The Bones of the Story—Combining History and Myth
- Joie Lesin
- 10 hours ago
- 9 min read
An Interview with Author Margaret Izard
This month Margaret Izard joins me to discuss Book 5 of Stones of Iona series, Stone of Doubt (The Wild Rose Press, March 17, 2025).
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
For fun: Can you describe your writing space for us?
When I returned to writing about five years ago (after starting in my 30s, then pausing to raise triplets), my “writing space” was a chair and a portable desk in the great room—otherwise known as Grand Central Station in our house. At the time, all the adult kids were still living at home, so interruptions were constant.
With limited space, we got creative—my usual approach—and carved out something new. My current office is a converted wet bar turned study and beverage nook tucked into the corner of our game room. Though still open to the rest of the home, it’s off to the side enough to offer a sense of semi-privacy.
For Zooms and podcasts, I use my husband’s home office.
Photo included!
For fun: What’s your favorite place to visit?
Scotland was a magical, deeply inspirational trip—one we’d dreamed of and planned for years. I’ve been captivated by Scotland since my teenage years, and when I returned to writing, there was only one place that felt right as the heart of my stories: Scotland.
Oban, in particular, left an unforgettable impression. It’s where the MacDougall home, Dunstaffnage Castle, stands—and where Evie MacDougall, the heroine of Stone of Doubt, would describe it as the loving place where she grew up. Although I had already written the first three books in the series before visiting in 2023, walking the grounds of Dunstaffnage and Dunollie Castle, featured in Stone of Lust, and visiting the Isle of Iona—an echoing presence throughout the series—brought everything to life in a way no amount of research ever could.
To stand where my characters have stood, to sail the western isles like the Vikings and see the world through their eyes, creating a deeper emotional connection to the world I’d built. It validated what I had written and stirred fresh inspiration for future stories.
How did the Stones of Iona series first come to be? Did it start with an image, a voice, a concept, a dilemma or something else?
Before I wrote a single word, I read, read, and read. I wanted to find a single castle that would anchor my series. Dunstaffnage Castle in Oban, Scotland, provided a rich, turbulent history, while the Chapel in the Woods gave me the perfect opportunity to blend history into fantasy.
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? 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.
Each story in the series focuses on the search for a magic Fae stone, a Stone of Iona. Via a Fae fable, the characters learn which stone needs finding. Blending the fable into the plotline and how it unfolds became the series’ backbone. As each character searches for a magic stone, they find their destiny in their true love.
Tell us a little bit about Evie and Aodhán from Stone of Doubt. What makes them tick?
Evie MacDougall, you met in book 3, Stone of Hope. She is Breille and Colin MacDougall’s daughter with Fae powers who accidentally opens the Eye of Ra portal, which sucks her, her twin brother Ewan, and their uncle, Dominic DeVolt, into 1930s Egypt. In that story, she meets a mysterious Fae boy and falls hard for him. When we catch up with her again, she has graduated college and hasn’t seen her Fae crush since. After she encounters a handsome, mysterious, dark man named Manix and starts a relationship, her Fae crush, Aodhán, returns—begging her to come with him to his Fae realm.
Aodhán, saves Evie and her family at the end of Stone of Hope, book 3 of Stones of Iona, only to be punished for revealing forbidden Fae spells to his true love. Now freed from captivity, he can finally return to Evie, the woman he loves. But she stands torn between two men—one dark and dangerous, and the other, Aodhán himself, a prophesied future King of the Tuatha Dé Danann. Aodhán will do everything in his power to fight for their love, even if it means risking his own destiny.
What kind of research have you done for this series? How much time do you spend researching before beginning each book?
Research has been one of my favorite parts of creating the Stones of Iona series. I draw heavily from Celtic and Fae mythology, as well as timeless fairy tales, so I often find myself deep in legends of the Tuatha Dé Danann, old Irish and Scottish folklore, and the symbolic meanings behind ancient stones and sacred sites like Iona Abbey and the Isle itself. Each book also requires research specific to its historical period—everything from archaeology and fashion to the political climate of the time.
Before I begin writing, I usually spend several weeks immersing myself in this world—reading, building detailed timelines, and even sketching maps to get the geography just right. I’m a dedicated plotter and do most of my developmental edits before the first draft begins. But the research doesn’t stop there. I often pause mid-draft to fact-check or deepen a scene with richer cultural details. For me, it’s about layering history and myth into the very bones of the story—giving the magic weight and grounding the fantasy in a world that feels real.
Inspire us: If you sit to write and you’re feeling uninspired, what do you do to get your creativity flowing?
My outlines are summary-driven, so by the time I start drafting, I have enough material to keep the momentum going. I often draw from my background in the performing arts, imagining each scene as if I’m staging a play or directing a film. Walking through the beats in my mind helps bring them to life.
Of course, writer’s block still hits from time to time. When it does, I’ve developed a few reliable tricks to keep creativity flowing.
Research is my first line of defense—diving into the world I’m writing about always sparks new ideas. If I’m stuck in the outline phase, reading up on the myth, history, or setting I’m exploring usually gets me unstuck.
Sometimes, I just need a change of scenery. Doing something mindless—like folding laundry or unloading the dishwasher—often lets my mind wander. Movement helps me “walk” through a stuck scene, and the story starts flowing again.
And then there’s my secret weapon: the Dammit Doll. Years ago, when the triplets were in high school, I saw a photo of Betty White holding one on her Facebook page. Once I learned its purpose—something to slam on the desk in moments of stress—I ordered one immediately. That doll got me through the chaos of parenting teens. After the triplets graduated, I tucked her away, thinking she’d finished her duty.
But during a recent drawer purge, I found her again—and now she’s back in action as my writing companion. Through plot holes and rewrites, she’s been by my side, ready to take the brunt of every “dammit” moment. And somehow, that small ritual helps me push through and keep writing.
Inspire us: Do you believe in the concept of a Muse? If so, what is yours like and how did you “meet” them?
Although I’m a dedicated plotter, I also have a muse. Creativity has been part of me for as long as I can remember—rooted in a life steeped in the performing arts since the age of three. I never had a moment of “meeting” my muse; she’s always been there, as natural as dancing to my parents’ records in the living room.
Stories—and how they move, inspire, and shape us—fuel my writing. My OCD anchors my structure and plotting, while my muse brings the spark of imagination. Often, she takes over, leading me to unexpected and magical places. That’s likely why I edit most of my plotline during the outlining phase. I’m lucky—her influence always finds a home in my books, one way or another.
Can you give us a sneak peek into what you’re working on next, and what readers can expect from your future books?
We’ll finish out the Stones of Iona Series with the last two books and the continuation of the Christmas Companion book, Thistle in the Mistletoe, with the next Christmas book.
Highlander’s Holly and Ivy, a Christmas companion book, features Alex MacDougall—Mary and Roderick's (from Thistle in the Mistletoe) son. A forbidden love between a Highlander and an English lady intertwines with magic, betrayal, and the fate of a nation as they fight to unite their worlds and reclaim Scotland’s legacy. Coming December 1, 2025
Stone of Faith, book 6. Ewan’s Story (Evie’s twin brother). A cursed pirate captain and an enslaved siren defy a power-hungry madman—and fate itself—to claim a love that spans centuries as they save the human and Fae realms. Coming 2025
Stone of Destiny, book 7. Katherine MacArthur's (Evie’s BFF) love story. A woman torn between fate and forbidden love must defy a Fae prophecy and battle dark forces to reclaim her future—and the heart of the Fae warrior she can’t forget. Coming 2025
About Stone of Doubt
In the absence of doubt, only faith is found.
A human with Fae powers living like an oddball has its ups and downs until Evie MacDougall’s dream Fae boy pops back into her life after she thought another was “the one.” One dark and devilish, the other her long-lost love. Evil forces trap her for a magic Fae stone, but which man can she trust?
As a teen prophesied to be Fae king, Aodhán viewed the girl of his dreams through an Eye of Ra. Once, he risked all to help Evie MacDougall find a magic Fae stone, only to end up imprisoned. Kept from his true love for years, he finds her at risk from an evil Fae hunting a magic stone. Is a single vow strong enough to save true love, to save the realms?
Excerpt:
A hand touched her shoulder.
When she turned, she met Aodhán’s smiling face. “Hello, Evie.” His touch rooted her in the spot. The clouds blew away, revealing a room made of blue crystal that glittered in the dusk light. Aodhán rotated them as he kept his hands on her shoulders.
Before Evie was a large window the size of an entire room. They stood on a cliff, and beyond was a bright aqua sea that moved with soft waves as the sun set over the land, casting the sky in a warm tone of orange and red. A blue dragon flew overhead, flashing green in the sunlight as it screeched into the air as the beat of his wings came to Evie, steady with each whoosh.
She breathed as Aodhán wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his muscular chest. “Welcome to Broemere Castle, my home.”
She turned as he held her in his arms. “Yer home? Ye mean the Fae realm?”
Aodhán brushed his fingers over her cheek. “Aye.” He gazed at her momentarily with a grin spread over his face. “Come, I wish to show ye around the castle before we meet the others.”
He pulled her hand, and she tugged back, stopping him. “The ball, it still calls ye?”
He nodded as he turned, and she tugged again. “Ye mentioned punishment. What for?”
He took her hand and kissed the back. “For showing ye spells I wasn’t allowed to.”
Evie stood staring at him as the edges of his eyes crinkled. She looked down, her mind rolling over memories as the past connected with the present, then his statement.
She gasped. “The Fae, they punished ye for helping me.” Her eyes connected with his. “Yer punishment was because of me. Ye didn’t leave me. They kept ye away.”
Aodhán stepped to her, his hand on her cheek. “Aye, that’s true.”
Aodhán’s whisper brushed her ear. “And I’d do it all over again.”
Until next time,
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About the Author
Award-winning author, Joie Lesin is a life-long fiction writer and poet. She is most recently the author of The Passenger. She has long been fascinated by anything otherworldly including mermaids and ghosts. Joie writes character-driven, emotional, atmospheric tales about heartache and hope.