On Freelance Writer Rejection: Sometimes It’s You

If you are a freelance writer, rejection is part of the job. I don’t think anyone actually likes being rejected, and some days it’s easier to take than others.

I don’t know if this technique works for anyone else, but when I get rejected I let myself feel the emotions that go with being told that you’re not quite what the client was looking for, or even worse that your work is what the client is looking for (Ouch). Then I try to figure out whether it was was something that was in my control or not.

Being a bit of a control freak, this is a helpful exercise. I need to spend a bit of time looking at whether I presented myself in the best way I would and still got rejected. In that situation, it was the client’s call and I need to let it go.

Sometimes the rejection is really about me. If I’m off my game on a particular day or at a certain time, I need to own part of the rejection. Does that mean I’ll never have an off day? Not at all – but I can show what I hope is a bit of class in the face of the rejection by thanking the client for the feedback and telling them them that I will keep it in mind going forward.

Do you see rejection as having two sides or is it all equally bad?

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Posted

December 13, 2010

Job Hunting Tips

david

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Freelance Writing, freelance writing job tips, freelance writing jobs, rejection and freelance writers

Comments

7 responses

Amudhan

December 14, 2010

I am a newbie to freelance job what i think is In freelance job, we must be prepared for anything and everything and we must also be willing to improve ourselves continuously and i think this is the only way to succeed

Reply
Issa @ Ajeva

December 14, 2010

That’s an interesting question you have. I think that rejection has only one side: Your fault or the client’s fault. It cannot be both. Sometimes, you just have to move on because making revisions or fixes make things worse, especially if you have different set of values to begin with. It’s like art and though beauty is in the eye of the beholder — there must be a good reason to call a work good, bad 9 or even ugly ).

Reply
Tom Johnson

December 14, 2010

That is a great point. Everyone will get rejected at some time or another but if you always blame it on the client or the circumstance and don’t take responsibility for your part then you will never make the improvements that you need to decrease your amount of rejections in the future.

Reply
Tracy Lee Nash

December 14, 2010

I was rejected over 20 times before one company-
Blue Mountain Arts-accepted my work and I am happy
to say I have been a freelance author with them for
over 12 years:)

Reply
Debra Stang

December 16, 2010

I’m part of the generation of authors who used to paper the walls with rejection slips. When my first short story was accepted, I didn’t even know it for over a week–I assumed that the envelope simply contained another rejection letter and tossed it aside!

Reply
Ryan @ Planting Dollars

December 22, 2010

I think of rejection as something that’s expected and tend to embrace it because the more you’re rejected the more you’ll learn, adapt, and eventually become successful. Without failure there probably won’t be success.

Reply
Myrna Beard

December 23, 2010

That is a great point. Everyone will get rejected at some time or another but if you always blame it on the client or the circumstance and don’t take responsibility for your part then you will never make the improvements that you need to decrease your amount of rejections in the future.

Reply