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5 ways to reject a writer if you are the bearer of bad news

When you need to reject a writer, how do you go about it efficiently but without inflicting unnecessary pain?

26 Aug 2024 9:00

Thuy On

Reject a writer. A fuzzy red heart. There are two green trails leaking from its side.

Writing and Publishing

‘If the work is deemed impressive, a short, encouraging note added to the pro forma rejection slip can mitigate the disappointment…’ Photo: Engin_Akyurt, Pixabay.

No one likes rejection, but there’s an art to delivering bad news that can lessen the pain and may make recipients feel a bit better about themselves rather than spiral into unhelpful feelings of inadequacy and resentment. Yes indeed, publishers, agents, publications and award panels are inundated with unsolicited and requested work and the majority will be dismissed as inappropriate or will fail to make it further along the line. But how to communicate this to the unfortunate writer? Here are five tips ArtsHub has collated – publishers, agents, journals and prize committees, take note!

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Thuy On

Thuy On is the Reviews and Literary Editor of ArtsHub and an arts journalist, critic and poet who’s written for a range of publications including The Guardian, The Saturday Paper, Sydney Review of Books, The Australian, The Age/SMH and Australian Book Review. She was the Books Editor of The Big Issue for 8 years and a former Melbourne theatre critic correspondent for The Australian. Her debut, a collection of poetry called Turbulence, came out in 2020 and was released by University of Western Australia Publishing (UWAP). Her second collection, Decadence, was published in July 2022, also by UWAP. Her third book, Essence, will be published in 2025. Threads: @thuy_on123 Instagram: poemsbythuy