Where did the Island come from?

Some have asked how Island of Stone came to be.

My first few books were very heavy on research. For Vril, I had to delve into Nazi history and secret organizations. For the Land In-Between, it was religion and demonology. For Slaying of the Bull, it was medieval Europe, Mongolian history and culture, and the Manichean religion. I also worked on a Sci-Fi mystery book during this time set on the Saturnian moon of Titan. All of these books took a lot of research. I mean, just a huge amount of research. We’re talking binders full of all sorts of things.

It might not be inherently clear, but any book requires quite a bit of research. The story flows until you get to a point where your not sure if your being accurate. Some simple oversight or inaccuracy can turn off some readers and pull them out of the story. As a writer, that is something you want to avoid at all costs.

A lot of that research never ends up in the final book. For example, I spent a great deal of energy researching Mongolian history and culture for the Slaying of the Bull. I had whole chapters drafted on the Mongolian perspective with a main character being Batu Khan, the man who led the invasion into Hungary. They were good, rich chapters and I was able to develop complex historically accurate albeit mostly fictitious characters in Batu Khan and his lieutenants. But, as the book progressed, it became clear to me that adding this humanity to my antagonist took away the scariness of the book. I needed to write the villain in the perspective of the Europeans, those that huddled in fear at the approach of this dark horde. To really have success in that enterprise, the Mongolians needed to be largely a mystery. In the 13th century, the Mongolians were virtually unknown to Europeans and even referred to as Tartars, which is a completely different culture and people. At first, the Kingdoms of Medieval Europe thought the Mongolians were merely raiders and therefore not really a threat. The first fingers of the army were indeed much like raiders, but in actuality they were testing the might of the Europeans, and they were not impressed. The arrogance and naivete of the Christian Kingdoms almost led Europe being added to the growing list of civilizations that fell under the sword of the Mongolian empire. At the battle of Mohi, the Hungarian army was decimated. Keep in mind, at the time, the Hungarian kingdom could field the most powerful and advanced army in Europe.

In any event, after writing these books, I was a bit worn out on the research front. I wanted my next book to be a simple stream-lined ghost story. I wanted to keep the characters minimal and the setting something familiar. The Island of Stone rose from this desire. Although the story grew to be more complex than originally intended, simplicity and minimal need for research were the catalysts behind the book. I love nature and I’m fascinated by isolation within its bosom. A small quaint cabin on an island deep in the wilderness seemed like a great place to have a ghost story. Throw some ruins on that island and some history and you have the building blocks for a great setting. Then, take a conflicted man full of grief and put him on said island, with no easy way to escape, and you have a character that can really be tested both mentally and physically. Hence, Island of Stone was born.

Cheers!