How to Accept Negative Feedback and Deal with Rejection?

How do you deal with criticism and rejection as an author?

One of the toughest things about being an author is dealing with negative feedback. Mostly, these come in the form of dreaded one-star reviews, but however they end up in your life, it’s crucial you learn how to deal with them.

Having your manuscript rejected is a grueling yet inescapable part of the publication process. No matter how seasoned you are as an author, as part of your work, there will inevitably be components that will not be in alignment with the views of your publisher. When it happens, your self-esteem takes a hit, and it is easy to feel demotivated from going further. However, if you only end up taking it to heart, it will be impossible to move forward. Imagine if our favorite writers, such as Agatha Christie or Stephen King, gave up. We would not be able to enjoy some of our most cherished literary masterpieces. 

Therefore, since rejection is an unavoidable hurdle on the road to becoming a successful author, it is more fruitful to embrace it. There are several time-tested strategies that you can follow. This blog is dedicated to preparing you for what comes after the unsavory part: the opportunity to make a fresh start.

• Take time to acknowledge your feelings and process them.

Writing is an immensely vulnerable act, and when we show our work to someone and have it rejected, it can be extremely painful. Give yourself permission to feel uninhibited sadness for a certain period of time. Don’t repress those feelings of guilt, shame, or anger; they are entirely valid. Doing so is unhealthy and will only add to your resentment. Since you choose how long your grieving will last, don’t let it go on forever. Many authors allow themselves 24 or 48 hours of sadness and grief to pass before they move on from their work being rejected by publishers. Attend to your grieving in ways that work for you—with a sad movie, a pint of ice cream, or a conversation with a friend. Once your pre-established grieving period has passed, it’s time to move forward.

• Ensure you don’t take this rejection personally.

When you initially face rejection from a publisher, try not to take it personally. It’s not you they are rejecting; it’s your current manuscript. And like everything else, you can work on it. Only when you realize that it is your work that requires improvement, not you, can you move forward. Take a cue from some of your favorite authors who took a chance and shared their work with the world—J.K. Rowling was famously rejected by a dozen publishers on her way to sharing some of the most beloved fiction of all time. Moby-Dick was rejected by multiple publishers, and To Kill a Mockingbird was rejected ten times! But these authors knew better than to take it to heart. They continued to believe in themselves and their work and refused to give up.

• Recognize constructive criticism to benefit from the feedback.

It is important to recognize the difference between useful criticism and useless criticism. When a publisher gives you feedback on why they’ve rejected your work, look at it, but be selective about the criticism that you take seriously. Specifically, if the feedback you received is highly negative and targeted at you as a person, such as “you write like a child,” “you will never be a writer,” or anything brutal like that, then ignore it. They are not useful to you at all as an author. On the flip side, if you receive some criticism concerning the technical aspects of your writing or your story, then read it to see if there’s any lesson that you can take from that feedback. If the feedback mentions that the plot needs some work or that the characters aren’t developed enough, then take that constructive criticism seriously and see where you can adjust.

• Implement that feedback while you’re preparing your second draft.

Once you’ve processed the rejection, it is important to remind yourself why you started writing in the first place. This would make you want to continue to improve your work instead of giving up. Honestly, look over your piece to see if there are any areas that need to be adjusted. Perhaps, when you edit again, you decide to change the conclusion of your story or change the tone of voice. Make a list of the weaknesses that the publisher has recognized in your manuscript and edit your first draft to prepare it for success. Let the feedback you’ve received guide you instead of bringing you down. You may also benefit from having another pair of eyes examine your work. This could be an old friend or an instructor from your English class.

• Join a community of authors for support.

As a budding author, remember that you’re never alone. The internet today is home to countless platforms where aspiring authors can interact and share their work. This is extremely beneficial if you’re looking for the right environment to stay motivated and inspired, even after facing rejection. On these platforms, writers reach out to one another to extend support and encouragement. There are multiple benefits to this: you can share in the pain of rejection and the joy of publication, and you can get helpful feedback from fellow authors who have been in your shoes.

Remember, having your manuscript rejected is nothing but a necessary step in the rest of your journey towards literary success. It is important to be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. So, if you’ve recently faced this challenge, don’t be disheartened for too long. Instead, make the best of it, and we assure you that your worth as a writer will be recognized.

• Never stop working to become a better author.

The antidote to rejection is approval, but real approval must be earned. If your writing is amateurishly sloppy, disorganized, self-indulgent, or just plain trivial, people aren’t going to like it. If they comment at all on your writing—if they even read your book—they’ll let you know they don’t like it.

There’s a huge payoff to developing the skills of a good author: more readers, more sales, accelerated business growth, and increased self-confidence. The self-confidence that comes from becoming a competent author is your best defense against the fear of rejection.

• Read more and write more.

Being rejected doesn’t mean that you’re a bad author. Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl was rejected 15 times before it was published and became a world classic. 

Instead of being upset and giving up writing altogether, take up the challenge to become better. A good way to improve your writing is to read more. This will expose you to different writing styles, voices, and genres of writing. You can easily improve your own work by reading the work of others. It will give you clarity of thought and help you express your feelings more creatively and succinctly.

Rejection is a huge part of every author’s life. And only those who face it gracefully can achieve success in their writing careers. 

Every author faces rejection at some point, but this doesn’t mean that you should stop writing altogether. If you want to get your work published, you must let others read it. But you can’t expect every reader to like it. Different people will have different opinions about your writing. This will include both positive and negative reactions. Rejection comes with the territory of being an author. Finding ways to stay positive throughout the submission process is the key if you’re going to be able to persevere and see your work in print.