--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think I got serious about writing in…" description: "\"I think I got serious about writing in the late '90s. The first stuff I wrote was terrible and got rejected, but I started getting more encouraging rej..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/paul-g-tremblay-12829_late_i-think-i-got-serious-about-writing-in-t_124746.jpg" --- # I think I got serious about writing in the late '90s. The… ![“I think I got serious about writing in the late '90s. The first stuff I wrote was terrible and got rejected, but I started getting more encouraging rejection letters.” quote by Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/paul-g-tremblay-12829_late_i-think-i-got-serious-about-writing-in-t_124746.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/paul-g-tremblay-12829_late_i-think-i-got-serious-about-writing-in-t_124746.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/paul-g-tremblay-12829_late_i-think-i-got-serious-about-writing-in-t_124746.jpg) > “I think I got serious about writing in the late '90s. The first stuff I wrote was terrible and got rejected, but I started getting more encouraging rejection letters.” [Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early writing attempts were poor and rejected, yet the feedback—though negative—contained encouragement that spurred improvement. **In simple terms:** Rejection can include hidden encouragement. Key Takeaway Persistence turns criticism into growth. Themes writing rejection encouragement growth Mood hopeful determined Type personal anecdote inspirational When to use this quote - manuscript submissions - screenplay pitches - blog publishing Key Concepts resilience creative development Practical Applications - keep a rejection log - extract constructive points Questions to Reflect On - What patterns emerge in helpful rejection feedback? - How does one stay motivated after repeated setbacks? A Different Perspective Not all rejection letters are encouraging; some are purely dismissive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Rejection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection/) [Rejection letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection-letters/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm talking to anyone who has been dumped - have not gotten the job you really wanted or have received those horrible rejection letters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/i-m-talking-to-anyone-who-has-been-dumped-have-not-gotten-the-job-you/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [I received rejection letters for ten years (one on a napkin, written in crayon.) I had all my rejection notices stored in a box.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/i-received-rejection-letters-for-ten-years-one-on-a-napkin-written-in/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [I know there's a lot of talk about self-publishing right now. Everyone's giddy with the possibilities. And I'll admit that it looks good on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-know-there-s-a-lot-of-talk-about-self-publishing-right-now-everyone/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“He wrote with terrible rapidity, the twig in his fingers rilling blood without renewal; but in the middle of a sentence his hands denied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/he-wrote-with-terrible-rapidity-the-twig-in-his-fingers-rilling-blood/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [I didn't pretend that I was good at writing music, so I wrote terrible music, intentionally. As time went on, the terrible subsided, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c418/i-didn-t-pretend-that-i-was-good-at-writing-music-so-i-wrote-terrible/) C418 > [I wrote one terrible manuscript after another for a decade and I guess they gradually got a little less terrible. But there were many,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-grahame-smith/i-wrote-one-terrible-manuscript-after-another-for-a-decade-and-i/) [Seth Grahame-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-grahame-smith/) > [This is a stamina game, so don't despair if you run down a blind alley and have to start over, or if you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-maleeny/this-is-a-stamina-game-so-don-t-despair-if-you-run-down-a-blind-alley/) Tim Maleeny > [“The word 'NO' is the best motivation there is for the storyteller in you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-k-kuykendall/the-word-no-is-the-best-motivation-there-is-for-the-storyteller-in-you/) [A.K. Kuykendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-k-kuykendall/) > [It's good to try stuff. 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They said it looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-van-dyke/i-ve-had-a-lot-of-writers-in-particular-who-said-they-got-into/) [Dick Van Dyke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-van-dyke/) > [Well Ive been rhyming since I was 5 years old and I kinda stopped when I was 10. Then this summer I got back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diggy-simmons/well-ive-been-rhyming-since-i-was-5-years-old-and-i-kinda-stopped/) [Diggy Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diggy-simmons/) ## More by Paul G. Tremblay > [I want folks to take horror seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/i-want-folks-to-take-horror-seriously/) [Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) > [I feel like too many horror writers and filmmakers sort of just assume that the default is, 'The horror movie must be all atmosphere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/i-feel-like-too-many-horror-writers-and-filmmakers-sort-of-just/) [Paul G. 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Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) > [I'm harsh on myself. But let's be honest: I'm not as harsh as the online one-star critic who says, 'This book is boring and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/i-m-harsh-on-myself-but-let-s-be-honest-i-m-not-as-harsh-as-the/) [Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) > [In the early 2000s, I started selling some short stories to horror markets. I joined the Horror Writers Association.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/in-the-early-2000s-i-started-selling-some-short-stories-to-horror/) [Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) > [Any day in which I get writing done is ideal to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/any-day-in-which-i-get-writing-done-is-ideal-to-me/) [Paul G. 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It's no good meeting the right person too soon or too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wong-kar-wai/love-is-all-a-matter-of-timing-it-s-no-good-meeting-the-right-person/) [Wong Kar-wai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wong-kar-wai/) > [And my experience is the best titles, for me, emerge in the process of writing. 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