I am a writer - for I have been rejected.

"Thank you for your query. Unfortunately, your manuscript doesn't sound like something that’s right for us. We wish you the best of success in placing your work elsewhere."


 The above is the reply to the query I sent six days ago. Maybe later I'll feel disappointed, but for today I'm thrilled! Being rejected by a potential agent is the writer's calling card, and I just got mine, thank you very much.
This email means other things, too. It means I followed this agent's submission guidelines closely enough to deserve a minute of someone's time and an actual reply. It means I can go on to the next potential agent. Oh, and it means I have a manuscript.
That last one may seem obvious, but writers sometimes forget how far they've come. Getting my first rejection is a pretty high rung on my ladder to publishing success - above writing a  novel, rewriting a novel, editing a novel, and repeating the process with a query letter, which is much harder. So for today I'm celebrating the view from this lofty height.
And tomorrow? I guess it's already time to query a few more agents. Wish me luck!