I try to think of each ‘no’ as a ‘not for them’ or a ‘not now.’ This helps me recognise that there may still be a publisher out there for whom my novel is exactly what they’re looking for at exactly the right time. I just have to find them and to do that, I can’t give up.

My whole Submittable account could be marked Declined and I’d still keep plugging away. I think most people would kill to feel that much passion for something, so I consider myself lucky.

I want to see my stories in the hands of readers. I want to see the people and the worlds I have created being read by others. For me, writing novels isn’t just for me. I know that it’s often said, as advice for coping with rejection, to enjoy the writing for the process. And I do. But for me, it’s not enough.

I write because I love to write. I love the way it makes me feel. I love telling stories and making up characters and meeting new people on the page.

There is much luck in finding the right publisher on the right day with space for your kind of book on their list. Apart from choosing which publishers I approach, I have no control over any of that. So, why should it stop me writing?

I’m not even sure how much I care about getting published. I’m more driven by how I feel about the work. It’s an absolutely amazing feeling to write something and think, yeah, I sincerely love this.

My first abandoned manuscript taught me about patience, persistence, and the importance of structure. It also taught me about humility and highlighted everything I still had to learn about the craft of writing.

We rarely hear about the books that don’t get published. And yet, for most of us writing with the aim of publication, it will be a long, winding and bumpy ride, with no guarantees of arriving at our destination.

The establishment of the lazaret on Peel Island exposed the uncomfortable and shameful truth of our attitudes to both race and disease.