The Internet has certainly made finding information so much easier than when I first began writing. I used to have piles and piles of research books, but now I tend to search online for topics I’m researching.

The Butler

Not all fantasy novels are set in a medieval setting, but when I was writing Amaskan’s Blood, I wanted the world to have quite a medieval period feel, which meant to spending quite an amount of time boning up on my understanding of medieval castles. In research, I discovered two rooms I hadn’t known about previously: The Bottlery and The Buttery. We actually got the word butler from these rooms.

The Bottlery was “intended for storing and dispensing wines and other expensive provisions. It was usually located between the Great Hall and the Kitchen.” It was overseen by the Bottler, who “ensured there was enough wine” (From Castle Life.) The Buttery “was intended for storing and dispensing beverages, especially ale. The person who presided over the buttery was called the Butler.” (From Rooms in a Medieval Castle.)

Another interesting thing of note is that some castle’s garderrobes (toilet rooms) had rudimentary plumbing!