I thank my friend and former colleague, Barry Biggs, for sending me an article about a disappointing book signing. Chelsea Banning attended a book signing for her debut novel, Of Crowns and Legends. Unfortunately, or perhaps very fortunately, only two people turned up. She posted a tweet sharing her disappointment, and this is where the very fortunately comes in.
What happened next is a tribute to the writing community. Thousands shared their own similar experiences. Neil Gaiman wrote about a book signing he attended, with Terry Pratchett in Manhattan, where nobody at all turned up. Margaret Atwood, author of, The Handmaid’s Tale, recounted a signing she did where nobody came, except a man who wanted to buy Scotch tape and thought she was the help. Stephen King told us about his first signing for Salem’s Lot. He had one customer, a kid who asked him where he could find some Nazi books. The celebrity comments and retweets sold her books out. Disappointment was turned into success in a tweet.
It’s no surprise to me that Stephen King commented, because his first book, Carrie, was rejected thirty times. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was rejected by every major publishing house. However J.K. Rowling is now one of the wealthiest women on the planet. I love that she went on to write under the Robert Galbraith pen-name, proving herself all over again.
Mental Floss lists many famous authors and their rejections. I shall repeat just a few:
Herman Melville: “First, we must ask, does it have to be a whale?”
Ernest Hemingway: “If I may be frank — you certainly are in your prose — I found your efforts to be both tedious and offensive.”
Kenneth Grahame: “An irresponsible holiday story that will never sell.”
H.G. Wells: “An endless nightmare. I think the verdict would be ‘Oh don’t read that horrid book.”
Joseph Heller: “I haven’t the foggiest idea about what the man is trying to say. Apparently the author intends it to be funny.”
D.H. Lawrence: “…for your own sake do not publish this book.”
I write because I enjoy writing, but I want an audience. I draw strength and inspiration from these tales of perseverance. So I shall continue writing my books for as long as I can.