While I was preparing Class Number 6 in the Article-Writing course this morning, I started thinking about something all freelance writers and authors experience as a normal part of our world—rejection. And that’s what I decided to write about today.
Rejection is a part of this business and it is important to keep it in perspective. I once heard someone say that he had never received a rejection letter for one of his articles. I am not usually inclined to call someone a liar. But give me a break! The only way this could be true is if he has never submitted an article OR if he, perhaps, has submitted just a very few articles to really targeted magazines all on a subject about which he is an expert. I can say that there are certain magazines that I’ve never received a rejection letter from. And that’s because I only worked with them once or just a handful of times and my articles were very narrowly, timely and appropriately focused for that magazine.
Rejection is not necessarily about poor writing. Not at all. Why, then, are we rejected? Let me count the ways. Of course, you might be rejected because of poor writing skills or maybe you got lazy with this particular article and just didn’t do a good job on it. But, if these things are not the case, then it is something else. Here are some possibilities:
• Because your idea just isn’t timely
• The magazine has done something on this subject recently and they don’t want to revisit it right now.
• The editor is inundated with articles and, while yours is good, it just didn’t make the cut.
• You didn’t target the right magazine with your idea.
• The magazine is going out of business.
• The editor who previously requested your article has left and the new editor doesn’t like it. I swear, new editors are power freaks who refuse to go with what the former editor has already lined up. When you’ve had a good relationship with an editor, and she leaves, you can almost always wave goodbye to that opportunity. On the other hand, if you’ve had trouble breaking into a magazine, wait until the editor leaves and then pitch your stuff to the new one.
• A magazine changes their format—this happens more than you might think—so keep abreast of changes in magazines so you are always informed and prepared. If you are writing within a certain field, you might want to subscribe to some of the key magazines so you’ll stay abreast of subtle and blatant changes.
• The editor got up on the wrong side of the bed. Or she had a fight with her
boyfriend and he has the same name as you do.
• The editor happens to hate the subject you’ve pitched (cats, dogs, kids—whatever).
• The magazine advertisers would be offended by the subject matter or the slant.
See, it isn’t always you. Sometimes it’s not you, at all. Just continue to do your best to present a quality product, on a topic that’s definitely within the magazine’s realm of subject matter and style and always approach the editor in a professional manner. Follow this rule of thumb and remember these 10 reasons why articles are rejected and then rest assured that you’ve done nothing wrong.
To learn more about the article-writing process, sign up for my Article Writing Course at http://www.matilijapress.com/course_magarticles.htm
Order my great little book for freelance writers and authors who are promoting their books: “A Writer’s Guide to Magazine Articles.”
http://www.matilijapress.com/writingpage.html
Contact me, Patricia Fry, to discuss your freelance writing career. PLFry620@yahoo.com