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Rejection of one's creative efforts hurts. Whether it's a story turned down with a form letter, artwork deemed not suitable, a character application declined, a software program you wrote canceled by management... it hurts. You put your effort and creative zeal into a project, it's yours, your baby--and "they" don't like your baby. It's not beautiful to them, and all the heart and soul you poured into your creation is so much trash. It feels like it's you that's being rejected.
That hurts. Sure, you may know intellectually that you'd better get used to rejections, you'll get a lot before and between acceptances, but it doesn't stop it from hurting. You can either give up from the hurt, or pick yourself up and try again... but it's still going to hurt every damn time. Climbing back into the saddle doesn't make the fall from the horse hurt any less.
You get over it, and move on--if you can. Sometimes your creation was tailored for one specific audience, and if that audience rejects it, there's no place for it to go. Your baby is dead, stillborn. That hurts even more.
Sometimes you're told "if you change this one thing..." you'll be accepted. Sometimes the one thing is something that will improve your creation, and that's well and good. But sometimes, to get acceptance, you'd have to change what makes your creation special and precious to you. What then? Do you lobotomize your baby to make him fit in, or suffer another stillborn creation? Either way, it hurts, and the decision itself is pure poison.
Creation is pure joy, but the price is pain. Sometimes it's a hard price to pay.
That hurts. Sure, you may know intellectually that you'd better get used to rejections, you'll get a lot before and between acceptances, but it doesn't stop it from hurting. You can either give up from the hurt, or pick yourself up and try again... but it's still going to hurt every damn time. Climbing back into the saddle doesn't make the fall from the horse hurt any less.
You get over it, and move on--if you can. Sometimes your creation was tailored for one specific audience, and if that audience rejects it, there's no place for it to go. Your baby is dead, stillborn. That hurts even more.
Sometimes you're told "if you change this one thing..." you'll be accepted. Sometimes the one thing is something that will improve your creation, and that's well and good. But sometimes, to get acceptance, you'd have to change what makes your creation special and precious to you. What then? Do you lobotomize your baby to make him fit in, or suffer another stillborn creation? Either way, it hurts, and the decision itself is pure poison.
Creation is pure joy, but the price is pain. Sometimes it's a hard price to pay.
