Books We Love Insider Blog: Writing for publication

Wednesday, February 28, 2024

The 100 Rejection Club Or How Writers Find a Support System By Connie Vines

The old adage among serious writers is to aim for 100 rejections every year.

While I never garnered close to 100 rejections, I've spent my fair share of time on the revision marry-go-round.

At the start of my career, I wrote for magazine publications. While I published half a dozen romantic short stories, my primary focus was the children and young adult market.

This consisted of historical events/famous people, craft projects/historical cooking and recipes, spooky Halloween stories, etc. Since both sides of my family had a strong oral history and many photos, making history fun was relatively easy for me.

Writing full-length fiction novels requires an almost hermit-like existence. When I was working in the education field, I wrote at night and Saturday afternoons.

So, since I'm now a professional writer/full-time hermit, where is my support system?

I belong to several well-known writers' groups as a virtual member.

I log onto Zoom two mornings each week with half a dozen authors, all with our cameras off and mic on mute.

We log on, say hello and a few words of encouragement, then go into dark mode for 4 hours of dedicated writing time. We check in at the end with a wrap-up of what we worked on, but we also just say goodbye until the next day/next week. It's a no-pressure way to socialize and get some writing done.

The point is that we all need tools and mutual support to keep us motivated and on track.

Not everyone needs this, but I know I do.