Dealing with Criticism: The First Rejection

“I don’t really have disappointment, because I build myself up for rejection”

 

• Nicholas Hoult

 

Unfortunately, the above quote is not true of me. While I know little of Nicholas Hoult, the quote stuck with me.

 

I have entered many writing competitions so far for short stories, screenplays and poetry. 99% of the time I hear nothing back. The first few months of hearing nothing did not hurt. Everything that I apply for feels like a shot in the dark anyway, so if I don’t get feedback I don’t miss it – I’ve never had the feedback to miss…but I have received my first concrete rejection.

 

So far it’s been like jogging. You pound forward at first, confident in your fitness and attacking the miles in front of you. You become short of breath and feel the sweat dampen your shirt yet you still drive onwards…but then you feel the first few throbbing pains in your legs. You wonder whether or not you should slow down, whether to stop and rest and you question your ability to run the distance.

 

My first rejection felt like lactic acid.

 

The story was a 300-word piece to enter into a competition. I’d been constantly reading and writing and had decided that this piece would be my first publish. The language would be exquisite and the style unique. I would let the audience create the story in their own minds, hinting at the events, suggesting the setting and implying the period.

 

The shadows have disappeared and my fire glows brightly now, laying a mist upon the woods, the woods watching and weeping, my body creaking as I lift myself to my feet, immerse my face in the smoke and feel its fingers upon my lungs. I watch her rustle the leaves while he lies sleeping amongst them, red and brown

 

Unfortunately, the story was crap.

 

I was focused upon creating something unique and well written. I had forgotten that a short story actually had to have a story, summed up perfectly by my critic:

 

“There are many intense layers of feeling here but the expression of that intensity has obscured the essentials of the story”

 

It was their closing line which hurt the most…

 

“Its an ambitious piece. Good luck with it”

 

This is the first real critique of my work that has come from a professional. The friends and family that I have given my work to review have stated their opinion, but its either been light footed so as not to hurt my feelings, or I haven’t listened properly. It truly hurts.

 

Fledgling writers are all warned about rejection. We must have a tough armour and take criticism on the chin. Its part of the experience. No amount of warning however can prepare you for it. After working hard and investing that much time into writing, to then be told be told your ‘finest’ work is not very good dreadful…but necessary.

 

Now its important to consider what happens from here. If I’m honest I’m happy to have had a bit of a slagging. I have decided to use the criticism to my advantage and to identify my shortcomings and where I have been going wrong. Its possible to become to over confident before you’ve earned the right to be. The biggest failings in this instance were:

 

1. Assuming my work would be enjoyed
2. Believing I was the finished article
3. Running (or jogging) before I could walk

 

Those are 3 things I will try not to do again, therefore I am now a better writer. Now I have learned that criticism is yet another training exercise. Now I have a pain threshold and when the wall appears in my path I will have a better chance of breaking through it.

 

How do you deal with rejection? Positively? Does the injustice and anger spur you on? Do you ask questions of yourself that you have not considered before?

 

“It’s not personal Sonny. It’s strictly Business”

 

• Michael Corleone

Writing with The Daily Grind: How Do You Balance Work and Writing?

“Everything is Practise”

– Pele

 

I have enjoyed launching myself into my new hobby so far. I’ve come up with some interesting ideas, slapped some big and interesting words down and managed to fill a few pages in each of my notebooks. The problem is I have to work. Every day.

 

Sometimes its not possible to find time in the day for a pipe dream. Many successful people advise against getting trapped in life and being shackled to a meaningless job that leaves you incapable of doing what you love. This advice, as the majority of aspiring writers will understand is worthless. Salary buys Microsoft Office and an internet connection. More importantly it buys breakfast.

 

Its hard to guarantee that once you’ve dragged your feet through the front door after emptying the tank at work that you will relish sitting down to write. Other commitments come into the fold; cooking, cleaning, childcare…even other pipe dreams can take over. I myself am enjoying a successful rugby season with my team, rendering me incapable of writing Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays because I have to train or play.

 

So how to find time to write where there is none?

 

The answer – Constant practise, even when you aren’t practising.

 

Notepads

Vigilance

Audiobooks

 

Notepads. Every advice piece written about the craft explores the importance of notebooks. Most instruct the new writer to carry one with them at all times. This advice is invaluable. Not only does it allow you to pen your fresh ideas when you’re out and about, it means you keep a finger on your writing while you are being dragged away by your other commitments. Its an anchor to your creativity. Often you won’t even refer back to it when you finally get to sitting down to write. You don’t need to. The point is that the flash of a pen is practise…and practise makes perfect.

 

Vigilance. Your notebook allows you to become an observer of life, carefully logging your surroundings and experiences as the world rumbles around you. The notebook will fill faster if you are constantly looking for things to fill it. Listen, see and smell. Acts of kindness will create heroes. People that irk you create villains. If you like the smell of the park, write down why. Be attentive to the stories that rumble around you. Jot them down.

 

Audiobooks. I did not realise how useful these would be. Reading is one of the other essentials that all the experts tell you to do. Its yet another thing that is near impossible to make time for. Audiobooks are a true blessing. You can read while you drive and you can immerse yourself in stories that aren’t your own while you’re doing your chores. Its probably best to listen intently, but its better than nothing if you truly can’t.

 

I’ve found its not necessarily about finding time to write, it is about finding ways to practise. All writers are creative in their work, so we can be creative in our training too. How do you find time to write?

From Fart Planes To Screenplays: The Beginnings Of A New Writer

Pipe Dream

Noun

• An unassailable or fanciful hope or scheme

 

Like many people my age I spend most of my day working a steady nine-to-five. I relax in the evenings, exercise when I can and try to get at least 7 hours of sleep. Like many people my age I don’t particularly mind my job. It can be stressful and tough but at least the days pass by quickly. I use the money earned in the week to enjoy my weekends. Like many people my age I am content, I am happy and I am comfortable. I am also a little restless. Not unhappy, just a little fidgety. I need a pipe dream.

 

There is an in built existential oddity about my generation. We are a group defined by rising house prices, the threat of climate change and a crippling reliance on smart phones. We have information thrown at us like coins slung at a medieval prostitute and while we yearn for safety and belonging, we are presented with a world of dazzling celebrity every time we put our hands in our pockets. What we live and what we see are extremely different, so we will feel that there must be more to life.

 

Well not anymore for me. I’ve been given a notepad for Christmas.

 

In fact, I’ve been given two. Those, plus Stephen King’s ‘On Writing’. While I am fairly new to writing I have been yapping at my friends and family about it for a good few years, so this Christmas I was easy to buy for.

 

I am a happy but restless 25-year-old with a steady nine-to-five and a pipe dream. I want to be a good writer.

 

Welcome to my blog. Here I intend to record the many trials and tribulations I will face in my efforts to become a good writer. After a couple of badly written screenplays, a children’s book and a short story about a dog, I have decided its about time to give it a proper whack! My aim is not to be a multi millionaire, but I feel like I can get published. I will describe my struggles, my rejections, my great ideas, my garbage ideas and what it is like to try balancing writing with an already hectic schedule.

 

I was a great little writer as a child. My fat little fingers would whip out some wonderful stories about aliens and fart planes (planes that fart to fly) and somewhere along the line I let the writing go. Its time I tried again. The ideas never stopped coming, but I could never really be arsed to put pen to paper. Well now I have two notepads and I work in an office where I can easily get pens. One notepad I will carry on my person and the other I will keep by the side of my bed. Now just to fill them.

 

“A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom. He has no master except his own soul, and that, I am sure, is why he does it”

 

• Roald Dahl