The Nicest Rejection Email I've Ever Gotten

Let's face it: Authors face rejection. I've had my share of rejection, and I suspect that much more is to come. When I was younger, this sort of thing hit me hard.

"Oh no! People don't like me! What if they think I don't write well? Is it true? IS MY WHOLE LIFE A SHAM?!"

Now I just shrug, because I know better. There are many reasons why you might get rejected:

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• Your particular style or genre didn't fit the publisher's needs at that moment. This is probably the most common. It's not a reflection on you. It just means you weren't a fit at that point in time, and perhaps you will be later, or with a different publisher.
• The competition is fierce. Maybe you were very good, but the next guy was excellent. Downside: You lose and have to find another publisher. Upside: When you finally win, you really know you've earned it.
• You have a great idea but need to tighten up your quality a bit. One nice lady gave me several shots to fix the errors she pointed out. I never did qualify, and, looking back, I totally understand why. Since I couldn't see it then, it was just as well that I got frustrated enough by rejection to really bust my butt honing my craft.
• You neglected to read the publisher's submission requirements and sent them something they don't publish or have no need for. I may have done this. Once. Or twice.
• You have no clue how to write a winning query or proposal. This is my sticky spot too. I finally invested in Michael Hyatt's books on writing winning proposal and they really did give me the confidence to start putting a great proposal together.

At any rate, I digress. The point is, I just received an awesome rejection e-mail for my submission ESCAPE FROM ESGARION. Why is it awesome? Because the editor didn't just leave me at "your story isn't a good fit." He commented on my writing quality, so that I had an idea of whether the lack of suitability was due to my inattention to my craft or to something else. His feedback was actually valuable in helping me know where I place in the writing-quality-meter.

This is what the publisher wrote back to me:

If you want to read ESCAPE FROM ESGARION, it's free on this site. Just click here!

I was so excited to receive a rejection email of this type that I shared it with a family member with the same fanfare as if I had received a glowing reception: "Check it out! I got rejected! Isn't that stupendous?"

If I'm ever in the place to reject submissions, I'd like to do the same: "Hey, it doesn't work for me, but here's some info you can use as you prepare a future submission to the next publisher."

Well, knowing now that someone in the publishing industry considers me an "incredible writer" with "exceptionally strong" writing skills and "immense talent," I am off to prepare my next submission! 

Rejection? Who cares?