Character Interview for Skate the Thief

For every book we release, we'll feature an interview with one of its major characters. This person may or may not be the main character; in the case of Skate the Thief, it is not. We interviewed Haman Vaerion: a thief, a wizard, and a man of secrets. Let's see what tidbits we were able to pry out of him.

Here today with us, we have Haman, a lieutenant for the Ink crime syndicate. So tell us, Haman:
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How did you first meet Skate?

​There was an incident in the slums that left her in a tight spot. We’re always looking for new employees, and people down on their luck are most receptive to what we can offer them.

​How do you feel about Skate?

​She’s a quick learner, eager to prove herself. Her type is incredibly useful to us in the long run. At present, she’s merely adequate as a burglar, but given a few more years? She’ll be on a short list of the best in Caribol.

​Can I see that list?

​It’s best we pretend you didn’t ask that question. Moving on.

​What is your life philosophy? If you were running the Ink, what would you do differently?

Messy work is lost money. In my profession, subordinates have a lot of incentive to be messy on purpose; thieves and thugs tend not to have the best heads for numbers in the best of times, and their memories get foggier and foggier if they think they can skim extra off the top. I’ve suggested to the Boss for years that we should consider some form of compulsion magic in our members’ tattoos — something to keep them from lying to superiors, you understand. But then we’d end up with honest thieves, and where would that leave us?

Are there any misconceptions you’d like to correct about yourself?

​I think some of my fellow members think I don’t have a social life or take any joy outside of work, and that’s untrue. I’m just better at keeping secrets than they are, and I keep my personal life out of business.

​Ideally, what would you like to do next?

​Ideally? Make sure every criminal in this city is working for us to avoid any wasteful chaos, help Boss Marshall consolidate influence among his peers, and force that compulsion magic on our members. Realistically? I need sleep. Debriefing thieves and staring at figures on parchment all day is more exhausting than you might think, magic or no.
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Thank you for joining us, Haman.

​[He mysteriously vanishes.]

Read more about Haman, Skate, and the other complex, well-developed characters here!

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