REJECTIONS? WHO, ME?
It is a rare author who can submit a book and get a contract on the first try. In fact, it's nearly impossible, and new writers need to remember this. Rejection slips are par for the course for writers, and rejections can HURT, sometimes a lot. You have worked and worked to perfect a book you think others will want to read . . . and the editors have turned it down, sometimes more than once. However, you must remember that the editors are not rejecting YOU as a person, although you may feel that a part of you has died.
Of course, a great deal of yourself has gone into your work--your thoughts, your emotions, and your time. But you need to remember it is the book they rejected, not the person. There are many reasons for rejections, but they have nothing at all to do with you as a writer. Rejections for a writer are as normal as a tree bending on a windy day.
Just one rejection slip gave me such anguish that it brought tears. Just one out of many. Over the years, I received enough rejection slips to paper my bathroom walls. (I didn't, of course.) The trick is to send out the manuscript again to a new publisher, then get back to your writing. If an editor has commented on a specific problem in your work, you might want to work on that. The choice is yours, and another editor may not feel the same way. However, if more than one editor says the same thing, you should probably make the changes before submitting it again. Once a writer gets past his ego--and writers have HUGE egos!--he can learn from rejection.
Reasons for rejections may range from an idea that is overworked--there are too many books already out on the same topic (this happens more than you realize), to general writing or plotting problems. There are many good grammar books to help one learn to write well if a writing course isn't possible. The mechanics of writing are not that hard to learn, and it's helpful to keep good reference books nearby in case you forget, say, how to write numerals--Do I use the digit 6 here? Or do I spell out the word, six? Few writers remember all the rules all the time. But with practice the rules become established in our minds and writing habits.
Two of my favorite reference books are: The Elements of Style (Strunk & White) and The Chicago Manual of Style (University of Chicago Press). These books are standard references at many publishing houses. And don't forget to buy a good dictionary while you're at it. While there are many other good reference books, these three hold places of honor on my desk. Extra books you may want to get are a thesaurus, a book of synonyms and antonyms, and a rhyming dictionary. There are also many books on the market about formatting manuscripts.