Firsts

Writing a novel brings lots of firsts.

One of those firsts has to be the first rejection slip -- for which Doleful Creatures received its first this morning via email.

After that initial "I got the loser email" feeling, I felt better. Maybe I'll have it framed, even though I know it's all 100 percent form letter:

Dear Mr. Davidson, 

RE: Doleful Creatures, Brian Davidson, December 19, 2015 

Thank you for sending a copy of your manuscript entitled Doleful Creatures to Shadow Mountain for our review. 

We are always pleased to see new ideas, and we have now completed our review of this material. It is obvious that you have invested a considerable amount of time and energy into this project. Our publishing schedule is quite competitive, however, and as we look carefully at all the issues involved in publication, we are forced to be extremely selective in our publishing decisions. I am sorry to inform you that we are not in a position to pursue this project with you. Unfortunately, the demands of our editorial workload prevent us from sending detailed comments about your work. 

We appreciate your thinking of us and giving us the opportunity to review your work. 

Funny things the brain does. I thought I'd sent it in just prior to Thanksgiving. I was off by one holiday.

And form letter or not, I know I have "invested a considerable amount of time and energy into this project." I don't need anyone to tell me that. And I know there's still time and energy to put into Doleful Creatures -- thanks to beta readers who kept reading and said some nice things about the characters I'd created and the story I wrote.

Onward and upward, as they say. Off to the next Doleful Creatures first.