Rejections...Does It Hurt? By Mickey J Corrigan & Giveaway!

 Please welcome author Mickey J. Corrigan. She's talking about Rejections today. And there are Giveaways! 

Queen of Rejections

Mickey J. Corrigan

When I talk to other writers about how many rejection letters from agents and publishers I've collected over the years, this seems to cheer them on. If one person can deal with so much negativity, they reason, and still publish books? Maybe there's a reason to keep submitting.

There is. I receive acceptances too. And yes, I am the queen of rejections. But only because I keep sending out my work.

Why put up with all the curt words, the mean declarations, the icy cold form letters that begin with Dear Author? Because facing the odds head on is the only way to get published.

My first book was a textbook and I only had to deal with two rejections before I found a willing press. So I had no idea how difficult it would be for me in the future. And it has becoming increasingly difficult over the years since. Now I write fiction, novels and novellas. Finding willing publishers is much harder. There's more competition as everyone whips out their phone or tablet and types up a novel. Over 400,000 people signed up this year for National Novel Writing Month! Also, there is less money available from the established presses because they now compete with the newer models of digital publishing and self-publishing. Plus, there has been a significant reduction in book sales to accompany the proliferation of other forms of entertainment.

Rejections continue to mount.

Whenever I receive a tough NO, I refer to my favorite authors' rejections in order to cheer myself on. Here are a few in case you need them:

"Too different from other juveniles on the market to warrant it's selling."—to Dr. Seuss

"We feel that we don't know the central character well enough." –to J.D. Salinger for The Catcher in the Rye

"I recommend that it be buried under a stone for a thousand years."—to Vladimir Nabokov for Lolita

"Stick to teaching."—to Louisa May Alcott

"This will set publishing back 25 years."—to Normal Mailer for The Deer Park

"This author is beyond psychiatric help. Do not publish."—to J.G. Ballard for Crash

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Mickey J. Corrigan is the author of many books that were initially rejected. Recent books include the edgy novellas in The Hard Stuff series from the Wild Rose Press (Whiskey Sour Noir, Vodka Warrior, and Tequila Dirty); the spoofy Geekus Interruptus and F*ck Normal from Australia's Bottom Drawer Publications; and the thriller Sugar Babies from Champagne Books. Her newest short novel is Songs of the Maniacs from Salt Publications in the U.K. Even her agent couldn't sell this one.

Visit Mickey at:

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One Kindle Copy of Mickey J Corrigan's Songs of the Maniac Giveaway for one commenter!

Gritty Urban Drama, Noir

Modern Dreams from Salt Publishing, U.K.

Songs of the Maniacs

by

Mickey J. Corrigan

                                                               

                                         

 When the real you is someone you don't know, then you sing the songs of the maniacs.

From her office at a mental health institute outside what appears to be Miami, a troubled young woman counsels deeply disturbed clients while coping with her own heightening concerns. These include frightening consciousness lapses, violent memories of a high school sexual relationship, a menacing stalker, and an annoyingly arousing visitor who may or may not be insane. All this on a single stormy day at a time when a new mental health disorder has become epidemic and is threatening to distort memory and identity, unmooring the validity of reality itself.

The young woman’s search for illumination becomes an eerie struggle, as she attempts to understand her past, present, and true self. The hypnotic pull of the story lies in the mystery of the storyteller herself and her murky, uneasy sense of doom. A seductive and chilling novella, Songs of the Maniacs relies on clear prose and uncluttered imagery to delineate a fascinating descent into the abyss beneath the lush tropical surfaces of contemporary American paradise.

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