Clipped Wings: The Rise and Fall of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPS) of World War II

To celebrate the release of an upcoming documentary, Clipped Wings, a book about the female Air Force Service Pilots of WWII (WASPS)!

I’m excited to share this book, because this is a subject I find deeply fascinating and powerful. At a time when we are so close to seeing the first female Vice President, the fearless and sharply intelligent Kamala Harris, this story feels more relevant than ever. Read on for an excerpt from Clipped Wings by Molly Merryman!

In her exhilarating book Clipped Wings: The Rise and Fall of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of WWII, author Molly Merryman shines light on the critical and dangerous work of the daring female aviators who changed history. New York University Press classics series has just updated the book with Merryman’s reflections on the changes in women’s aviation in the past twenty years. A documentary based on Merryman’s work, Coming Home: Fight For A Legacy, is currently in production.

The WASP directly challenged the assumptions of male supremacy in wartime culture. They flew the fastest fighter planes and heaviest bombers; they test-piloted experimental models and worked in the development of weapons systems. Yet the WASP were the only women’s auxiliary within the armed services of World War II that was not militarized.

In Clipped Wings, Merryman draws upon finally-declassified military documents, congressional records, and interviews with the women who served as WASP during World War II to trace the history of the over one thousand pilots who served their country as the first women to fly military planes. She examines the social pressures that culminated in their disbandment in 1944—even though a wartime need for their services still existed—and documents their struggles and eventual success, in 1977, to gain military status and receive veterans’ benefits.

Clipped Wings by Molly Merryman

Excerpt of Clipped Wings:

Airplane ferrying was the initial mission for which WASPs were created, and it would occupy nearly half of all active WASP graduates when the program ended in December 1944. Planes produced in the United States needed to be flown from the factories to air bases at home, in Canada, and overseas. To handle this transportation demand, the ATC hired thousands of male civilian pilots to ferry planes. These male pilots were later commissioned directly into the AAF if they met the requirement and desired commissioning. The WASPs were brought on as ferrying pilots, and by the time they were disbanded in December 1944, they had delivered 12,652 planes on domestic missions. By that time, 141 WASPs were assigned to the ATC. Although they comprised a small percentage of the total Ferrying Division pilots, WASPs had a significant impact. By 1944, WASPs were ferrying the majority of all pursuit planes and were so integrated into the Ferrying Division that their disbandment caused delays in pursuit deliveries.

The days of ferrying pilots were long and unpredictable. At bases that handled a range of planes, pilots did not know from one day to the next what planes they would be flying or how long of a flight to expect. In Minton's words, "We usually reported to the flight line at seven o'clock in the morning and looked at the board to see what had been assigned us in the way of an airplane, where it went and what we would need in the way of equipment to take along, and then we would go out to find our airplane and sign it out at operations and check it over to be sure everything was okay with the airplane. And then we would take off to wherever the plane was supposed to go."

Ferrying military aircraft during World War II was not an easy task. The majority of these planes were not equipped with radios, so pilots navigated by comparing air maps with physical cues (highways, mountains, rivers, etc.) or by flying the beam. (The "beam" was a radio transmission of Morse code signals. A grid of such beams was established across the United States. To follow the beam, a pilot would listen on her headphone for aural "blips" or tones to direct her. This required a great deal of concentration and was not always accurate.) Both navigational techniques were difficult, and this was compounded by the facts that many air bases and factories were camouflaged, blackouts were maintained in coastal areas, and the navigational beams were prone to breaking down. Problems sometimes arose with the planes themselves, which ha d been tested at the factories but never flown. Cross-continental flights often took several days, depending on the planes being flown and weather conditions.

In addition, planes equipped with top secret munitions or accessories had to be guarded while on the ground, and WASPs received orders to protect these planes at all cost. WASPs flying these planes were issued .45 caliber pistols and were trained to fire machine guns.

Molly Merryman, author of Clipped Wings: The Rise and Fall of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of WWII

More About Author Molly Merryman

Molly Merryman, Ph.D. is the founding director of the Center for the Study of Gender and Sexuality and an Associate Professor at Kent State University. She is the Historical Research Producer on the upcoming Red Door Films documentary about the WASP, Coming Home: Fight For A Legacy. She has directed and produced nine documentaries that have been broadcast and screened in the United States and United Kingdom. She is the research director for the Queer Britain national LGBT+ museum and is a visiting professor and advisory board member for the Queer History Centre at Goldsmiths, University of London. Merryman is the vice president of the International Visual Sociology Association.

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Review: The Regency Years by Robert Morrison

This book has a funny story about how I ended up reading it! I spotted it one day in the library ad picked it up on a whim. I’d always found the Regency (about 1810-1820, when the Prince of Wales replaced his insane father George III on the throne of England) interesting, mostly because I love Jane Austen books, and I’d also loved Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, which is set in an alternative magical reality in approximately the same time period.

However, I’m often one who grabs enticing history books off library shelves and renews them multiple times without having even cracked them open. So after I renewed the book for the second time, I resigned myself to once again failing to read a history book that enticed me. And then, low and behold, Covid 19. The libraries were shut down, and they sent me a very nice note about how I could keep my books until they opened back up again. This is one of the few nice things that came out of this whole quarantine/stay at home thing. I kept the book, and I had enough time to actually read it!

The Regency Years by Robert Morrison. Review by Alexis Lantgen of Lunarianpress.com

I’m gad I did, because the Regency is one of the most conflicting, interesting, and least studied periods of English history. It’s the time of Lord Byron, Jane Austen, J.W. Turner, and Sir Walter Scott, as well as many other illustrious writers, scientists, and artists. It’s also a distinctly naughty period of English history, when the Prince Regent and his comrades indulged in all kinds of excess, from opium to drinking to sex. It’s also a pivotal point in the Industrial Revolution, when the old rural agrarian way of life was dying off for good, while the poor and displaced flocked to cities where they were promptly exploited. Charles Dickens was a child then, and his inspirations for Oliver Twist and other books that depict the horrors of poverty and child labor may have come from this time period.

Robert Morrison captures something of the drama and intensity of this period in his book, and he does a good job of showing the many different points of view that people at the time had of all the events around them. For instance, his depiction of the Prince Regent himself, the future George IV. While Morrison notes the many intensive criticisms of the Regent, who was careless, profligate, and self centered, and did little to help his countrymen, he also notes that the Regent had his admirers, including Lord Byron. The book also managed to capture some of the other notable characters of the day, in including Beau Brummell and Lord Byron himself.

Overall, I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading history or is interested in learning more of a relatively ignored period of English History. As a writer, I also found the evocative descriptions and characterizations a good inspiration. Lots of fantasy/steampunk writers could benefit from reading books like this, which can give their worlds depth and a touch of vivid realism. So check out The Regency Years!

Here’s the blurb:

A surprising and lively history of an overlooked era that brought the modern world of art, culture, and science decisively into view.

The Victorians are often credited with ushering in our current era, yet the seeds of change were planted in the years before. The Regency (1811–1820) began when the profligate Prince of Wales—the future king George IV—replaced his insane father, George III, as Britain’s ruler.

Around the regent surged a society steeped in contrasts: evangelicalism and hedonism, elegance and brutality, exuberance and despair. The arts flourished at this time with a showcase of extraordinary writers and painters such as Jane Austen, Lord Byron, the Shelleys, John Constable, and J. M. W. Turner. Science burgeoned during this decade, too, giving us the steam locomotive and the blueprint for the modern computer.

Yet the dark side of the era was visible in poverty, slavery, pornography, opium, and the gothic imaginings that birthed the novel Frankenstein. With the British military in foreign lands, fighting the Napoleonic Wars in Europe and the War of 1812 in the United States, the desire for empire and an expanding colonial enterprise gained unstoppable momentum. Exploring these crosscurrents, Robert Morrison illuminates the profound ways this period shaped and indelibly marked the modern world.

Review: Lulu in Hollywood

I got the book “Lulu in Hollywood” after listening to the History Chicks podcast on Louise Brooks, an iconic movie star from the 1920s and early 1930s. Their descriptions of Louise fascinated me—her life was full of incredible highs and lows, and she observed Hollywood with a sharp eye and unusual honesty. So when at the end of the show they mentioned that Louise Brooks had written a book called “Lulu in Hollywood,” I decided to go ahead and get it. It’s apparently well-known among people who are interested inn Hollywood history or films, because Louise had such an intimate knowledge of the place, and because she herself was such an interesting character.

Louise Brook was a stunning actress and dancer who became Hollywood’s iconic flapper.

The book isn’t a traditional autobiography by any means. In fact, it includes an essay Louise wrote called “Why I Will Never Write My Memoirs.” It’s more of a collection of Louise’s writings about films and the people who made them, from Greta Garbo and Lillian Gish to W.C. Fields and the German director G. W. Pabst. Yet, Brook’s prose brings to life the people she knew and the places she visited, from their deepest, darkest flaws to their greatest triumphs. Her reverence for the great artists of her time makes the book sing with vivid memories of luminaries such as Charlie Chaplin, with whom she had a lovely three month long affair, to Martha Graham, whom she danced with in the Denishawn Dance Company. But Brooks also has a keen and unforgiving eye for weakness, and her depictions of Humphrey Bogart, William Randolph Hearst, and Marion Davies will feel honest, clear, and cold. The heart-breaking tale of Pepi Lederer, Marion Davies’ brilliant but constantly overshadowed niece is one example of Hollywood’s cruelty to those it considers “failures.” Brooks watches the destruction of many starlets and stars close up, including herself.

It’s interesting to read this book with all the modern revelations about Harvey Weinstein and other Hollywood sex abusers. Louise vividly details the sexual humiliations that she was exposed to as a star, and it’s absolutely harrowing to consider how lesser women were likely treated. She describes a frightening scene of Humphrey Bogart terrorizing her when his wife Mayo Methot couldn’t find her shoe. At other times, she describes the cruel jests and casual sexism she was subjected to by the crews she worked with, or the ugly double standards for men and women she witnessed. It’s easy to see why she fled Hollywood rather than try to stay there as an aging star.

I’d recommend this book to anyone interested in early silent movies, the 1920s, or old Hollywood. Yet, I don’t think it needs to be limited to that. Louise Brook’s sharp eye and honesty gives the book something enduring about human nature. Perhaps it has lessons about how no stars can endure living o the pedestals their fans create for them. Brook’s depictions of the intense personalities and the harrowing personal tragedies of the people who lived in the wake of Hollywood is well worth reading for anyone.

Reading the Song of Roland

I picked up a copy of the French epic poem "The Song of Roland" to use as research for a project I was working on. Since I had the book, I figured I might as well read the whole poem (in English translation, though the book also has the French original). As someone who loves Renaissance Faires and finds Medieval history fascinating, I thought it sounded interesting and would perhaps give me some insights into the Medieval world. What I did not expect was how much insight it gave me into the modern world.

The Song of Roland is beautifully written, full of action and interesting characters. Yet it thoroughly reflects a set of values so ancient and foreign that it took me by surprise. For example, its depictions of masculinity. Throughout the poem, men, including and even especially manly, idealized men, show the type of intense emotions that modern men are supposed to forgo. Charlemagne, the wise, great emperor, one of the greatest Christian knights, falls to the ground in a faint and openly weeps when he sees how his most gallant knights have been betrayed and slain. Indeed, all the poem's heroes, including Roland and his noble companion Oliver, weep and mourn in a way that modern society too often frowns upon. Clearly, Medieval warriors did not believe that "boys don't cry."

The strong contrast between men's expected behavior today with the Medieval ideals shows just how unnatural the modern "stoic" ideal is. In the past, men were expected and encouraged to show strong emotions, including crying and mourning.

Find the Song of Roland on Amazon!

The poem seems strangely modern in other ways. The enemies that Roland and Charlemagne face are Muslims, though they're called pagans in the poem and shown worshiping a variety of gods, from Apollo to the made-up god Termagent. What's even stranger, the original battle that inspired "The Song of Roland" wasn't against Muslims at all, but against Christian Basques in the Pyrenees. The choice of Muslims as the enemy, despite its historical inaccuracy, and the complete lack of understanding of their religion, is all to common of the ignorance people express towards other religions even today. At least the poem depicts the Muslims as brave warriors and noble knights, despite their lack of the "true" faith. Still, it's easy to see how this poem reflects the deep roots of Islamophobia in Western culture.

I'd recommend this poem to anyone interested in understanding the perspectives and worldview of Medieval France. Its gripping depictions of brutal combat and the idealized versions of feudal life make it a compelling read, though there are long sections of descriptions that can get a bit tiring.

Ian Mortimer: One of My Favorite History Writers

In an earlier post, I wrote about how much I enjoy listening to history on audible or reading it. I think it’s very useful research for fantasy writers, and the stories in history are so fascinating! One of my favorite history writers right now is Ian Mortimer, who wrote “The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval England,” and many other great books. I already discussed the “Guide to Medieval England” in my previous post, but I’ve read or listened to many other excellent books by Mortimer. Here are a few I’ve enjoyed:

Edward III: The Perfect King

So my poor friends have had to listen to me nerd out about this book too much, so I should probably write about it! It’s an incredible look at one of the most successful, beloved, and glorious of England’s Medieval Kings. Yet his reign had one of the most inauspicious beginnings any King could have—his father was deposed by his mother’s lover, Roger Mortimer, when he was still underage. He quickly fell under Mortimer’s control, and had to survive some very real threats to his life and his crown. But in a dramatic turn around, Edward and his trusted companions made a bold move to sneak into Mortimer’s castle to capture and overthrow him. And that’s just the beginning of a very intense and dramatic reign, but one that also reflects the most exciting and romantic parts of the Middle Ages—jousting, poetry (Geoffrey Chaucer was a member of his court), feasts, and chivalry. He survived the Black Death and established the Order of the Garter. The book is an incredible story of the most pivotal man of the age, and I’d recommend it to anyone interested in Medieval history.

Henry IV: The Righteous King

This is a follow up book to Edward III: The Perfect King. Henry IV, like his cousin Richard II, was a grandson of Edward III. What I love about this book is how Mortimer manages to use the scant historical detail to create a living portrait of a man in a very difficult, unforgiving position. The reader feels the very real fear and dangers Henry IV faced, and the remarkable way he adapts to his circumstances and tries to find the right thing to do. Mortimer portrays a gallant and glorious man, a champion of the joust, who also has a deep love of books and music. Despite his reputation as a usurper, Henry IV showed remarkable patience and restraint towards Richard II, who several times threatens to murder Henry’s father, John of Gaunt. It’s a fascinating depiction of a king rarely discussed in English history.

The Time Traveler’s Guide to Elizabethan England

I loved The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval England, so I was excited to read Mortimer’s follow up, the Time Traveler’s Guide to Elizabethan England. I loved this book as much as the first one! It’s full of colorful and interesting depictions of Elizabethan life. It’s also an evocative portrait of Queen Elizabeth I herself, and how her own personal religious and cultural preferences fundamentally shaped both the age that bears her name and the history of England (and in particular the Church of England). If you have any interest in learning about real Elizabethan life, I’d highly recommend it.

Listening to History on Audible

I love audible because like podcasts, I can listen to something interesting and informative while I’m on my daily commute. I think that learning about history can be fun and inspiring, especially for people who write fantasy. There are so many incredible stories and settings from the past, many of which are really under used by fantasy or historical fiction writers, who tend to focus entirely on Medieval Europe. So whether you like listening to history or are looking for good writing inspiration, here are three of my favorite courses from audible.

1. Famous Romans, by Rufus Fears

I've always loved Greek and Roman history, and while searching the website, I found a series of lectures called Famous Romans given by Rufus Fears for the Great Courses. I'd heard of Professor Fears while I was a student at the University of Oklahoma--he'd been respected and loved by students there. In fact, his classes were so popular, I could never get into one! So while I missed seeing Dr. Fears while I was a student, I figured it would be interesting to listen to his lectures on audible.

In Famous Romans, Fears gives us the history of Ancient Rome via the lives of its great warriors, politicians, philosophers, and poets. From the epic battles of Hannibal and Scipio Africanus, to the brilliant career of Julius Caesar, the stories of these great Roman citizens are engaging and informative. Fears narrates these biographies with passion and intelligence, and is quick to note the life lessons one can find in past. Like Plutarch, an ancient biographer he clearly admires, Fears thinks that the goal of studying history is to learn to be a better human being. In a time when it seems that so many people have little respect for the humanities, it's refreshing to hear someone so vigorously defend the study of history.

Yet, Famous Romans is as entertaining as it is intellectual. Many of these Romans lead fascinating, action-packed lives, full of epic battles, heroic virtues, and great tragedy. Others, like Nero, lead lives of utter depravity. Either way leads to a very interesting story. And that's the heart of what I like best about Famous Romans on audible; it's like listening to someone telling you a series of wonderful stories, with the added benefit of being historical. So if that appeals to you, I encourage you to give it a try.

2. The History of Ancient Egypt

While I knew quite a bit about Greek and Roman history, I knew very little about ancient Egypt, so this seemed like a good place to learn more.

Brier takes the listener through every Egyptian dynasty, from the possibly apocryphal pharaohs of the Old Kingdom to the Ptolemies, including the great queen Cleopatra. The professor, who has appeared on National Geographic and Discovery Civilizations documentaries, comes off as highly knowledgeable and deeply passionate about Egyptology. He does have a thick New York accent, but after a while I found that endearing instead of distracting, especially since his voice has a lot of warmth. As for the subject matter, it was fascinating. Egypt's culture and civilization predates the Ancient Greeks by thousands of years, and it's clear that many of their ideas influenced the cultures around them. For example, although Egyptians usually worshipped many gods, one of the 18th dynasty pharaohs, Akhenaten, introduced the worship of a single deity, one of the first recorded instances of monotheism. His son, the famous King Tut, restored the traditional religion after his father's death.

In some ways, the ancient Egyptians felt surprisingly modern. Although they respected their traditions and were often highly resistant to change, they accepted outsiders so long as they assimilated into Egyptian culture. For example, all the pharaohs of the 25th dynasty were black. They were originally Nubians who invaded Egypt during a time of chaos, then ruled for over a hundred years. Likewise, Egyptians accepted the Greek Ptolemies as pharaohs as well. Clearly, ancient Egyptians were more diverse than you might think. They also had a female pharaoh, Hatshepsut, who may be the first great woman leader we know of in history.

Overall, I enjoyed "The History of Ancient Egypt" quite a bit. Egyptian history is fascinating, and the Brier's passion and knowledge of his subject made it all the more compelling.

3. The World of Byzantium

I decided to listen to Kenneth Harl's "The World of Byzantium," one of The Great Courses series. I chose it because while I've read a great deal about ancient Greece and Rome, I realized I knew very little about the latter part of the Roman empire and even less about Byzantium, the heir to the Roman empire that survived in its Eastern half for nearly a thousand years.

The history of the Eastern Empire, and its evolution from a classical Roman society to a Medieval Christian society (though one conspicuously lacking in the ignorance and feudalism of Western Europe), is a fascinating and engaging part of history that I'd never studied before. Yet without the Byzantine Empire, much of Greek and Roman history, philosophy, and culture would have been irretrievably lost. The lecture series begins by examining the divisions within the Roman Empire that lead to its split, and eventually to the loss of its Western half. Harl explores the career of the great Emperor Constantine I, who builds the great city of Constantinople in what is today modern Turkey. The wealthiest and greatest city in world for thousands of years, Constantine and his successors would use the city to spread Christianity throughout the empire and to rule the Eastern empire long after the fall of Rome.

Yet despite the vibrancy, strength, and wealth of the great city, called "New Rome" by Constantine himself, the rulers never quite have the ability to retake the rest of the former empire. Nonetheless, the power of Constantinople shapes the world as it transitions from late antiquity to the dark ages, through the crusades and the emergence of the Ottoman empire, Byzantium's successor. Much of Western culture, from the works of Plato and Aristotle, to the histories and law codes of Rome, survived in Byzantium and were only rediscovered in Western Europe during the crusades. Byzantine history is also full of fascinating characters, including the Emperor Justinian I, a brilliant man who fundamentally shaped the Byzantine state and its religious character, yet who ultimately could not reconcile the religious and cultural differences between the Eastern and Western halves of the former Roman Empire. 

I'd recommend this course to anyone who's interested in history. The Byzantine Empire and its demise had a profound influence on the modern world, and Harl depicts its wonders and its sophistication as well as its occasional savagery. As a narrator, Harl is clearly passionate and knowledgeable about his subject, which makes listening to him engaging.    

Three Nonfiction Books Fantasy Writers Should Read

1. The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval England

I love reading about Medieval history, so when I found this book on audible, I was very interested. The book isn't a novel, so much as a popular history based on what it would be like to travel through England between the years of 1300 and 1400 AD. What would you see, smell, and hear? Who would you meet? What would it be like to live there? It's a fascinating concept, one that treats the past more like a living, breathing place than a remote, long dead era.

The author, Ian Mortimer, makes some starling observations. For example, how young everyone is. Because so many people don't live to old age, nearly everyone is under the age of twenty five. At 16, a boy is considered a grown man, one who can lead troops into battle or become a king in his own right. The youthful society goes a long way towards explaining the lack of education and the sometimes fanciful beliefs many people have. Likewise, the catastrophic effects of the Black Death are hard for modern people to comprehend. By the end of the 14th century, England has half the population it had in the beginning. The population didn't recover until the 1600s. Entire villages would be wiped out, so that walking around the countryside might be like being the survivor of a zombie apocalypse (especially since contracting the plague likely meant certain death).

The author also rightly points out that while they may not have bathed as often as modern people, people in the 14th century made an effort to keep clean, despite our beliefs to the contrary. Cleanliness was a sign of good manners, and so prized that people in particularly filthy occupations bathed every day, and soap was a valued commodity. Almost everyone would have washed their faces and hands every morning, and manners required you to wash your hands before every meal. It's true they might not have been clean by modern standards, that doesn't mean they didn't value cleanliness and try to achieve it.

While this book does have a few slow chapters--I found the section on money a bit tedious--overall, it was a fascinating exploration about what it was like to live in a different time. As a writer, I found it an invaluable resource. It gave me great ideas for stories and intriguing details for Medieval settings. I'd recommend it to fantasy/historical fiction writers, as well as anyone interested in Medieval history.

2. The Plantagenets by Dan Jones

I love reading history, and The Plantagenets covers a particularly fascinating and eventful era in English history. It opens with the tragedy of the White Ship, a pivotal moment when the heir to the throne, only legitimate son of Henry I, died in a shipwreck. Without a male heir, Henry I decides to leave the throne to his only remaining legitimate child, the Empress Matilda. From Matilda's line came some of England's best and worst kings (and queens). Kings like Henry II or Edward III are remembered as powerful rulers who dominated their enemies and expanded their territories and influence. Yet, the Plantagenet kings like Edward II, John Lackland (the notorious Prince John of the Robin Hood legends), and Richard II endangered the monarchy and the country with their incompetence, arrogance, and savagery. Their stories are exciting to listen to, and give the listener a great insight into the Medieval world. Although it's a history book, it's almost as exciting as Game of Thrones. All in all, The Plantagenets is an excellent book, and I'd recommend it to anyone interested in history, or any fans of Medieval fantasy.

3. Mindset by Carol Dweck

I've been fascinated by Carol Dweck's research into the psychology of success since I first read about her work in NurtureShock. It reinforced some of what I'd read about in Alfie Kohn's Punished by Rewards, another excellent book that challenges plenty of received wisdom on using praise to control children's behavior. Still I had yet to read Dweck's magnum opus Mindset, so on a trip to the library I decided to reserve a copy. It's been such an amazing and helpful book, I intend to buy a copy to keep around when I have to return it to the library. While I'd previously though of Dweck's research as primarily relating to teaching and parenting, this book goes much deeper into how our mindset effects our relationships, our careers, and our ability to lead a fulfilling life. 

After reading Dweck's book, I started thinking about how our mindset effects writers. Writing carries with it an enormous amount of rejection and criticism, and requires an intense, sustained effort for any amount of success. How many people want to write a novel but never finish even a rough draft? Or more likely, how many have a good story idea but never sit down to write it at all? So what does it take to withstand all this adversity and keep writing? A "growth" mindset.

In her book, Dweck shows that some people embrace challenges as learning opportunities. They see failure and rejection as valuable lessons, and learn to accept feedback without allowing the criticism to sap their self-worth. These people have a growth mindset--they believe they can grow their talents and improve themselves with plenty of hard work and effort. Other people have a fixed mindset--they believe that success is dependent on talent and luck alone. They're reluctant to take risks and hate failure, because it's a sign that they're not talented enough to be successful. The fixed mindset discourages effort, because if you have enough talent, everything should be easy for you. 

It's easy to slip into a fixed mindset when you've gotten another rejection. It's easy to say, "I'm not good enough, I might as well give up." But it's so much more satisfying and exciting to say, I'll try again. I'll write more stories. I'll write another novel. I'll listen to feedback from my writing group, my beta readers, and anyone else who'll give it to me. I've gotten helpful feedback from editors who rejected me, and I'm so glad they took the time to send more than a form letter. A growth mindset encourages me to take risks with my writing. I'll try a different genre, or try writing short stories in addition to working on a novel, or query for non-fiction articles. Quitting guarantees failure, but if we keep going, if we work hard enough, we just might make it.