"As I said, we do believe you. But it is my duty to ensure that all blasphemy be scourged from the people, by any means necessary." His fingers touched my face, cold worms tracing my cheekbone, and I fought back a shiver.

"Spotting the weak areas in your own work is the hardest thing for a writer to do. The best way to develop this ability is to do a lot of critiques on other people's stories. It's easy to see the flaws in other people's work."