The degradation to which you subject others comes back, sooner or later, to haunt you.
But desperate people find courage.
When I'm writing a woman character, I don't think, 'What would a woman do?' I just think, 'What would this character do in this situation?
When you've lost everything, you've got nothing to lose.
I like reading history, and actually most authors enjoy the research part because it is, after all, easier than writing.
I use a professional researcher in New York who does all the legwork, all that stuff which would take me days and weeks of calling, waiting for people to call back.