Inspired by Ireland

Above: An old oak tree with dozens of branches growing at gnarly angles. The lower branches are so heavy and large they’re lying on the ground. Many are covered with moss, and ivy is growing up the trunk.

March 24, 2025

First, let me say that vacation was wonderful. Ireland has so much history and culture, with beautiful landscapes and some of the kindest people I’ve ever met. It’s an inspiring place. More on that in a bit. First, let’s do some updates.

Updates

Convergence of Connection: I did almost no reading of this while on vacation, but that’s alright! I’ll spend some time reading over the next couple of weeks, then it’s off to my cover artist for her to read and work her magic.

Mission Aboard the Longfin: Editing and cover art are currently in progress, and should be complete by the end of April, if not sooner. Since this one is a middle grade story, I’m not putting it on Kindle Unlimited. Instead, I’ll look into publishing it wide, including Libby (where it can be put into libraries). I’ll need to research that more in the coming months.

The Way of the Wielder, Book four: No update on this project since last time, although I will say I’m eager to get back to it. I left off at the chapter where the main antagonist is revealed, and it’s so perfect. I can’t wait to see how this twist plays out!

Inspired by Ireland

It should come as no surprise that Ireland is a place where stories come alive. Its rich history and culture speak of old magic, while its beautiful vistas evoke emotions of wonder and romance at every turn. Dozens of movies and TV shows were filmed there, and literary classic authors like Bram Stoker and Oscar Wilde wrote there.

So it should also come as no surprise that while I was there, a new story took hold.

It Began in a Museum

The Friday we were in Dublin, we visited three museums: the James Joyce Center, the National Gallery of Ireland, and the National Museum of Ireland. All of them were lovely and unique, but it was in the last one where the magic started.

We saw many exhibitions in the National Museum. One showcased gold products from the Early Bronze Age, another had artifacts from the Viking raids of the 9th and 10th centuries, while another was titled, “Power, Work, and Prayer”—an exhibition illustrating the three divisions of Ireland in medieval times (nobles, common folk, and clergy). As I wandered through that exhibition, one thing in particular caught my eye: an old shepherd’s hook-style staff.

If I’m being honest, I don’t even remember what it looked like, although I know it was blue and gold (as many religious artifacts are). But I do remember how I felt as I stared at it. I cocked my head and wondered how much history that one embellished staff had seen. Who had held it? What sort of religious practices was it used for? Was it ever used for non-religious activities, like as a cane?

As a cane? The question echoed in my writer’s mind, sparking a line of thoughts that ignited a magic system unlike any I’d considered before—and kept me awake much later than usual in the days that followed.

It Continued with a Walk

The second half of our trip was spent at Mount Juliet Estate, a lovely estate in south-central Ireland, near Kilkenny. The magic system I’d considered had grown legs in the days since visiting the museum. Honestly, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. So while my husband attended some talks, I went for a walk along a forested trail by the river.

I’ve spent a lot of time wandering through the woods, but I have never seen a forest like the one I saw along that river. Oaks and beeches were the most common tree species, tall-growing, with trunks wider than my torso is long. Their gnarly limbs reminded me of axons in a brain, while the dense ivy growing up their trunks were clouds of green. Moss covered vines were as thick as my calf, and in the rare pockets of sunshine, violets and daffodils added splashes of welcomed color.

Magic was in that forest, I’m sure of it. Old and forgotten, lost to time and the progress of modern civilization. But if you were quiet enough to hear it—and wise enough to listen—the wind whispered its secrets.

I was alone on my walk, and heard not only the secrets of my story’s world, but the characters within it. Their personalities started revealing themselves, adding to the magic system already formed in my mind. That, along with the landscape itself, further defined the story; and with each walk I took thereafter (three of them), it defined itself more. When I spent two hours handwriting a scene for a prologue that I couldn’t get out of my head, I knew this story needed to be written.

It Will Be Written—In Time

It’s funny how the writer’s mind works. I’m in the middle of writing The Way of the Wielder series, I have another series planned to be written after that (the first book is already complete), and I have half a dozen other stories to work on if I need something different. But here I am, ideating a whole new series.

It’ll be a good one, I can feel it. I discussed it with my husband, and he’s already excited to read it. I’m excited to write it, if I’m being honest, but it will have to wait. Not just because I have other things to write (although there is that), but because it’s still so new. It needs time to fully form, and I know it’s best not to rush it.

I’ll let it steep for a year or two, jotting down ideas and conversations as they come to me. I’ll know when it’s ready, and when it is, it’ll be an epic fantasy series unlike any I’ve written (or read) before.

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That’s all for now. Later this week, I’ll be releasing a newsletter with a summary of how The Way of the Wielder performed in its first year. Can you believe it’s been a year since I published my first book? It’s wild! If you haven’t picked it up yet, you can do so here.

Thanks for reading! Until next time, be well, and stay creative.

~Sarah