In my work as the Slushmaster General (officially, “Contributing Editor”) for Baen Books, I look at a lot of submissions from budding authors. Sometimes I’m pleasantly surprised by the clarity and liveliness of their prose. Much of the time, I’m simply disappointed that what I read doesn’t live up to expectations or isn’t right for our publishing house.
At times, however, I run across something that beggars belief. One such is a phrase I’ve noticed a number of times in cover letters: “beyond imagination.”
Writer, you have penned a story using your imagination! By definition, it cannot be “beyond imagination”! How can you have written your story, if that were the case?
(Image: “Life in the minds of children,” by archanN.jpg, on Wikimedia under Creative Commons.)
And, more to the point, how do you expect your story to live up to such an extraordinary claim? This is why “less is more” is good advice when preparing a cover letter.
All we really need to know is the title of your novel, what kind of novel it is, and how long it is. When you start adding much more, you give yourself more opportunities to make mistakes–and sometimes those mistakes cast doubt in our minds about your ability to craft a compelling story.
As my Dad told me many times, “A word to the wise is sufficient”–and, yes, the fact that he had to say it so often proved that I was not wise. Likewise, then: Authors, be wise … as well as imaginative!
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For some recent writings of mine that were clearly not beyond imagination, see
– A Church More Like Christ, awarded a Silver medal by the Military Writers Society of America
– Elements of War, also awarded a Silver medal by the Military Writers Society of America
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