Posted in Uncategorized, Writing

Badge of Honor

Posted on by Penny Wilson Writes

I received another “Badge of Honor” yesterday.  For those of you that are not putting yourself through this self-torture and don’t know what I’m talking about, I’m referring to a Rejection Letter.

I’ve been submitting my poems to various Literary Journals and I’ve had a few pieces accepted. It’s nothing to write home about yet, but I keep submitting and keep writing.

In Stephen King’s book On Writing, he talked about saving his rejection letters when he was a kid just starting out. Back then everything was done by snail mail.  He would take that rejection letter and put it on a nail that was sticking out of the wall in his room.  He said that when the nail wasn’t enough to hold them all, he got a spike.

I’ve been printing out my rejection letters and collecting them in a notebook.  I also have started printing the acceptance pieces, although, there are much fewer of those to deal with. For now, the little pocket in the back of the notebook is enough space to hold the accepted pieces.  🙂

I was told that the rejection letters are “badges of honor”.  That it takes guts and work to send your stuff out into the world.  I was told I should be proud of those rejection letters.

I am proud.

I was in my 50’s when I discovered that I had a passion for writing.  I’m no Hemingway, but I think that my writing has improved considerably over time and every day seems to bring something new that I’ve learned.  I love this!!  I’ve always had a thirst for learning and improving myself.  This, coupled with my love of writing has been a real joy and a blessing in my life.

I spent a little time today and submitted some of my poetry online to a couple of journals.  So I keep writing and I keep submitting.  We’ll see how many “badges of honor” I get from this round of submissions.  Who knows, maybe I will need a bigger notebook! 🙂

Copyright (C) 2018 Penny Wilson

*Day 8 of my 30 day post-a-day.  🙂

 

Author:

Penny Wilson is an international writer who writes in several genres. She has written articles for WOW Women on Writing. Her poetry has been published in online journals, such as Ariel Chart, Spill Words Press and the Poppy Road Review. Penny is a member of the Austin Poetry Society. Her poetry has been featured in the publication America's Emerging Poets 2018 & 2019 by Z Publishing and Poets Quarterly and Dual Coast Magazine published by Prolific Press. Most recently, you can find her poetry in an anthology by WordCrafter Press called Poetry Treasures. Penny is an advocate for Mental Health Awareness and has the page "Mental Health Help" on her blog. She writes about the struggles of mental illnesses and Depression. She is passionate about spreading awareness for Suicide Prevention and Domestic Abuse. She expresses her passion through her writings of poetry and life experiences. You can find more of her writings on her blog at https://pennywilsonwrites.com/

25 thoughts on “Badge of Honor”

  3. I think you are very brave Penny. Just think your perseverance will pay off, after all JK Rowling was rejected numerous times over Harry Potter. I bet those publishers regret that decision.Good luck to you.

    Like

  4. Thanks for writing such an encouraging post.We all need those badges of honor to keep us moving forward..as they say,” scars in your life are not marks but the essence of your victory”.

    Like

  5. Wow! What an inspirational thing to say Penny. I am happy with your outcome so far and yes you gave me an idea of printing my mails too!

    Thanks a bunch.
    Love and light.

    Like

  8. Congrats, Penny. I find sending out work such a chore! Sites like Submittable make it easier now, but it’s still my least favorite part of the whole process! Wonderful to get the occasional (in my case too occasional) acceptance. Keep plugging away–and I’m certain you’ll need a bigger notebook!

    Like

  9. Oh wow! This was inspirational. Taking rejection and failure with a smile and a zeal to work further- takes courage and determination.

    Thank you for a piece I can print and pin on my table to look up to when I’m feeling low.

    Like

  10. I think it is important to acknowledge why you are writing; to accept that poetry is a niche market area; that reviews for publication are subjective; that publishing involves a financial factor, and that taking a risk with an unknown author involves foresight and imagination. Putting all that together is the reason why self-publishing is a very viable option with today’s technology.
    From my perspective, writing is only rewarding when it is appreciated by others. While there can be value in writing for ones personal pleasure, I see that as little more more than literary masturbation in that the pleasure is shallow and short lasting.
    If you have sufficient poetry to fill a book, I would suggest that you give serious consideration to either total self-publishing, or (my preference) work with a publishing company where you are carrying the financial risk.
    While it would, of course, be wonderful for a publisher to finance your book and take care of all the promotional aspects, there is an inherent risk that your work will never be available for public reading, and that would be a shame. Just thinking! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.