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28 february 2022 I've always considered myself to be a writer because I've never not been writing, and over the years, my words (and my work) have been rewarded, primarily in academic circles in the forms of papers and essays. still There is another form of writing, the one I've longed to share—stories living in scribbles and scraps of unfinished thoughts, mainly in the corners of my mind. It's the writing I'll tell you I'm writing: the memoir of my experience with illness, embodiment, and healing. It's the story of myself—the story (I've been told) I have to tell. And there's a lot of fear in doing that, so I found it easier to keep it formless. until it wasn't And so I made myself a Pandemic promise: to do different to go back to school to hone my craft (and) to submit work for publication The commitment to take my writing back in the world is also the invitation of rejection. The thank-you notes but no thank you notes. The "we're sorry this just isn't a good fit" letter. I know this because I've written these words as a curator. I've written those words about work I've loved. It's just not a good fit. It's in that knowing that not everything is a good fit that allows me to keep going. It has nothing to do with me (or you). It just doesn't belong in that specific space. and that's okay Rejection slips. Pink slips. Call them what you want. I knew they were coming. They always do. and I haven't stopped writing. I continue my practice because it offers the materials of my making to always begin again. And sometimes rejection opens the door to even greater possibilities. What began as a (rejected) essay for one journal has found its belonging as a story to be shared in spoken word (details below). And it never would have happened had I not sat down, written the piece, and allowed it to be seen somewhere.
Sometimes that needs to happen. We need to know where we don't belong first to know where we do. We don't stop trying. Instead, we play the long game. Because it is only in the rejection, we find our way home.
Tell me, what have you learned from rejection?
Happy Monday! xosew ps you ask what about the blueberry muffins?? keep reading… .
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