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Failure

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Clarissa

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So that people don’t think my life is too easy and I experience nothing but success, I just got an article rejected. It was rejected in such humiliating terms that are all the more painful for being completely fair.

When I write, I can’t get rid of the feeling that I’m addressing the readers of my blog, so I always explain what the works of literature I analyze are about. As a result, I get accused of retelling. And it’s true, I do retell. I’m struggling against it but I haven’t mastered the art of writing as if every reader has read these works of literature yesterday and knows the text perfectly.

It’s my big failing. The reviewer called me superficial, and it hurts.

11 responses to “Failure”

  1. David Gendron Avatar
    David Gendron

    Your job (and even more, your duty) is also to retell in simpler words for a larger audience.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Right? And it’s also my biggest talent, to be honest. I can talk about literature in simple yet engaging terms. And I like doing it. It’s not like many people are good at it.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  2. Margaret W. Avatar
    Margaret W.

    As someone who has been repeatedly rejected, I can empathize. It does hurt. But the great thing about rejection is you can learn from it. Also, What’s good for one publisher is not the same as another. I’m sure what you wrote is perfect for someone else. I would think educating the common folk is more important than writing to snooty intellectuals anyway. I write for free papers and get letters regularly from people who say my writing inspires and helps them. Can you say the same for the intelligentsia? I love your writing style. But I am just “common folk” after all.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Thank you! I definitely prefer to do something useful for normal people than impress other academic eggheads, that’s for sure.

      Liked by 1 person

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  3. Tal Hartsfeld Avatar
    Tal Hartsfeld

    Accused of “wasting time and space” just for trying to cover as much ground as you can?

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. Just George Avatar
    Just George

    Reviewers like that result in phenomena like this:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sokal_affair

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Or the James Lindsey thing when they managed to publish a bunch of articles that were complete hoaxes but used leftist slogans so they got taken seriously. I loved that one!

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  5. cliff arroyo Avatar
    cliff arroyo

    “I always explain what the works of literature I analyze are about. As a result, I get accused of retelling”

    Is this always bad? I mean I can imagine an article discussing a well known work should assume that most readers will have already read that, but in the case of newer or less established works isn’t it necessary to detail some of the plot?

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Exactly. The novel I’m writing about was published in 2018 by a Salvadoran writer. So it’s not exactly Don Quixote. I don’t know how to avoid mentioning what’s actually happening in the novel. It’s not a mega bestseller I wish it were.

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  6. EQ84 Avatar
    EQ84

    When I turned 30 a few months ago, I spent some time looking back on all the books I’d read over the last decade and I wished I’d kept better track of my thoughts and impressions. So since then, I’ve been trying to take notes on what I read, and I’ve been using your book notes as a model for myself. It’s my favorite part of your blogging!

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Clarissa Avatar
      Clarissa

      Oh, thank you so much, EQ84! It’s my favorite part, too, and it’s great to know people are finding it useful.

      Recently, I reread

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A conservative literary critic and college professor

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