Writing from Rejection: Inspiration to Publication

My debut novel, My Sister is Missing, was born out of rejection. The first novel I plucked up the courage to submit to agents received three full requests, but all came back with a resounding NO. One lovely agent told me that she loved my main character, but the premise of the novel got lost in the other story lines. Ouch.

After a few days of hiding under my duvet, I re-read her email and agreed with her feedback whole-heartedly. The novel I wrote during my time on the Faber Academy Writing a Novel course focused on the lives of four sisters who were trying to piece together why their sister committed suicide. This sister had a secret: she was battling postnatal depression.

As a mum, I also struggled with postnatal depression. I discovered that women still didn’t really discuss their experiences openly. I wanted to write about my experiences in a way that would provoke a conversation about postnatal depression in the hope that it would encourage more women to talk about their postnatal mental health. There’s a difficult dichotomy between the joy of giving birth and the feelings of postnatal depression. I still feel guilty that I couldn’t experience the joy that other mothers found so natural.

My Sister is Missing includes the main character of my first novel and one of the other sisters. And this time, while focusing on the premise I decided to be braver in my writing. I love psychological thrillers, but I didn’t think I could write one.

After re-working the plot I knew it slotted into the genre of psychological suspense, so I had to embrace this and conquer the fear. And this time around the words flew onto the page in a way that felt natural and very different to how writing my first novel felt. Yes, this could be the effect of growing in confidence after seeing a project through to the end, but I think it was the challenge of weaving a twisted story together and creating a suspenseful narrative which fired my creative juices more a second time round!

Again I submitted my manuscript to agents. And again I received three full requests but all came back with the same verdict. We love your writing, but the market for debut psychological thrillers is saturated so we’ll have to pass this time.

I never set out with the expectation that I’d land an agent and a publishing deal. Perhaps that’s why I wasn’t undeterred by the many rejections I’d received. Some agents asked me to submit my next novel to them. The door was closed, but not locked. I knew I should keep persevering. My tutor on the Faber Academy course, Shelley Weiner, talked about resilience and tenacity and as an aspiring writer you need a truck load of both qualities.

Rejection is painful. It does knock your confidence and self-belief and this is why it has taken me until the age of thirty-eight to actually put my work out into the world. I grew up in Sheffield at a time when industry was shrinking and opportunities for all were thin on the ground. I recall one of my earliest rejections back in primary school. I’d written a short story for a competition at school and my entry wasn’t chosen. Not only that, not a single girl made the short list. It could have been an accident, but it gave me a strong message and not a positive one.

It didn’t stop me writing, but it did stop me trying for a while. I had a few successes during my university years as I submitted to various English society publications and the student newspaper, but nothing that told me to give writing a serious go. I kept writing, but kept it to myself.

Yes the market is tough, but unlike my first novel I truly believed in My Sister is Missing. I felt I’d delved into difficult subject matters and that the stories of the two sisters should be told. I was determined to keep going and keep sending out my manuscript as I wanted to hold my book in my hand by the age of forty. I edited again, fine-tuned a few chapters and then decided to send my manuscript directly to independent publishers.

Here I stumbled upon a hybrid publisher, RedDoor. I submitted my first three chapters and it didn’t take long for their Publishing Director to request the full manuscript.

Three long weeks later they sent me a wonderful email telling me yes. Yes! They wanted to publish my book!

My Sister is Missing draws upon my experience of postnatal depression, but that is just a small slice of the story – the spark of imagination that persuaded me to embark on writing this novel. It also delves into the world of a dysfunctional family and the psychological and emotional abuse of a child. As a primary school teacher I’ve come across my fair share of dysfunctional families, but there was one child who haunted my subconscious throughout my career.

On my first teaching practice as a trainee I met a girl who never wore clean clothes. Her hair often needed washing and she always looked in need of a decent meal. Each day we checked her packed lunch box for food and it was often empty. The school had raised concerns, but social services found everything to be in order at home. She was cared for, but only just. Turned out her older sister would sometimes make her lunch, take her to school and pick her up too. There was something that wasn’t right about her home life but her parents did enough to satisfy social services.

She haunted me because she was the first vulnerable child I’d come across. The school did all it could to support her, but as I only spent a few months with her I never knew the rest of her story. I kept her memory close to my heart and she reminded me to keep an eye out for all children who showed signs of neglect.

As a child I grew up writing stories about sisters. I have a brother and longed for a house full of other girls cut from the moulds of Beth and Jo from Little Women. I spent a lot of time day-dreaming about having a few sisters and I knew I wanted to write about sisterhood and an unbreakable bond.

The neglected child had a wonderful sister who cared for her despite probably struggling with neglectful behaviour herself. I wanted to explore the care and dependency in this relationship within the novel.

And so, I’ve reached the age of forty and am about to hold my book in my hand! My Sister is Missing is published 14.03.19 and I’m enjoying reading the reviews so far. At the moment I’m half way through writing my next novel which is currently titled The Art of Deception. I’m writing this as part of my MA in Creative Writing and it won’t be long until I again send my manuscript out to agents and begin the crossing of fingers and obsessive email checking. But in the meantime, I’m enjoying seeing readers interact with my debut novel on social media. I still pinch myself that people are reading my book!

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Julia Barrett began her working life as a primary school teacher. She has worked in Public Relations for the NHS and as an in-house journalist for Queen Mary, University of London. She has a BA in English Literature from the University of Hull. She is a Faber Academy alumna and is currently working towards the completion of an MA in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London. She grew up in Yorkshire and now lives in Essex with her husband and two children.

Follow her on Twitter @Julia_Barrett_ and Instagram @juliabarrettwrites and https://juliabarrett.co.uk/

My Sister is Missing is available at Amazon

My Sister is Missing

I’m not the wife you think I am

Just weeks after giving birth, new mum Stephanie Henderson and her baby girl disappear.

With husband Adam in despair, and the police investigation stalled, it’s up to her sister Jess to find them. But when Adam starts to behave suspiciously, Jess starts to question what really happened.

Following news of a tragic accident, she suspects the worst and, in turmoil, goes in search of answers. But Jess isn’t prepared for what she uncovers . . . or for what happens next.

This is a twisted psychological thriller that will make you question what is real, and whether you really can trust those you love.

 

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Category: Contemporary Women Writers, How To and Tips