Finding The Many Gifts of Research
I’m Margaret Izard, multi-award-winning author of the series Stones of Iona. My latest release, Stone of Lust, book 3 Stones of Iona, features much research, as all my books do, and I wanted to take a moment and talk about the importance of research and the gifts it provides.
Almost five years ago, when I sat down and decided to write a book, I knew it couldn’t be just a one-off. I wanted a robust and fulfilling series. I knew it would include accurate history, romance, and time travel. I started with the location, Scotland. Then, I carefully chose a castle and a clan to create my home base. Research led me down many paths and gave me unlimited gifts for my stories. Today, I’ll share some of those discoveries and their impact.
Gift #1: A simple historical fact opened the door to the main theme in my series—the magic Fae Stones.
In early research, I read about the Stone of Destiny, or the coronation stone, traveling through Scotland and stopping at Dunstaffnage Castle. When I learned about the Stone of Destiny and its rumored birthplace, Iona Island, I asked myself, what if the stone was magic? What if many stones were magic, and what would that mean? My magic Fae stone concept was born, and the series had a definitive direction beyond a simple historical romance.
When I wrote the first book, Stone of Love, I intended the series to be a trilogy. After completing the first book, I quickly realized each stone needed its own story—a tale of the search for each magic Fae stone and a discovery of the matching emotional element in each stone and how it matched each character’s story. When I expanded the overall series story concept to the seven stones, Love, Fear, Lust, Hope, Doubt, Faith, and Destiny, each story immediately fell into place.
Gift #2: Rich folklore leads to great stories.
As I delved into research on Scotland, I found that many of its beliefs link to its folklore. These rich stories of worlds beyond ours became essential in capturing this country, its people, and its culture and bringing them to life.
The Fae stories brought from Ireland to Scotland before Christianity became my Fae realm baseline. The themes of good and evil in a battle for mankind drove me to dig into these tales, and my Fae realm became a central part of my series.
Gift #3: When in a tough spot, look to history for the key.
I’ve had to keep mum for a long time on a research gift. It’s partially a spoiler for Stone of Lust, so I won’t spoil the story’s outcome while sharing the gift from research.
When I first outlined Stone of Lust, it weaved two stories into one, each dependent on the other, as both found a resolution. One element of the story vexed me for some time, and when my stories do that, I delve into the World Wide Web, searching for history. Usually, there’s something that I read that sparks inspiration, and a solution evolves from that.
The day I found the Brooch of Lorne, a highland broch created by the Lord of Lorne, a MacDougall ancestor, designed to hold stones and one of three rare artifacts left today, I nearly jumped from the chair, cheering. This was the answer! (Which I can’t share here without spoiling the book.) I called it a gift from research. Incorporating it into the story resolved a major plot point and opened the door for other places where I’d use the relic in other books. It was such a great gift. This isn’t the only book you’ll see, the Brooch of Lorne, so look for it in future books coming soon!
I’ve committed to spending days before outlining a book to research. You never know what gifts will appear when you delve into the past.
Gift #4 Visiting the real places you write about is the best research.
My husband and I traveled to Scotland in June 2023. It was a bucket list item for me even before I’d written the books, and by the time we made the trip, I’d finished Stone of Love, book 1, Stone of Fear, book 2. And Stone of Lust, book 3 in the Stones of Iona series, plus the first two books of the coinciding series, Dragons of Tantallon.
Scotland is a mystical, magical place. Being in these locations where I’d imagined such rich and incredible stories only enhanced my awareness of my duty as a writer. To make the stories better than being there in person.
As I stood in the Chapel in the Woods at Dunstaffnage Castle, the wind whirled around me, and I felt a distinct connection to the magic and majesty of the once grand chapel.
When I stood at the main castle door at Dunstaffnage Castle and felt in awe of the grand building, I climbed to the ramparts and stared out over Loch Etive, the same views I describe in the present and past in the many books in the series.
I also visited Dunollie Castle, the seat of the Lord of Lorne, on its peak in Oban, Scotland, overlooking “The Gateway to the Isles,” the same view our main characters in Stone of Lust saw over a hundred years ago. To this day, boats come and go just as they did then. Granted, the boats today are motored and modern, but it wasn’t much of a stretch of the imagination to put Viking ships in their place.
Gift #5 Vikings!
I knew Stone of Lust, book 3 would be a Viking tale. I knew it would feature Colin’s sister, Ainslie, and she would have this juxtaposition between the caring special ed teacher and the warrior inside her heart that, as a child, whipped her older brother, the Laird, while sparring.
I chose the MacDougall clan from the get-go for several reasons. Dunstaffnage Castle has a tumultuous history; the Chapel in the Woods provided the mystic magical element I wanted, and their ancestor was the Lord of Lorne, the ruler of the Western Isles of Scotland in Viking time. Their family history screamed for a Viking story, and I’d miss a huge opportunity if I didn’t tell it.
There was so much about the Viking era with the Lord of Lorne. The idea of merging the modern Ainslie with the stern, rugged Viking ancestor’s first guard, Rannick, proved a great temptation for storytelling and an intriguing romantic tale.
Much of what the reader sees in the Viking era in my book comes from history. How the ships sail and the men travel is true to historic accountings. “The Thing,” their grand gathering and healing methods, come from meticulous research. I found the people to be just as sophisticated as they are rugged. Their values and morals are of the highest standard. The way Vikings take these nearly opposing elements and combine them into a thriving society is the heart of what makes them such a dramatic era to write about. Such richness in the tales it almost writes itself.
Our accommodation, The Oban Inn, faced the bay and setting sun. Each evening, I’d sit having wine and dinner with the Lord of Lorne’s Castle Dunollie to my right, the Viking Bay before me where the Vikings landed their dragon ships and the sunset beyond. Truly inspiring!
Note, we went in June, and the sunsets last long, not finishing until 10:30 pm. The sun rises at 3:30 am since Scotland is so far north. It gives you an other-worldly feeling.
Gift #6 Follow fate. It’s telling you something.
Tantallon Castle, outside of Berwick, Scotland, off the North Sea, was the last day of our trip to Scotland. It was “extra” for us and after the tour group. To get there was a long bus ride from Edinburgh with two stops, but I was determined to visit my dragon’s lair. (The dragons in Stone of Love, book 1, live there and are in the next series, Dragons of Tantallon) We almost went the day before since we had free time, but something in my heart told me to wait.
Fate spoke that day, and I listened. When we arrived at the castle, we learned (they hadn’t mentioned it on the website) that Historic Environment Scotland had taken the pandemic closing as an opportunity to repair many historic locations due to the forced closures. The very day we arrived was the first day the castle had opened to the public in two years! We got in free since the computer wasn’t back online yet. A modern convenience of inconvenience!
The castle is quite impressive, and the coastline is windy. The levels go three stories high and three stories into the ground. An island sits off the coast, and my husband and I sat and had a picnic lunch in the courtyard overlooking the cliff view. A volunteer played a bagpipe and then an antique flute. It was truly magical and inspiring.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my telling of the many gifts research gave me to write Stone of Lust, book 3, the Stones of the Iona Series, and all my books.
The next release is coming very soon! Thistle in the Mistletoe, the Christmas Companion book to the series Stones of Iona, releases November 4th. Stone of Hope, book 4 in the seven-book series, and Stone of Doubt, book 5 will come in 2025.
Check out my website www.margaretizardauthor.com, for upcoming events, interviews, and releases. While there, click on any fairy icon to see where she takes you!
Title Stone of Lust
Author Margaret Izard
Genre Paranormal Romance
Publisher The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb
She dreams of a Viking warrior with Fae-blue eyes and a God-like body that makes her heart pound like no other. Trying to save her kidnapped sister-in-law, Ainslie follows her back to the Vikings of Scotland, where she faces the very man who has haunted her dreams.
When Jarl, Rannick MacRaghnaill meets the alluring Warrior Woman who helped steal his warship, she dresses in clothing so strange that every curve teases his senses. But is she, as she claims, a woman from the future or an irresistible lying thief?
She’d risk her life to save her sister-in-law. He’d risk his honor to win her heart.
Can both hardened warriors save the realms from the evilest of Fae’s minds combined with the most dangerous of humans?
This book contains themes that may be sensitive to some readers, including references to assault and mild violence. Reader discretion is advised.
Excerpt:
When she came to, she turned and focused on the man before her. Her breath left in a whoosh. It was the man from her dream, the man she dreamt of as her true love. He stood tall with black hair, almost as deep a black as hers. His hair was styled with the left side shaved and the right side cut short with patterns shaved into the short hair. He had more braids in his mohawk, and the beads winked in the light of the room. His hawk nose appeared regal. A sharp jawline covered with a beard accentuated his handsome looks. But it was his blue-white eyes that she remembered. To her, they seemed like a Fae’s eyes. She locked eyes with him for a moment. Breaking contact, his gaze traveled up and down her body as though she was the worst thing he’d set his eyes upon.
“Jarl?” Ainslie asked. The man before her smiled as if she made a joke.
The one to her left shook her. “Aye, this is Rannick MacRaghnaill, jarl of these lands who serves Dougal MacDougall, Lord of the Isles, and ye need to answer for yer friend’s crimes.”
It took a moment, but it registered they spoke Gaelic or a rude form of it. She hadn’t spoken it before, but this easily rolled off her tongue yet remained English in her mind. Did he say crime?
She snapped at the man her voice rasping from her dry throat. “What crime?” She coughed. “He kidnapped my sister-in-law.” She gagged from her dry throat. “I followed—need to find her—in danger.”
The man beside her yanked back her ponytail as he forced her eyes to meet his. “The longship yer friend stole. Too bad he left ye behind. Now ye will pay for his crime.”
She spat in the man’s face, the result coming out more air than saliva.
He slapped her again.
Dizzy from the blow, her head fell forward rocking from side to side.
“Enough!” Rannick spoke for the first time. Her lengthy hair fell from her ponytail as she peered at him through the black strands. He studied her for a moment and eyed her up and down. Her clothing certainly had to be a shock to him. She doubted women in the twelfth century wore sweats or running sneakers. She smirked. Given the direction of his look, he probably hadn’t seen the shape of a woman’s leg or a woman’s apex in snug clothing before.
Rannick’s eyes traveled from her lower area to her face as he leered. “Sit her down. She can barely stand. I doubt she’s any real danger to me tied up as she is.” He waved. “Bring mead and let us learn what the woman’s story is. Then I will decide the truth of what she speaks.”
The warriors set her down, not very gently. Someone pressed a horn into her tied hands. She had to struggle to drink it, but she did, gulping it down, relieved at being able to revive herself. Honey mead soothed her parched throat. She held the horn between her legs as she flung her long hair out of her face.
Rannick took a long drink from his horn as he kept his eyes on her the entire time. Instinct told her he wasn’t a very trusting man. If he was a jarl, he probably didn’t have many he could trust.
Wait, he said the Lord of the Isles was Dougal MacDougall. She sat across from a man who served one of her ancestors. She squinted at the dirt floor as she tried to recall her family history. Dougal’s son or grandson built Dunstaffnage Castle and, eventually, the Chapel in the Woods.
Rannick spoke, and her eyes went to his. “What is ‘sister-in-law’? I do not understand what yer sister has to do with the law?”
Ainslie sighed. History was not her strongest subject. Brielle could navigate this better than her. She needed to stay on her toes. One mistake, one wrong word, could get her in a lot of trouble. She glanced at her tied hands and feet. Well, more trouble than she was in now.
She took a deep breath and tried to tell her tale as best she could. “A man, the one whole stole yer ship, kidnapped my brother’s wife. I chased them, and he knocked me out. I tried to free her.”
Rannick nodded. “Where is yer brother now? Why has he sent his sister to do a man’s job?”
Ainslie wasn’t certain how to answer that. She couldn’t just come out and say, Oh, he’s in the twenty-first century and I just came back in time. Or could she?
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Enter to win a bookish box full of goodies including
Viking Dagger Necklace
Signed copy of the book
Large Stone of Lust book bag
Small Stone of Lust book bag
Insulated wine glass with Stone of Lust logo
Dublin shot glass with etched Stone of Lust logo
Stone of Lust bookmark
Stone of Lust recipe card
Author pen
The Wild Rose Press (publisher) 2025 calendar (While supplies last)
Open to residents of the United States and Canada
Runs September 19 - November 20
Winner will be drawn on November 21
Author Biography
Margaret Izard is a multi-award-winning author of historical fantasy and paranormal romance novels. She spent her early years through college to adulthood dedicated to dance, theater, and performing. Over the years, she developed a love for great storytelling in different mediums. She does not waste a good story, be it movement, the spoken, or the written word. She discovered historical romance novels in middle school, which combined her passion for romance, drama, and fantasy. She writes exciting plot lines, steamy love scenes and always falls for a strong male with a soft heart. She lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband and adult triplets and loves to hear from readers.
Readers can email me at: info@margaretizardauthor.com
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