💅🏽Rejected but Not Defeated: 5 Classic Novels That Overcame Rejection to Become Timeless Masterpieces

From Harry Potter to Carrie, these titles almost never saw the light of day. Yet now, they've found their place in our hearts as timeless classics. I explore their tales along my path to publishing...

Good afternoon dear reader,

As some of you know, I mentioned in my earlier post how I’d taken the plunge to partake in a writing course on The Novelry. So far, it has been a really informative learning experience, and I’ve already had the chance to meet one best-selling and fantasy award-winning author as my coach—Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne trilogy (she was SO lovely! I’m so thrilled to work with her as my coach on this course).

There are different levels on the course, but I’ve decided to go all in, investing what little I have into my craft. What I hope to gain is clarity and information, and I hope to have my novel completed to industry standard when it eventually goes through the Big Edit (checked by a Big Five publishing-house editor), then finally, the manuscript assessment.

Classics that withstood the test of time, but their journey was paved with obstacles divine. Perseverance is key.

📝A personal note/update on writing: The Novelry course:

Having just finished the third episode of The Novelry’s Classic series, I instantly recognised several titles that I had researched beforehand. What may surprise some of you is that many of these titles went through numerous rejections before getting published (before gaining the ‘classic’ status we associate them with today).

Let’s take a closer look at these 5 classic novels that were rejected before getting published (and went on to become classic pieces of literature):

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·        The Chronicles of Narnia, by C. S. Lewis - this one has to take the cake. Lewis was reportedly rejected a staggering 800 times before getting his work published. The irony that this classic piece of children’s literature was at one time so close to never seeing the light of day stands as a testament to Lewis’s determination and belief in his work and to the larger stakes at play (i.e. that there may be external drivers out of writers’ control—and sometimes, it is about luck and perseverance).

·        Carrie, by Stephen King - It’s hard to imagine that this iconic work of King’s was rejected by over 80 publishers. Carrie, as a dystopian horror, was arguably a hard sell. Yet, the title went on to become an international bestseller. Translated into hundreds of languages and made into plays and twice adapted into film. Carrie herself remains an iconic figure that transcends the boundaries of the page.

·        Harry Potter, by J. K. Rowling - Whilst it may come as a surprise to some, Rowling has been quite vocal about the difficulties she faced trying to get arguably one of the most prolific works of modern classics in children’s literature to print. The story of the young boy who lived under the stairs at the Dursleys before traversing into the wizarding school of Hogwarts has captured the hearts of millions of readers across the world—and still continues to be published more than 20 years later. Not to mention—playwrights, musicals, movies, games, etc.

BUT. The title was rejected over 20 times. In fact, it was pure luck that got Harry Potter into a publisher’s hands—the last agent she queried happened to take a chance on Harry Potter when his daughter said she loved it. However, there were reservations about the title’s success, with Rowling receiving an advance of $4,000 (approximately £2,000 at the time). The first book ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ sold 300,000 copies in the UK in the first two years before the series skyrocketed into the stratosphere. Today, sales are estimated at over 500 million copies sold worldwide—and going.

Growing up, reading Harry Potter really helped me through so many dark years and bullying in school. It was horrendous. But these books sparked a huge room of light where my tunnel grew darker by the day. That’s why Rowling will always remain a huge source of inspiration for me as an author. Not only as someone who similarly survived her tumultuous upheaval but because she proved that her idea and story were worth sharing with the world, despite what the industry told her (that it would never succeed/ nobody would read it)—and she was right. (don’t you just love it when you prove people wrong?).

Then, history repeated itself when she shared two rejections on Twitter under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith, where the editors told her (as Galbraith) to ‘take some writing classes’ and that the series would not sell. The Cormoran Strike series of A Cuckoo’s Calling sold over 11 million copies worldwide. So… she was right again (even as a man).

(Although the latter is not a classic, it illustrates a disconnect. It shows that the industry doesn’t have a sure-fire formula; sometimes, they get it right, and sometimes they get it wrong, too—we have to remember that publishers and agents are run by people, too).

·        Animal Farm, by George Orwell - One of the most remarkable pieces of political satire, possibly, to have ever been written. However, Orwell’s use of ordinary farm animals to depict Stalin’s atrocities during the Bolshevik Revolution was labelled as ‘obvious’, among other criticisms. The novel faced multiple rejections before finally being published on April 17, 1945 by a British publishing company Secker & Warburg. It has been since republished a few times, but more recently acquired and republished by Penguin Random House. It has received the prestigious ‘evergreen’ status—a novel that stands the test of time, being republished many decades later and is now integrated into many middle school literature programs. Not bad for a book labelled ‘obvious’ - perhaps less obvious was its trajectory which would stand the test of time for many decades thereafter.

·        The Lord of the Rings, by J. R. R. Tolkien – whilst it may be arguable whether or not this work of Tolkien’s counts as ‘classic literature’ (I would argue, yes, based on the premise of its timelessness, values, and relevance that resonates even with today’s readers) this is subjective. After Tolkien’s earlier children’s book The Hobbit (published in 1937) received critical acclaim and decent publishing success, it stood to reason that he ought to write a sequel. Enter The Fellowship of the Ring. Now, some may well argue that the text is burdensome, convoluted and sometimes difficult to read. Especially considering that it doesn’t quite fit into children’s nor adult literary categories.

But perhaps it is its very non-conformity that makes it so unique. That said, Tolkien’s work was enormously bulky and was meant to be published as a two-volume set: Sumelliron as vol.1 followed by The Lord of the Rings as vol.2. However, one thing readers should be aware of is the economic state of Britain at the time: facing economic downturn during the Great Depression, food was scarce, and the cost of paper was high. It was a risk for publishers to take.

Indeed, the first publishers Tolkien had approached (Stanley Unwin, the same company that published The Hobbit) said as much. But Tolkien refused to cut even one word from his work. We all know how this turned out—a cumbersome whopper of text in what would become one of the most iconic pieces of epic fantasy literature that would resonate with readers young and old to this day—a classic? You decide.

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There are certainly many other classic novels I could mention, but these are a few iconic examples.

It shows that even those we consider the greatest of iconic classic novels have, at one point or another, faced rejection on their road to getting published. Of course, the landscape has changed significantly over time—namely, digitization. With e-book and audiobook platforms creating more diverse opportunities to reach wider audiences, the possibility of publishing a title has slightly opened the doors for less represented writers—the downside is that it comes at a price: oversaturating the market.

Competition is fierce. By the time you finish reading this sentence, three books will have been self-published on Amazon KDP. It’s harder to stand out nowadays. So, for me, this lesson by the Novelry has been extremely valuable in resetting the alarm clock and getting back to basics. It is easy sometimes to get caught up in the hype and demand of ‘over-selling’ or ‘over-writing’. Sometimes, as the saying goes, less is more. Strip it back: get to the heart of the story and the characters—leave the bells and whistles for marketing.

One piece of advice by author Pierce Torday I will take away from the course, is to ask myself as a writer: ‘what is the one driving question of your story?’

As I mentioned in my ~top-secret~ preview last time, the question I proposed was: how far would one go for love? And how much would one sacrifice for the one they love?

You could apply this in so many interpretive contexts, and that is the beauty of writing as an artform. You and I may well have very differing interpretations and approaches to that question (e.g., elements of fantasy or magic, etc., whereas you may go off on an upmarket lit quest or gothic horror, etc). And you know what? We should celebrate that. A stellar example of remembering this can be found in Virginia Woolf’s ‘Street Haunting’ short stories, a classic set I discovered on Penguin Shop.

In one short story ‘How should one read a book?’, the author describes how Thomas Hardy and Jane Austen would describe what they see in markedly contrasting ways: where Hardy is melodramatic and describes the ‘nature’ of a scene, Austen seeks to draw readers into the warm firelit comfort of a living room to observe her subjects closely in their humanness. And that is the beauty of writing. It would be very rare for two writers to write a scene or subject in the same way. And this diverseness of voice should be celebrated.

Rapping my fingernails on my desk, I take a breath. I remember to forget the noise, the worry of ‘I should write this way’ or write like so-and-so—because that means giving up my voice and my way of storytelling.

I feel this will cut away all the noise and keep me grounded as I continue developing my craft. I will also remember to stay authentic to my path. I’ve said it before—I am not here to emulate or imitate anyone else. Like those above, I’d rather risk doing something different and authentic than copy an existing template because it’s ‘safer’.

Often, I feel the idea of set genre limitations can be stifling. Harry Potter has elements of high fantasy, magic realism, romance, dark magic, and drips of horror. But what do we define it as? This is interpretative to the reader—much like writing is to the writer.

As I mentioned before, I like to use mixed mediums in my process: painting, digital art, music, and poetry. Why not blur the boundaries and have fun doing it?

Final thoughts on rejection and lessons to take away…

The thought of rejection is scary and disheartening. But seeing the authors of these classics going through the trenches reminds me that every writer will have faced (and will continue to face) rejection at some point in their career. Never forget - 800 times. C. S. Lewis. Eight. Hundred. Times.

This fuels me with newfound purpose and determination: if they can do it, so can I. Remember that sometimes, it is a numbers game. Luck, connections, and (most overlooked) privilege all play a part—and, of course, the story and writing itself.

Hence, I believe garnering a support system and fostering meaningful connections with other writers and readers is paramount. For that, I thank you, dear reader 😊

Remember, you can show your support for my work here on Substack by engaging with and restacking the content. I'd love to know more if you have other examples of classic novel rejections to share—or get in touch to share some of your experiences.

Writers like me (i.e. Indian women!) represent less than 2% of the industry and authors who get published traditionally. It’s an uphill battle, but I’ve built up to that number thanks to you—and I hope to keep growing and glowing with your support.

You can show support by connecting with me on Wattpad, where I currently share poems and haikus weekly. On TikTok, I share excerpts of my work and commentary on literature and writing—you can follow along and upvote on Wattpad (it’s free).

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Thank you so much! X SJ 💗

If you’d like to support my writing, you can also donate (if you wish). Many of these posts take days or several hours to curate. Thank you.

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An after note:

The missing piece of the modern literary puzzle: social media as a means of authorship

Whilst the above authors struggled at one point or another in landing a publishing deal with what would become renowned pieces of classic literature, we cannot overlook another integral part of today's shifting dynamic: social media.

Social media is one aspect that I still feel many publishers and literary whizzes have yet to utilise to its fullest power. For instance, I am now receiving invitations from TikTok to their creator program—whilst I am steadily building from the ground up on Wattpad. This means, in theory, I could put a book up directly on TikTok shop (without needing the middle person i.e., agent/ publisher). Sometimes, you just have to do things yourself. #selfmade

To be continued in the next post…

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Do you have a story you’d like to share? Perhaps you’ve got some experience with handling rejection or have some tips on this topic. Feel free to drop me a line and connect! Thanks :-) SJ x