got my first reject :((

Got my first reject from the new publisher that I'm working with. It was a short article, 500 words, but the template that they gave me didn't really lend itself to the subject and then the editor said it was really written more like a "topic view" than a "how to".  If I could have written it as a topic view, I would have, but the template for the subject was a How To! makes no sense. The topic was interpreting your insurance policy. The editor also asked for a reason why I didn't cite any references. I stated that I thought being a licensed agent was as good a reference as any! That the state licensed me to be able to interpret, sell and dissect the policy, and if I do that wrong, I may lose my license, so I better be knowledgeable! once I sent that, it was rejected pretty quick. :(( I quickly sent off my next "how to". Hope that I do better on this one!