Over the last year, I’ve begun receiving rejections. Not that I had an oh-look-at-me-I-had-everything-I-ever-wanted kind of life, but more like I took-the-safe-path-by-not-putting-myself-out-there kind of life.

Well, I’m out there now.

Some rejections come in the form of complete pin-dropping silence and total non-responsiveness to my carefully crafted query letter.

Other publishers regret to inform me they will not be accepting my work for publication, but wish me much success in finding the right publisher.

I realize writing takes perseverance, and I have it.

I know I do.

I write because I can’t not write. I write even if no one ever publishes my work.

Yesterday I was rejected by Baylor Press, the press for my college alma mater.

It stung.

We have a long-standing relationship, a thirty-year relationship built on fond memories and late-night study sessions, culminating with a liberal arts degree I’m willing to pretend helped get me to this point. I hoped Baylor would be proud of her own enough to consider publication, maybe even claiming an inkling of credit.

But no.

In a response one step from blanket blogger spam, Baylor thanked me for my submission yet felt my farm novella wasn’t a good fit for its list… Baylor publishes history and cultural works—my book is about cotton farming—not  historical nor cultural enough…

I knew this submission was likely a stretch, as many college presses only publish ‘scholarly’ works (plus biblical for Baylor). My tale of 1970’s cotton farming includes a mixture of childhood shenanigans, Schlitz beer, spin-the-bottle and other real-life adventures likely frowned upon by such conservative folks. Even so,  I thought as an alumna I’d give Baylor first shot, dance with the one who brung you as the old Texas saying goes.

Que sera.

And P.S. to Baylor—you can stop phoning every night and sending letters requesting money for scholarships and the massive football stadium fund. As a struggling writer, donations aren’t a good fit for me at this time. But I wish you much success in finding the right donors…

Sic ’em anyway.

Musical Pairing:

Whew! I feel better:) Back to writing…

Check out my friend’s blog post Facing Our Fears. We wrote about the same topic on the same day…