Feel Good Friday – Building resilience: Navigating rejection and knockbacks
25 September @ 11:00 - 11:45 BST
You’ve written your book. You’ve researched agents. You’ve taken the leap and sent your query and then you wait.
What happens next? For many, it’s a polite reply “thank you, but this isn’t right for us.” Sometimes you might not hear back at all. Both scenarios can sting, and for some writers, that rejection is enough to stop them sending their book out again.
This session hosted, by confidence and resilience coach Kelly Weekes, explores how you can move forward after a “no” without losing confidence or momentum.
#SoAatHome Feel Good Friday events – free for SoA Members
All #SoAatHome Feel Good Friday sessions are free for members. However, for non-members, the price is £35 including VAT.
Not a member? sign up here with our special #SoAatHome offer and get 20% off for the first year – use code SOAATHOME20.
Programme
- Welcome, introductions and housekeeping from Lilly Brend-Fish – Events & Engagement Manager, SoA (3 mins)
- Presentation by Kelly Weekes (30 mins)
- Q&A with audience (10 mins)
- Summary and closing comments (2 mins)
What will this session cover?
We’ll cover:
- Why rejection can feel so painful (and why that feeling is normal)
- What to do in the short term after a knockback
- How to avoid common negative spirals
- How to reframe rejection and take important learnings
- How to decide, and plan, what to do next
While this session will mainly focus on resilience after an agent or publisher rejection, the tools and strategies shared can be applied to other knockbacks you may face in your author career.
Who is this session for?
This session is for authors who’ve experienced rejection or setbacks and want to rebuild their confidence and create a clear plan for moving forward.
Send us your questions
If you would like to send questions in advance, email Lbrendfish@societyofauthors.org with ‘Building resilience’ in the subject header.
SoA Fundraising Bookshop
Browse our virtual Bookshop.org store featuring books by authors and speakers taking part in our events programme. When you make a purchase using our affiliate links, a percentage will go to the Society of Authors’ Access Fund, giving authors support for travel, subsistence, childcare or access needs for events, residencies, and retreats.
The Line-up
Kelly Weekes
Kelly Weekes is an ICF-accredited confidence and resilience coach for authors. She has held senior marketing roles in publishing, and now works directly with authors. She combines her industry knowledge with her coaching skills to help authors navigate the ups and downs of their careers.
Website: www.kellyweekes.co.uk | Instagram: @kelly_weekes
Need to know
Accessibility
- Attendees will have the option to turn on the live transcript, to watch with subtitles
- If you require BSL interpretation for this event, please email events@societyofauthors.org
Before the event
- Once registered, you will be sent a confirmation email with the Zoom link
- If the confirmation email doesn’t arrive in your inbox, please check your junk/spam email folder
- Please add events@societyofauthors.org to your Safe Senders list so you receive our confirmation and reminder emails
During the event
- This online event will take place on Zoom Meetings; you will have the option to turn your camera on or off; you will be muted on arrival
- This event will be recorded and you may be on screen
- Attendees have the option to turn on the live transcript
- This event is 45 minutes
After the event
- The hashtag for this event: #SoAatHome
- SoA Members and paid attendees of this event will be able to catch the recording on our Vimeo channel (password protected) or members can access via the SoA website.
Booking
SoA Members: Please use the ‘Register – SoA Members’ form below and provide your details, including your membership number. If you’re unsure of your SoA ID, please email info@societyofauthors.org.
Non-members: Choose one of the two ticket options below, complete the registration form, then fill out the billing info to finalise your payment.
For event or registration questions, email events@societyofauthors.org.
SoA Members – Free
Non-Members – £5
Accordion Content
Access 20% off your first year of membership of the SoA with discount code SOAATHOME20
The Society of Authors is the UK’s biggest trade union for authors – representing more than 12,000 writers, illustrators, translators and other creative practitioners.
Our subscription rate is just £137 per year (£97 concessionary) which equates to just under £12 per month (or £8 per month concessionary).
As an SoA member, you’ll get:
- Access to all our #SoAatHome events for free including the Professional Development sessions usually charged at £35 from Feb 2025
- Access to all our Feel Good Friday and Industry Insider events which are usually charged £5 from Feb 2025
- Access all #SoAatHome Vimeo professional development recordings so you can catch up in your own time
- Access Unlimited one-to-one professional advice
- Membership of our online and real-world professional networks and special interest groups
- A range of member-only discounts, including books, insurance and travel
- And much more
‘It was a surprisingly lovely way to meet fellow writers in a friendly, warm surrounding perfectly hosted by the SoA staff. Thank you for all the introductions, the welcome and the nourishment!’ – attendee from SoA in Person: Autumn New Members’ Party 2024
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Accordion Content
Giving authors support for travel, subsistence, childcare or access needs for events, residencies, and retreats
Every contribution helps us ensure that these needs and costs aren’t barriers to authors wishing to access events.
If you are in a position to help, please donate via the link below. If you are an author facing access issues, please click here to see if we can help.
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Register - SoA Member
Please use the booking form to register for this event.
Please email events@societyofauthors.org if you have any questions
