Submission Sunday 1.12.25: The Rejection Interview with Rachel Kramer Bussel

Our latest rejection interview: "Write what’s in your heart, tweak your writing until you’re happy with it, then keep sending it out no matter how many rejections you get."

Happy Sunday, writers! Thank you for subscribing. If you, like me, are in Los Angeles, I really hope you’re experiencing the least traumatic version of this week that is possible for you. If you'd like to support the first responders and people who have been affected by the fires, here are some options: California Fire Foundation Wildfire & Disaster Relief Fund, World Central Kitchen, California Community Foundation, Direct Relief, or any of the hundreds of GoFundMe campaigns.

Herein I continue my quest to interview successful people about their experiences with rejection. I’m grateful to writers Cecil Castellucci, Kate Maruyama, Camden Noir, Tamara MC, Jennifer R. Edwards, and Diana Wagman for agreeing to participate in The Rejection Interview series, and next up we have writer and editor Rachel Kramer Bussel.

Rachel Kramer Bussel is a New Jersey-based freelance writer and editor. Her essays and culture journalism have been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Glamour, Salon, TODAY.com, The Village Voice, and numerous other publications. She's the editor of Open Secrets Magazine, which publishes original personal essays, and is hosting personal storytelling summit Open Secrets Live in New York on May 3. She teaches essay writing classes online and can be found on Instagram and Threads and Bluesky @rachelkramerbussel and on Substack at rachelkramerbussel.substack.com.

I’ve read Rachel’s essays for many years, but she may not even remember that waaaayyyy back in 2002, she contacted me about reprinting a spicy essay I had published. It didn’t end up working out, but I love that our acquaintanceship continues to evolve. Let’s get this interview started…

---

---

SS: Thanks so much for agreeing to this interview, Rachel! Would you say that you fear rejection? Why or why not?

RKB: I don’t like rejection, but I no longer fear it. I approach submitting my writing in a twofold way, both with the hubris that I hope (but don’t expect) it to be accepted, and prepared for rejection, as much as I can be prepared for it. I sometimes don’t know how much I veer toward the hubris or expecting rejection side until I receive a response.

I stopped fearing rejection when, on multiple occasions, I didn’t submit my work to a publication or for consideration for events and then deeply regretted it. I don’t do the 100 Rejections strategy, but I do know rejection doesn’t mean that the work itself isn’t valuable. I wouldn’t say I fear rejection but I still sometimes am slow to finish pieces because submitting them would mean getting a definite answer, whereas before I submit, it feels like I could always magically write the most perfect essay ever.

---

SS: What does literary rejection mean to you?

RKB: Rejection for your writing from a literary publication, though I’m not sure if literary rejection is any different in how it feels from other kinds of rejection.

---

SS: What’s a rejection that you mourned at the time but now are grateful for?