Don’t worry about those rejection letters. One day, when you’re considered one of the greatest American writers ever, The New Yorker will backtrack and publish that short story they passed on before you got famous.

At least, that’s what happened with F. Scott Fitzgerald. Recently his grandchildren found the rejected story in his papers. Fitzgerald scholar and editor James West passed it along to The New Yorker staff, who are going to run the story this week. The first time around, they weren’t so kind:

“The magazine wrote in an internal message that it was “altogether out of the question. It seems to us so curious and so unlike the kind of thing we associate with him and really too fantastic.””

Okay, so Fitzgerald’s not around to enjoy this belated triumph, but the rest of us can wave our rejection letters in solidarity.

(image: GoodReads)