Above us, outlined against the brilliant sky, dragons crowded every available perching space on the Rim. And the sun made a gold of every one of them.

James Blish told me I had the worst case of "said bookism" (that is, using every word except said to indicate dialogue). He told me to limit the verbs to said, replied, asked, and answered and only when absolutely necessary.

Fear has its uses but cowardice has none.

The blackest night must end in dawn, the light dispel the dreamer's fear.

Mostly I'm telling people that they don't have to be victims

Because we build the worlds we wouldn't mind living in. They contain scary things, problems, but also a sense of rightness that makes them alive and makes us want to live there.

I do outlines when I'm writing with someone, but they also need to have a certain amount of freedom