The word rejected came to me from a friend on Twitter. Than I thought: I can do a post on books that have been rejected before.
Not how many times my stuff has been rejected. I don’t collect rejections. They are so depressing.
But looking at how many times other people had to try is inspiring, you know? It make you think: if you try enough times, eventually you will succeed.
Cracked has five. Flavorwire has ten, and there are many, many others. But I like Cracked’s 
best.
- Harry Potter: rejected for being too long
- Animal Farm: rejected for because of current politics. published after the war ended and those politics ceased to matter.
- And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street by Dr. Seuss: rejected for being different and silly.
- A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole: rejected for being about nothing. I had never even heard of this book before, but it was published after the author’s death because his mother found a publisher. It won a Pultizer.
- Chicken Soup for the Soul: rejected by for (1) not being edgy enough and (2) no one buys short stories.
Story Treasury 
I’ve heard of so many books which were rejected by multiple publishers and then went on to become best sellers. Sort of like TV pilots, lol.
Yeah, there are just a few!
Wow, I bet those publishers are kicking themselves now!
Me too!
It’s amazing how many great books out there that have been rejected–just goes to show you how subjective this whole process is, I guess.
yeah and how hard it is pick out what will be successful.
That *is* inspiring to hear how something could be rejected. It shows that an author has to believe in the work enough to keep pushing it.
yeah, really believe.
I’m guilty of the first! I’ve intentionally avoided reading the Harry Potter series because the books are so incredibly daunting! Not that I am unable to read them per se, but it’s more about a time consuming issue. Also, I’ve yet to read Animal Farm! I did read 1984, but had to recover after that ending. Great post!
I really liked Animal Farm, but could barely make it through 1984.
I have heard both, though I don’t know which is better.