Lock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind.”
Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own
The last several weeks have been crammed with writing, editing, pitching, querying, job hunting (you know, for actual pay), and remembering to shower because I do get sidetracked.
In December, I wrote new poetry for a chapbook, as well as reviewed previously written poems that could fit the theme of the book. In January, I studied them, removed ones not suitable for the theme (I’m a ruthless editor), organized the poems, put the manuscript through a few rounds of edits, and submitted it before the deadline. Now I wait.
In the meantime, I submitted many of the new individual poems to literary magazines and am awaiting their replies. Poetry is truly a tough, subjective market, but I keep going. If there is one thing I have learned to do extremely well, it’s to take rejection, because I get them almost daily.
Recently, I completed the first draft of my psychological short story turned novella (at 14,000 words) and will begin the real craft of the editing process in a few days.
Which brings me to this week: my brain is fried. I do not have writer’s block—something I never get because I have too many ideas—but I do get the warning to reset. Which I did by reading, spending time with friends, watching new episodes of “All Creatures Great and Small” and “Miss Scarlet,” and simply typing out handwritten notes for an essay collection I had started in 2024. Now I’m filled with ideas and ready to start fresh next week.
As writers, we all hit the proverbial wall simply because our creative brains want to keep working when our bodies tell us something different. What are some ways we can reset our creativity? How can we keep going when rejections plague us?
Reset your creativity by resting
Reading, spending time with friends, watching well-scripted movies, walking in the park on a gorgeous day, all help to clear the mind of fluff. In these settings, you are not alone with yourself per say, but you are allowing your mind to take in other voices and sounds that are not yours. Writing is a lonely activity, and we spend a lot of time with ourselves in that setting. So, allowing ourselves the freedom to be in a variety of settings with people and with creation means we view the world differently and gain an expanded perspective. These perspectives will help later when we begin our next writing session.
When I am in the middle of a project, such as my poetry chapbook, I read work specific to that project. In December, I read a lot of poetry by various authors, and paid attention to flow, rhythm and subject matter. Then I turned around and wrote my poems sparked by a variety of ideas I had absorbed.
And I do the same when I write essays or short stories. I read books, and listen to podcasts that will help ignite ideas.
Some fiction and poetry podcasts that I enjoy and that help in my creativity are:
The Slowdown: Poetry and Reflection Daily (American Public Media)
Poem-a-Day (The Academy of American Poets)
Audio Poem of the Day (Poetry Foundation)
The New Yorker: The Writer’s Voice
Also, if you are an Amazon Prime member, free books are included (in addition to the movies) and a free Audible download with the book if you prefer to listen. You find this under “Prime Reading” and it requires either a Kindle or other electronic device.
And when I am backed into that stone wall, I bake scones. Because somehow the smell of baked goods inspires creative ideas for my next short story, poem, novel, or essay. But if not, I have the scones.
Maybe you like to clean. Or exercise and dance. Whatever will work for you to recharge, go ahead and do it!
How to keep going despite rejections
When rejections plague us, it can be overwhelming, and you question if all your effort is worth it. In the many years I’ve been writing, there are a few things I do well:
(1) I keep writing despite the rejections, the taunts, the sighs from outsiders. I love what I do, whether for clients or for my creative work and goal of full-time creative writer, poet, novelist, etc. (2) I actively submit and query, whether the piece is perfect or not. The reason I receive multiple rejections is because I keep submitting. And I’m fully confident my work will land in the right hands at the right moment to ultimately receive acceptance.
My essays—both long form and micro, short story, novel queries, poetry, recent poetry chapbook, as well as my long poem (its own chapbook) are all circulating, trying to find good homes. And instead of waiting (because there is a lot of waiting, although some have responded within a day!) I keep writing.
(3) I maintain a list of all my work in separate Excel files to keep track of what is moving and what I need to resubmit, and any positive comments (though rare) from agents and literary magazines. (4) When a lit magazine tells me to submit to them again, I don’t wait. Many of my essays, for example, are submitted simultaneously. Some have notations of suitable lit mags so that when one comes back with a rejection, I already know where to submit next. (5) I create and meet my own deadlines.
Deadlines and goals are key because otherwise you are writing whenever you have the time or creative feeling. Deadlines make writing a real task. When you set a goal, such as when to query a manuscript, you set the other goals: finish first draft, finish editing, write synopsis, write query, research agents, begin query process. Give yourself the reasonable timelines, then stick to them.
Take advantage of fun ideas
Often when I have a project in mind, such as my next short story or novel, I think of what my characters might do. Perhaps the character is a musician, so I’ll listen to specific pieces of music. If I’m planning to write another humorous essay, I’ll read Erma Bombeck or Jean Kerr, as well as the lit mags (most online) I plan to pitch to get a sense of their style and subject matter.
Think about the theme of your next writing project and immerse yourself in your character as much as you are able. Does your character bake? Is he a foodie? Does she escape to a beautiful park, or go for morning jogs? Does she find a secret door in the old library? Give yourself permission to go on field trips and try new things to spark ideas.
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