Last week I got my first rejection from an agent I queried. I was introduced to this agent by a contact whose book is coming out next year, and I was delighted to have a direct line to an agent who represents some pretty amazing people. Here is what the agent said in his rejection email:

“Anike, thank you for sending this to me. It’s a wild story, and your writing is solid. I just don’t think I can convince a publisher to buy it. I just know that I cannot sell a memoir like this in 2023 without a million social media followers and/or some other factor of fame/notoriety. Publishers won’t respond.”

Now that’s a blow!

So, I know that rejection is to be expected as a writer submitting to agents and publishers. Indeed, I’ve kept a list of some famous rejections as inspiration. Here are some of my favorites:

Audrey Niffenegger submitted her book The Time Traveler’s Wife to 25 agents. Every one of them turned it down. Then she submitted it directly to a small publisher and the rest is history.

Kathryn Stockett’s book The Help was rejected by 60 literary agents. She kept going and agent number 61 signed her.

Beatrix Potter was rejected so many times, she self- published The Tale of Peter Rabbit. It was later picked up by the publisher Frederick Warne & Co.

Robert Maynard Pirsig made the Guinness Book of records for being author of the best selling book that received the most rejections, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. It was rejected 121 times.

I believe there is much to learn from my first rejection.

Seek out and celebrate the positives

I loved his line “It’s a wild story and your writing is solid.” I mean folks, coming from an agent of his caliber, this is a COMPLIMENT and I will be taking it as one! I have read many articles about the harsh criticisms that some submitting authors have received about their narrative voice, their characters not being believable and the quality of their writing. I choose to celebrate this very short sentence of praise. He thought my story was captivating and he thought my writing was good. I will take it.

It’s not necessarily about you

Agents have their interests, their niches and indeed a network of publishers they have relationships with based on previous deals. “I just know that I cannot sell a memoir like this”, could reflect the types of deals he has done in the past. I went back and looked at his roster — the two memoirs he has represented and sold, were written by celebrities (a famous TV personality and a well-known actress). I guess this says it all.

Read between the lines to find the key take aways

The comment about not being able to publish a memoir like mine in 2023, tells me that I need to ensure I make it clear why my story is relevant NOW. Why will it resonate with audiences in 2023? What are the things happening in the world today that I can link to some of the themes in my book? This has given me food for thought for the next edit of my query letter.

Accept what you cannot change

He implies that without having a huge platform — millions of social media followers or some other form of fame or notoriety, I will likely not be able to get this book published. Now I wonder about this. It is true that when you look at the most recent New York Times non-fiction bestseller list, the vast majority of books who make the list are written by authors with some sort of platform. Be it 1964 by Paul McCartney, SPARE by Prince Harry, I’m Glad my Mom died by actress Jeanette McCurdy or even The Book of Charlie by David Von Drehle, a Washington Post columnist. They all have some sort of platform to leverage. But? you will say, there are examples of memoirists who have debuted books with no platform to speak of — I don’t believe Tara Westover had any platform when she queried EDUCATED. But alas, these examples are few and far between.

Recently I had the pleasure to speak with a few recently published authors, none of whom have a huge social media following or platform. They all mentioned the lack of a social media following as something that came up repeatedly however, with much perseverance, they were still able to find an agent that believed in them and their work.

I can’t create a platform overnight for myself — I can steadily build up followers organically on my social media channels and continue writing my blogs in the hopes of getting more followers, but I’m not sure I can ever deliver the type of platform that the agent describes.

What I take away from this is to lean into my story, and really spend time trying to find agents who are looking for people like me — women writing stories and narratives that shine a light on different cultures, countries and narratives. I’ve seen so many books published by Nigerian female authors, set in Nigeria, telling very Nigerian stories. From My sister, the serial killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, to Sankofa by Chibundu Onizu, and let’s not forget everything written by Chimamanda Adichie.

There must be agents and publishers out there that will like my work. I need to find them.

Heed the advice given

As a sign off, the agent gave me a piece of sound advice. He recommended perhaps submitting part of my book as a short story to say the New Yorker or some similar publication. Now this is something I will do. I need to spend some time figuring out what elements in my book make sense for a standalone piece, but I will do this for sure. Thank you, Mr. agent.

Celebrate, then buckle up for the ride

Today I am celebrating this rejection because it means I have arrived. I am now officially in the game. I am an aspiring author hoping to be published and I have begun the journey of relentless rejection. Who knows where this journey will lead me but I have to find out, I must embark on this road. I am definitely in for the long haul and will continue to send this baby out.

Hooray I say.