re-writing the piece with those suggestions in mind, even if it isn’t for resubmission – it will help you get a better feel for the next time.

Under no circumstances should you ever “stop writing” because of a single (or even a few) rejections. Improve your style, learn your strengths, focus your efforts and keep writing.

Yes, sometimes we have to take ownership of the reasons things went wrong. When that happens you should cease and desist on the self-flogging, which serves no valuable purpose. Give yourself five minutes to feel bad about it and then get back to work.