After the 10th rejection, Susan went to her bedroom and closed the door. She needed time to think.
She had flown to NYC and rented an apartment in Chelsea for the week. The purpose of her trip was to meet with publishers and secure a book deal. Her literary agent pitched
numerous publishers. But each one said, “no.”
Susan had been looking forward to a busy week filled with exciting meetings, but apparently, this wasn’t happening. Her inbox: filled with rejections. Her calendar: empty.
She kept refreshing her inbox. Maybe this time she’d see good news. But there was nothing.
“Sorry, nothing to report," her agent said apologetically. "If I hear anything, I’ll let you know.”
“What am I supposed to do now?” Susan wondered. “Just sit around and wait?”
Susan, by her own admission, is not a patient woman. Folding her hands and waiting passively for something to happen felt
unacceptable.
Pacing around her room, she considered her reasons for writing a book in the first place.
“I want to inspire women to stop yo-yo dieting and starving themselves,” she said to herself.
“I want to create a generation of girls and women who
actually like their bodies. Show people that you don’t have to spend thousands of hours of your life obsessing about your weight. There are far better things you can do with your time.”
“I don’t have to wait for a publisher to say ‘yes’ to this project,” she decided. “I can give myself the green light.”
Since she had a whole week
with no meetings, she decided to make the most of this time.
She spent the week writing down her ideas, recording videos, and building an online classroom.
Then, she reached out to her clients and colleagues and said, “I’ve created a new program and I’d love you to enroll. Join my body-positivity revolution.”
A few women signed up. Then a few more. Word spread. In the next year, Susan brought her message to hundreds and earned more than $100,000 from this program.
Eventually, the book deal happened too.
Her book, Bare, became a bestseller and got featured in The Washington Book Review, Parade, and Booklist.
By the time Bare came out, Susan had assembled an army of women who were passionate about the book's mission and eager to help promote it. She had a stronger platform and was poised to make
the most of this moment. The timing, as it turned out, was perfect.
