Carrie Callahan

It's so easy to lose sight of the goals we have--to feel like we won't fail up, but just keep failing. When I submitted the Clarion application that was ultimately (but kindly) rejected, I also submitted the attached story someplace else: the Writers of the Future contest. For the first time, I wasn't nervous about my submission. I had written what was literally the best story I could at that time, so if I failed it was just because I wasn't there yet and that's OK. Then June rolled around. I went through the WotF forums and found that a lot of people were receiving rejections, so I waited patiently for my email. Only I didn't get an e-mail--I got a phone call. The director of the contest, Joni Labaqui, called me to tell me that I was one of eight finalists for the quarter and that she'd let me know in a couple weeks if I was a winner. I thanked her, and smiled, and did a little dance. Settling in for the wait, I did my best to stay calm, but by wee...

Rejection sucks, but you know what sucks more? Letting yourself disappear. I heard back from Clarion West today. It's the second time I've applied to the workshop, and the second time I've been rejected. On the plus side, I got the "good" rejection you may have seen floating about, so that's something--and that something is everything. Not every publication is gonna like your stories, not every workshop will think you're the best fit for their class, and not every agent is for you. Still, rejection can feel like failure. But there is failing, and then there is failing up . Failing up means recognizing when a rejection doesn't mean "never," just "not right now." When that dreaded e-mail comes, sometimes it's not saying "you suck," but "you're getting better!" or "you're so close. " This is the carrot in the stick-preferring world of writing that can get you through to the next su...