One of my favorite (or, um, not-so-favorite) emails we’ve received since starting borrowed solace (the literary journal I co-founded where I serve as poetry editor) was from a writer who was upset that we had accidentally used a nickname instead of her full name when we published our first issue of the journal. It was an honest mistake, and one we remedied immediately and re-issued the journal to correct, but this writer took the error very seriously and wrote us a multi-paragraph rant to point out our every misstep in the inaugural issue of the journal.
Her argument against using the nickname (which we didn’t even need to debate because, again, it was an honest mistake we fixed right away) was that Stephen King doesn’t go by Steve.
First of all, how are we to know that Stephen King’s best friends don’t call him Steve? I don’t know him personally, and I doubt this writer does either. But also, I hate to break it to you—you’re not Stephen King. I’m not either, though I sure wish I was a multi-millionaire and New York Times bestselling author. I think Stephen King-level success is every writer’s dream, but few of us will make it to that level of authordom—even though we’re all trying out best.
The thing is, though, that there are a lot of writers who think they are on the same level as Stephen King. Heck, I’m sure there are a few delusional ones out there who think they are Stephen King, but there’s only one such author on planet earth, and it’s silly to compare yourself to him.
Nevertheless, this writer decided to complain to me and the other editors about our errors (which, again, we fixed), and compare herself to the writing legend that is Stephen King.
And here comes the lesson:
You’re not as great of a writer as you think you are.
Or, I guess, I’m not as good of a writer as I think I am. Or as I thought I was.
I think I’m not too shabby of a writer. While reading, I sometimes think “I could write this better,” but that doesn’t mean I’m God’s gift to readers everywhere. I’m just a writer—one who has studied a lot about writing, written a lot about writing, and is still learning a lot about writing. And the hard fact is there are a lot of writers out there who are better at writing than me.
I’m not the best at lyrical writing, and sometimes my comparisons feel forced, like trying to fit an elephant through a straw. I also am too conversational at times—as if you were right next to me and I was fumbling my way through a verbal conversation (which are not my forte and involve one-too-many ums and more contrite idioms than I’d care to admit.)
I know I’m not the best writer on the planet, but still, I persist.
That’s what rejection as a writer does—it teaches a lesson in persistence.
Most of the articles you see listed in these newsletters—the ones that are “new this week”—were rejected a couple of times before they finally found their home. I still have several short stories that I wrote in college (and that I still love, I might add) that have been submitted nigh on twenty times to different journals, always met with a resounding no.
I’ve been ghosted for writing jobs where I mistook the client’s kindness for admission of writing reciprocity. I’ve had people subscribe and then unsubscribe from this very newsletter.
And yet, I’m still here writing. Even though I’m not the next Stephen King.
You probably aren’t the next Stephen King, either, but you’re here, turning up every day. So take what I say sincerely (and, as always, with a hefty grain of salt): you’re not the next Stephen King, and neither am I, but that’s okay.
That’s one of the most important things I’ve learned as a writer. Most of us won’t gain the name recognition of writers like J.K. Rowling, or Stephanie Meyer, or James Patterson, but that doesn’t mean we won’t—or can’t—make it as writers. Rejection is an inevitable part of a writer’s life, so let it humble you because I’m sorry to break it to you, but you’re not Stephen King.
Here are the places my words have ended up this week:
How to Handle a Dwindling Friendship published in Curious
The Ins and Outs of Book Pitch Events published in Inspired Writer
Dolly Parton published in The Creative Cafe
Why I Don’t Like NaNoWriMo republished on my blog
Not much is new in my reading world this week as I continue to read An Echo in the Bone. I have, though, per my usual weekly routine, been watching Michelle Schusterman’s videos on YouTube. Michelle has published something like eleven novels with big publishing houses, is a ghostwriter, and is just generally a wealth of writing information and a pleasure to watch. Here’s her most recent video, all about self-editing: