How Personal is Too Personal?
Dear Horace Greeley,
How do I not lose all conviction when querying for a work featuring a personal abortion story?
The rejections come in as platitudes and there is no discernment between generic response and actionable feedback. They say my story is an interesting concept and I know they say it to everyone. If they weren't saying it to everyone, I would wonder if it's the subject of abortion that is turning them off or my writing.
When I finish this letter I'll be sending off my marketing proposal for how to best sell abortion. Thanks Horace.
From an abortion patient.
Dear Patient,
First, kudos to you on having the bravery to tell your story. Talking about personal experiences can feel very risky — even moreso when the experience is something about which people have strong emotions. Not everyone is willing to share their stories and take some of the stigma out of reproductive health.
As to how you can continue to submit without losing conviction, this is a little tricky. Lots of writers struggle with this issue, even if they’re not writing difficult personal essays.
Generally speaking, being successful at submitting any kind of story involves being able to separate your writing life into two different and mutually exclusive parts: art and business.
The artist part of you needs to take a hard, honest look at your work and ensure that it’s as strong as it can be. Make sure the grammar and syntax work, make sure the tone is consistent throughout, make sure each point follows logically from the preceding one. Ask a trusted friend to read it and give you feedback (although I’m sure you’ve done that already).
The business part of you has to recognize that any rejection isn’t a comment on you personally, even though this is your story. At Zoetic Press, there are lots of reasons why we decline pieces. Too long. Doesn’t fit the theme. Does fit the theme, but is the 492nd piece we’ve read about a particular topic. We’ve hit our submission cap and just can’t accept any more work.
The business part of you should take a hard look at the kinds of places to which you’re submitting your work. It can be hard to research markets, especially if it means having to actually buy copies of print journals, and if you’re submitting to an anthology, there’s no way to know whether your writing works for what they’re curating. Be methodical. Take notes about what you’re submitting, where you’re submitting it, and what reaction you’re getting. You might even want to reach out to the editors of a journal that has declined your work and ask them why. All they can do is ignore your email, in which case you’re no worse off than you are now.
Lastly, both the artist and the business person in you has to believe in your work. This isn’t just a piece about a personal experience - it’s an insight into the circumstances that lead people to make difficult choices. You need to believe that what you’re saying will help people. With a solid belief in your work, it’s easier to recognize that you’ve done the best you can, and every decline paves the way for a future acceptance.
Your humble servant,
Horace Greeley