“My idea of art is, you write something that makes people feel so strongly that they get some conviction about who they want to be or what they want to do.”
—Mary Karr
Given all of the attention paid to best-selling books that were rejected multiple times, I wonder if an author can have a best-seller without being rejected. Perhaps more accurately, can anyone be a writer without rejection? Probably not. If you’re looking for good company, check out 10 Best-Selling Books That Were Originally Rejected.
Big thanks to Jenny for sharing this from her inspiration board: Ann Patchett on writing as a job.
I love these mini-lectures on storytelling from Ira Glass. Here he shares how to get through the period of “your work not being as good as your ambitions.” Bonus: he uses his early work as a specific example.
In the comments of my recent post Writing Reading Retreat: Memoir, a reader asked about the difference between memoir and autobiography, noting that the lines often seem blurred. Thanks, Leah, for inspiring this post.
One of my favorite creative nonfiction writing instructors defined it this way: “A memoir is a slice of life.” A memoir can be about a specific time, event or theme, which is why one person can write multiple memoirs. It’s also why memoirists don’t have to be famous.
An example of one author with multiple memoirs is Mary Karr, who wrote The Liar’s Club (her childhood), Cherry (coming of age) and Lit (her battle with alcoholism). Although there is some overlap, the three books cover very distinct themes and events. Another example is Janice Erlbaum, who wrote the memoir Girlbomb about her time as a “halfway homeless” teen and then followed that up with Have You Found Her, a gripping story about a teen Erlbaum meets when she volunteers at the shelter she wrote about in her first memoir.
Although the recent glut of memoirs “written” by celebs doesn’t help with differentiating the two genres (or sub-genres), autobiographies are usually reserved for celebrities and high-profile politicians. An autobiography usually covers the person’s life, from birth to death or some stopping point between the two. In her craft book Fearless Confessions: A Writer’s Guide to Memoir, Sue William Silverman devotes an appendix to the sub-genres of creative nonfiction, which she dubs “The Meandering River.”
Silverman defines autobiography as celebrity-oriented and “based on the subject’s ‘life of action,’ and thus told more historically then impressionistically.” She also adds, “the contract with the reader in the case of autobiography is that the historical facts, at least, are true” and that there’s little room for reflection. (more…)
Rejection is part of a writer’s life. We get that, but what do you do with it? Some use it to fuel determination, such as Kathryn Stockett with her now-famous rejection by 60 agents when she was querying for The Help.
Or you can turn it into inspiration, as did the two editors of Modern Love Rejects: All the Love That’s Not Fit to Print. Writers Kiri Blakeley and Samara O’Shea turned their rejections (yes, plural) from the NY Times Modern Love column into a blog whether other rejected writers—many with impressive clips—can showcase their essays. Even better than the essays is the author introductions, some of which highlight their specific rejection experiences. It’s clever way to turn “no thanks” into community. (Hat tip to Lisa Romeo for introducing me to Modern Love Rejects.)
UPDATE: I just saw this on Debbie Ohi’s twitter feed @inkyelbows and had to share. It’s her story of how a rejection got her a book deal. I encourage you to read the whole piece, but will give you one piece of advice on rejections from her post: “You never know what opportunities they’ll bring.”
What about you? Have you been inspired by a rejection? Please share in the comments. (To post a comment, you’ll have to click on the title of the post and then you’ll get a screen with just that post and a comment box.)
