"By This River" by Brian Eno

This is what a rejection letter looks like:

From:	"R.S."
Subject:	your book query
Date:	Thu, 14 Jul 2005 16:53:19 -0700
To:	"J Lustre"

Dear J. Lustre:

Thank you very much for your query; I appreciated your being in touch.

Books along these lines don't fall among my areas of focus, but I encourage you to continue seeking representation. Every agent has a different set of specialties, and another may very well be interested.

Thanks again for giving me a chance to consider your idea.

Sincerely,

R.S.

I sent a query to four literary agents. Two have asked to read my manuscript. They haven't gotten back to me. R.S. is responding only to that initial email query, and not to my manuscript.

Of course I want every agent I contact to respond positively. But I have learned to treat successes and failures with the same casual manner. Becoming a great runner doesn't mean winning every race. I could muddy my sentiment with more sports analogies; instead I'll just say I'm pleased with my progress.

Writing this book was never about getting it published; it was an exercise in discipline, in pushing myself, in removing the safety net of hypotheticals ("If I really wanted to, I could...If I really tried, I'm sure I'd be able to...). I wanted to see if I could write a book. So I shut up and did it. I put the thing I'm most self-conscious about on the line to be judged. I'm proud of this. Allowing yourself to be vulnerable speaks volumes about a deeper kind of confidence.

Keeping on...