Getting up at 4 AM to write when the house is quiet and no one is stirring. That’s a beginning, but the sting of rejection never goes away, at least for me and many of the writers I know. Developing a thick skin seems to be a rumor. Then there’s the sting of a bad review.
Something prompted me to check Fictionwise (Barnes & Noble) on my new erotica novella Hot Spanish Nights, and the only review was “Poor”. I felt as if someone had kicked me in the stomach! I just sat there staring at the screen, thinking maybe this person is right and my writing is poor.
Then I remembered a recent rejection that still stung but was a page long in which the editor from Berkley said that I was a great writer. She rejected the book but gave me pointers on why and said she would look at other projects. In fact, I plan to spend the day after Thanksgiving editing the book of my heart, Sinners’ Opera to send to her. I also thought of the fact that The Wild Rose Press has said that they are going to contract my novella about a fallen angel.
At the end of the day, I’ve almost talked myself out of the blues. Oh, there’s still the doubt…Can I write or does my work really deserve the rating of poor? And this will stymie my productivity for a few days. In the meantime, maybe someone else who likes the story will give it a better rating.
Not everyone likes me (though for the life of me I don’t know why! ha ha). Not everyone will like my writing, but when I see that “Poor” it’s like someone calling one of my children ugly. And whether it’s poor or not, writing is a compulsion. I shall continue, persevere and keep a stiff upper lip. I’m never happier than when I’m in the company of my characters—as diverse as they are.
The cover is from my vampire Rosette from The Wild Rose Press. This story sold very well and got good reviews. Black Swan is about mortals who barter blood for the ecstasy of the vampire’s kiss. Hot Spanish Nights is available on Amazon, many other ebook sites and from the publisher, The Wild Rose Press, The Wilder Roses catalog. Hot Spanish Nights is written under my pen name Bianca Swan.
On Bianca’s blog, there is a free erotic story, and on my website, there is also a free read, a vampire story called Vampire Hunt. The links are: http://www.biancaswanblog.wordpress.com/ and http://www.lindanightingale.com/
Happy holiday weekend,
Linda
Linda, I'm sorry for the one poor review but as you know you are a great writer--you've proven it already. Stories will strike people differently. Because someone didn't like one, it simply means that it didn't strike as strong a chord with them as some of your others. It's a matter of taste. In this case, we have no idea what "credentials" the reviewer has so it might not even be valid...Right?
Thank you, Linda, for the free reads. I feel your pain as a writer, but your writing is so good. Hang in there--you're doing great.
Ditto what Joanne and Judy said. You are a talented writer! Sometimes I read your words and wish I had such a way with them.
Rejection does indeed sting, but victory is soooooo sweet.
I'm sorry too Linda, and you know I believe in you. Take a tour over at Amazon, pick an author, any author and take a look at their reviews. They all have their outspoken critics as well as fans. Maybe some of the newbies don't, but sooner or later the critics get going. I've got mine. Part of the package, I suppose. But we can't ALL have written the worst book ever as someone invariably will tell you/us.
Thanks for the empathy everyone. I didn't mean to whine. I had hoped the article would be uplifting. Oops, guess I failed. Actually, I'm over the bad review and posted an excerpt from my new novella on Bianca's web site yesterday. PFS you're the greatest!
Linda,
I totally understand the heartache that each rejection brings, but like you I feel exonerated when every sweet lovely editor from the big pub houses say I'm talented. We must believe them - not the people who can write a malicious review. Berkely loves you and will buy your next one! Yeah, you.
You know I totally get it.
Rejection hurts, no matter how objective you try to make it!
But, I told you so!
I know how that feels because I've been there myself. Why does someone who doesn't even like my book go to the trouble of making that view anonymously public? And I would always get 1 or 2 of them even on free reads.
I used to say: Kill my child, but don't criticize my writing. Yeah I felt that strongly about it, but I didn't have a child at that time.
Poor should be reserved for stories with no plot, sex with no meaning, and grammatical errors on virtually every page. It shouldn't mean, not my kind of story. But most of the critics out there are no good at being accurate critics, so we get democracy in action with all of its flaws.
I hope you get a couple Great ratings soon to offset this one.