Sassenach, he said against my shoulder, a moment later. Mm? Who in God’s name is John Wayne? You are, I said. Go to sleep.
Randall! Of course! Roger smacked himself on the forehead, and felt his cheeks grow hot at Brianna’s giggle. You’re going to think me a complete fool, but I’ve only just realized who you are.
Luceo Non Uro. ‘I shine, not burn,
Just as an effective advertisement or page layout includes a lot of white space, a powerful scene requires immense restraint. Show things as simply as possible.
It was a blur, people say. What they really mean is the impossibility of anyone truly entering such an experience from outside, the futility of explanation.
It occurred to me—belatedly, as so many things did these days—that John’s intimate memories belonged to him, as well. I didn’t mean to pry, I said apologetically. He smiled faintly, but with real humo...
I wanted ye from the first I saw ye – but I loved ye when you wept in my arms and let me comfort you, that first time at Leoch.
I love I have loved ye from the moment I saw ye, I will love ye ’til time itself is done, and so long as you are by my side, I am well pleased wi’ the world.
I leaned back on my elbows and basked in the warming spring sun. There was a curious peace in this day, a sense of things working quietly in their proper courses, nothing minding the upsets and turmoi...
I knew too well that deadness of heart; the sense of sleepwalking through days and lying open-eyed at night, finding no rest, knowing only emptiness that was not peace.
I had one last try.Does it bother you that I'm not a virgin? He hesitated a moment before answering.Well, no, he said slowly, so long as it doesna bother you that I am. He grinned at my drop-jawed exp...
I estimated the ambient humidity at roughly a thousand percent, but tipped a little of my sweetened coffee into the saucer and blew on it nonetheless.
I assure you, Mother, he said dryly, you are undoubtedly the most interesting woman I’ve ever met. She snorted briefly and gave him a direct look. I suppose that’s why you haven’t yet married, is it?...
He wiped the sweat from his face on his sleeve, squared his shoulders, and strode back into the fray. All there was to do was his duty.
He stood for a moment, bereavement a sudden, small tear in his soul.
He pressed me firmly to him, and I could feel that he was more than ready to get on with the business at hand. With some surprise, I realized that I was ready too. In fact, whether it was the result o...
Do you miss her greatly—your wife? I felt a bit hesitant about asking, but he didn’t seem to find the question intrusive.
Suppose—maybe medicines? They’re covered,
Had no notion how much resemblance there was between what he was doing, and the original beliefs of the Iroquois,
You don’t need to know the purpose as you write, but when you read over something you’ve written, you should be able to point to any given element—be that a line of dialogue, a descriptive phrase, a p...