Celtic Blizzard
Page 34
I need to mention the origin of the name MacCollum. I made reference to it several times in Celtic Blizzard, but I felt I needed to share what I found when I researched the name. MacCollum means of Columba and they are the direct descendants of the followers of St. Columba, who was an Irish saint that followed in St. Patrick’s footsteps some centuries after him. He decided to “Christianize” if that is a word, Scotland and so he landed in Iona and those who followed his teachings became known as MacCollum. St. Columba is also known as Colm Cille or Columcaille. His name means CHURCH DOVE, which is special to me because the dove is the symbol of the Holy Spirit. He is known as the Saint to the Picts. Some of the names derived from this founding saint were MacCallum, Callum, Colm, Malcolm, McCollum, McColm and the motto of the clan is In Ardua Tendit, which means He Aims at Difficult Things. (I think that is fitting for the heroes and heroines of my stories, don’t you?) One more thing about St. Columba; he is the patron saint of Poets and bookbinders…also near and dear to my heart for obvious reasons.
While my characters (and I don’t like to really call them that) are fictional, these MacCollums have set the stage for the Celtic Storm Series. Or, rather, I often wonder if they are truly fictional after all because sometimes I truly believe that stories are told because the “ancients” call out from the past and must be heard. At least that is how it feels to me. I hope you enjoyed Jamie and Sinead’s story. I tried to write it so it would set up the paths for the other stories which already exist in the series.
Bronwyn, the beloved sister of the MacCollum brothers has her own story in Celtic Tempest and really as a result of the final chapters of Knight Storm. Ruiri finds his path in Celtic Fury. Ruiri’s arch nemesis learns of redemption in Celtic Spirit. The story of Morag’s son can be found in Celtic Peril and finally Morag’s story is told through the eyes of Sinead MacCollum nee MacDougal in Morag’s Tears. If you loved Sinead and Jamie, I know you will adore the rest of the MacCollum/Campbell clan in the stories of the Celtic Storm Series.
Please look for My Wild Irish Knight, which will be coming out sometime in the Summer of 2017. Though it is not related to the Celtic Storm series, my hero will be called to be the protector of the sacred Book of Kells, which by the way, were written to honor none other than, you guessed it…Saint Columba. (I guess he wants his story to be heard, too).
I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel to Ireland this June to sing with Anuna, the original group that sang with the Riverdance production. I will also be very close to the place where My Wild Irish Knight is staged so it should be interesting to see what inspiration the Ancients have for me.
I wish you all blessings! May you always aim at difficult things! The prize is often worth the struggle.
Blessings,
Ria Cantrell
(Crest of the Clan MacCollum [MacCallum])
Unicorn in Captivity Tapestry at The Cloister Museum in New York
Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank my family for encouraging me to pursue my dreams. My parents always pushed me to be the best at whatever it was I wanted to do and they showed me what it meant to achieve my dreams.
I would like to thank Jill Kersey for putting me in touch with my literary advisors and promoters. I would like to thank Leilani Bennett for helping me begin my journey as a published author. Without her, I would not be where I am today and my stories would still be in notebooks sitting in plastic bins. I would like to acknowledge my beta readers who were my “eyes” of the first draft of these stories. Without them, I would have missed so many edits and corrections. In particular, I would like to thank Jill Barnes, of course Paul Crust, Virginia Smith, Lisa Eagle Shuping who have stepped up and read my stories to catch all my typos and errors.
I have been blessed with many friends and sister “authors” who have encouraged me and shown me the virtual ropes in this endeavor. The friendships I have made have grown and I continue to be inspired by them all. I would especially like to thank Mary Morgan, J.A. (Jaci) Snow, April Holthaus, Elizabeth Rose, Anna Markland, Laurell O’Donnell, K.R. Thompson, Angela Boudreau Searles, and so many others who have taken me under their collective wings. Their advice, counsel and help have been like a gift from Heaven. I would also like to acknowledge a beautiful lady that left this world too soon. Amanda Albright Still was one of my first “Author Sisters” who offered words of encouragement and love. I miss her dearly. Her loss is still a bitter hurt to both the writing world and to me because she helped me so much when I was just starting out.
I would like to thank my street team, Ria’s Celtic Spirits, who promote my work without asking for anything for themselves. I especially want to thank Cathy Phillips, Sharon Frizell, Debbie McCreary, Kim Court, Patricia Dyche Hunter, and Jenna Clemmerson, Sarah Fischer, and Sarah Renaud, to name a few. There are so many more…too many to name and I am grateful to them all.
Lastly, but by no means least, I want to thank my husband Paul, who has always stood beside me and has helped my dream of being a writer to be achieved. He brainstorms my plots, helps me work out the details of the events, critiques the works in progress, and edits some of the finished products. He is responsible for almost all of the beautiful artwork on the covers and his creative eye is ever present in all of my books. He has been a positive influence in my life since the day we first met. He has encouraged love to grow in my heart, thus helping me create and believe in the tender moments you will find in the Celtic Storm series. I am a lucky girl to have such a team of positive angels with me.
About Ria Cantrell:
Ria grew up in the suburbs of Long Island. She has enjoyed some very exciting endeavors in the past including competing as a figure skater, dancing as a professional belly dancer and singing as a classically trained vocalist with auditioned chorales as well as working as a soloist. Currently, in addition to writing, Ria performs with the Symphonic Chorale of Southwest Florida. She was selected to perform and study for a week with the Irish singing group, Anuna in Ireland in June 2017 and it is a “dream come true”. It will be an inspiration for the completion of My Wild Irish Knight.
She began writing at a very young age and even had some of her early poems published in local literary magazines. Frequently, she would be seen carrying notebooks to scribble many of her stories and poems. As far back as she can remember being able to write, even in grade school, Ria began putting stories and poetry to paper. She loved reading medieval and highland romances, so when she writes, she chooses that genre as well. With a love for history, Ria was fascinated with Medieval and Renaissance history and found herself drawn to participate with re-enactment groups that re-created the Middle Ages. Since fostering her love of all things medieval, Ria’s stories soon became flavored with Medieval and Renaissance themes.
Ria married the love of her life after a long-distance courtship, spanning two continents. She now lives in the sunny tropical paradise of Southwest Florida with her English rock-star husband. The two share their love for music and writing. They perform together locally and they collaborate on writing endeavors.
Other Books by Ria Cantrell:
Knight Storm: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P39H240
Celtic Tempest: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I8R7BWM
Celtic Fury: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I8P1ECC
Celtic Spirit: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J5JQJKC
Celtic Peril: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GLQUF8I
Morag’s Tears: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WO7FLQU
Please like and follow me at:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ria-Cantrell-314592691973723/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CantrellRia
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Ria-Cantrell/e/B00I9ILS7Y
le = " -webkit-filter: grayscale(100%); -moz-filter: grayscale(100%); -o-filter: grayscale(100%); -ms-filter: grayscale(100%); filter: grayscale(100%); " class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons">share