Jro's about to get all philosophical on you, so put your hand to your chin in thinker pose and bear with me.
Yesterday I was having a conversation with a friend about the difference between successful people and people that tend to get stuck in a quagmire of bogginess. For me, it pretty much all boiled down to a couple of simple tenets.
One, when life opens a door for you, walk through it. It may be you need to back out of the room you walked into real quick like, but HOW WILL YOU KNOW if you don't walk through the door?
In writing, this could translate into sending that first query. Entering an online pitch contest. Saying yes to a new critique partner. It could mean spending two hundred dollars on a conference instead of Modcloth. When the opportunities present themselves, and you're reasonably prepared, walk through that damn door!
Two, don't blame other people. Your life is yours. Sure, other people may affect your life, but ultimately how you handle ANY situation is up to you. Be like a weeble. Wobble but don't fall down. Or if you do fall down, lie there for a minute (or an hour, day, week) and curse at the ceiling, but then raise yourself up, dust yourself off, look around and say "Okay, that sucked, but what now?"
In writing, there are millions of rejections. And I do mean millions. You're going to fail. By God, I hope you fail. Because failing in this game means you are playing it. But the important part is not to let those failures stop you. What's important is to figure out your next steps. It's okay to need a break, to pull yourself into a corner and tend to your wounds. It's okay to pout and punch your pillow. All natural human reactions. But the crucial part is finding that moment when you stand yourself back up, take a deep breath and shout "I'm not going to let the bastards get me down!"
And with that, I'll say this.
You got this.