Over his own dark Cealdish beard. "Nothing like your marvelous facebear.

...it is better to have a mouthful of poison than a secret of the heart.

The good thing about working on the books for 14 years before they hit the shelves is that I worked out most of the kinks long before they were published.

Hespe's mouth went firm. She didn't scowl exactly, but it looked like she was getting all the pieces of a scowl together in one place, just in case she needed them in a hurry.

Death was like an unpleasant neighbor. You didn’t talk about him for fear he might hear you and decide to pay a visit.

It was only then I realized I didn't know the name of Elodin's class. I leafed through the ledger until I spotted Elodin's name, then ran my finger back to where the title of the class was listed in fresh dark ink: "Introduction to Not Being a Stupid Jackass." I sighed and penned my name in the single blank space beneath.

Stories only happen to people who can tell them.