Fun With Rejections

Rejections—trees really shouldn’t be wasted on such horrible news. That bad writing juju needs to be recycled into something good. Yes, there’s the wallpaper option, but that’s so depressing. Why not use them for fun?

How can a rejection letter be fun you ask? Let us count the ways…

1.  Use them as a dartboard. “Sorry it’s not right for us,” is worth zip.
2.  Put all your rejection letters in a binder so you can show your family and friends that yes, you actually do work. Watch the looks of dismay and confusion on their faces as you show off your personal rejections.
3. Make a happy-faced mask to hide those bad feelings rejection brings.
4. Rip them up and jump in them. Who needs leaves!
5. Cut out the words in your rejection letters and rearrange them into acceptances: Your manuscript is right for us. Sorry you are not accepting submission requests at this time. Best of luck with your publisher.
6. Decoupage something for a successful friend that needs to be reminded of what it feels like to not get what she wants.
7. Light a bonfire. Roast some marshmallows and make s’mores. Your family will be begging you to get more rejections.
8. Stuff a pillow —or a mattress —or a friend’s mouth (see #6).
9. Make paper maché bookends to hold up others’ books that have been published. Every time you grab a book you’ll be reminded that successful authors have been rejected too.
10. Seal those form rejects in envelopes and mail them to others at random. If everyone knew how bluntly writers are rejected they might sympathize with us a little more.
11. Make a pinata, invite your writer friends over, and have a rejection party! <–Dana Carey gave me the pinata idea. We are so going to do this someday!

If you can’t bear to do any of these things, put those rejection letters in a suitcase and take them on vacation. They’ll feel much better in paradise.

This post was first published on my personal blog, Frolicking through Cyberspace, but I was reminded about it by some chit-chat in the Sub It Club private Facebook group so I thought I’d post it here. I’ve been collecting my rejection letters and saving up for that pinata! What are you going to do with your rejection letters?