{"id":1755,"date":"2014-04-18T08:07:12","date_gmt":"2014-04-18T12:07:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.graymanwrites.com\/blog\/?p=1755"},"modified":"2014-04-18T08:07:12","modified_gmt":"2014-04-18T12:07:12","slug":"writers-damaging-my-calm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.grayrinehart.com\/blog\/writers-damaging-my-calm\/","title":{"rendered":"Writers, Damaging My Calm"},"content":{"rendered":"

This falls under the category of “how not to respond to rejection.”<\/p>\n

\"KEEP<\/a>
\n(“Keep Calm – Carry On,” by John Cooper, on Flickr under Creative Commons.)<\/em><\/p>\n

Sometimes writers put my tact and diplomacy to the test. Witness this response I received from one author:<\/p>\n

Dear Gray:<\/p>\n

Your statement “it does not seem right for us” tells me no one read my book. Someone should read it because I am a phenomenal writer. How about you? I would like for you to read my book, then write to me and tell me why it is not good enough to publish.\u00a0Everyone has a little free time, Gray, what do you have to lose?\u00a0If it really is not right for Baen, just stop reading, but give it a few chapters before you write it off.<\/p>\n

Thank you in advance for your help.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This is the kind of thing that makes me want to jump through the computer screen and throttle the person on the other side. Rather than responding directly with a virtual flamethrower, I’ve decided to use this as a teaching example for other writers who are submitting their work for evaluation.<\/p>\n

There is so much wrong with this writer’s response that I have to take it point-by-point:<\/p>\n