This week I received another rejection letter; all part and parcel of being a writer. It’s not the first and it won’t be the last. I could give you an extensive list of famous authors who have been rejected multiple times, (eg J, K. Rowlings) and who then went on to fame and fortune. Therefore I’m quite philosophical about it. I’m not bothered at all. Really, I’m not.

Well, okay, I was just a tad disappointed. But I didn’t stamp my foot. I didn’t throw things. I didn’t even cry. I took it on the chins with a dash of savoir faire, spiced with just a modicum of self-pity. I took the negative feedback and turned it into incentive to do better. I sought advice from someone I respect and asked for suggestions on how to make the manuscript better. Her response was simple but brilliant. Now I’m working like someone possessed to change my manuscript into a winner.

Yes, this rejection stuff just rolls off my back like the proverbial duck with the proverbial water on its proverbial back. Because, after all, being a writer is easy. Anyone can do it. All you need is a computer or, if you’re old school, some paper and a pen. Anyone can write a story on a Saturday and upload it on Amazon on Sunday for the world to read with gratitude and admiration. It’s easy. I’ve heard lots of people say so. Why, they’d all write a book (and it’d be a best-seller) if they had the time and when they do have the time, why, they’ll just do it.

The thing is, being a writer is easy. It’s being a good one, that’s difficult. If you actually care about the stuff you’re writing down, you have to write it more than once. You have to write and rewrite and rewrite again. Then you have to get feedback from people you respect who know what they’re talking about, take their response on board and then rewrite again. (No cheating by asking family members!) Then after you’ve agonised over plot flow, characterisation, choice of vocabulary, point of view, metaphors and similes (not too many, not too few), grammar, spelling, research of time, setting and technology, why you rewrite it one more time to make sure it’s just right. If you can afford it, you get a professional to edit it, which will then necessitate another rewrite.

Finally you research agents (good luck finding one in Australia who still takes on new clients) and you research publishing houses that will accept manuscripts from un-agented writers and you send it out into the cosmos with baited breath and hope coursing through your veins. Some times you never hear from the publisher…ever. Sometimes you receive a letter saying, “You don’t suit our list.” Sometimes you receive a letter saying, “It’s a no because (negative feedback).” Your heart breaks, your world is shattered and hope doesn’t even bother to wave goodbye as it flies out the window. Then, the next day, you open up that computer and you start again, determined that this time you’ll get it right.

Yes, being a writer is easy. It’s a pity I’m so determined to be a good one.