Failure is a normal aspect of work in creative industries; even highly successful artists are subject to rejection by critics, fans, and peers. It is known that organizations such as schools and workplaces are the primary space for job-related socialization, but artistic careers are characterized by nonstandard employment relations and do not generally require formal schooling. Without the bureaucratic structures typically used to socialize novice group members, how do artistic occupational communities socialize aspirants to manage rejection and labor market failure? This article draws from 6 months of participant observation from “Song Club,” a periodic professional workshop for aspiring songwriters where aspirants present a song to publishers in the hopes of having it recorded and released to commercial audiences. During the period of study, 403 songs were presented to publishers, and 327 were rejected. During the workshops, Song Club members are socialized toward normalizing rejection, appropriately interacting with gatekeepers, and developing collaborative relationships with peers. Adopting these norms reduces the likelihood of failure and contextualizes the meaning of rejection in this occupational community.

中文翻译：

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艺术职业社区中的社会化拒绝和失败

失败是创意产业工作的正常现象；即使是非常成功的艺术家也会遭到评论家、粉丝和同行的拒绝。众所周知，学校和工作场所等组织是与工作相关的社会化的主要空间，但艺术职业的特点是雇佣关系不规范，一般不需要正规学校教育。如果没有通常用于使新手群体成员社交的官僚结构，艺术职业社区如何使有抱负的人社交以管理拒绝和劳动力市场失败？本文来自“歌曲俱乐部”为期 6 个月的参与者观察，这是一个为有抱负的词曲作者举办的定期专业研讨会，有抱负的歌曲作者向出版商展示一首歌曲，希望将其录制并发布给商业观众。在学习期间，403 首歌曲提交给出版商，327 首被拒绝。在研讨会期间，歌曲俱乐部成员被社会化，使拒绝正常化，与看门人适当互动，并与同龄人建立合作关系。采用这些规范可以降低失败的可能性，并将拒绝在这个职业社区中的含义背景化。