Numerous female characters in both of my novels are psychic. Josette Delacore is a tarot card reader, and Amanda Perretti has the ability to touch an object and receive images associated with the object. In the eighteenth century, Josette read cards at her mother’s parties; considered a game, something to entertain guests and nothing more, though Josette was a powerful psychic. Both Christian and Michel joke that without their protection, she probably would have been tried for witchcraft.
These aren't the only psychic abilities to exist, however. There's an incredibly long list of talents that include:
aura reading (perception of energy fields surrounding people, places and things)
death-warning (a vision of a living person prior to their death)
dowsing (ability to locate objects, sometimes using a dowsing rod)</sp
empathy (the ability to feel others' emotional or physical feelings)
mediumship (or channeling; communicating with spirits)
psychokinesis (or telekinesis; the ability to manipulate objects by the power of thought)
retrocognition (or post-cognition; perception of past events)
telepathy (transfer of thoughts, words or emotions in either direction)
It's all pretty amazing. Elaborate systems of divination and fortune-telling date back to ancient times. Probably the most widely known system of early civilization fortune-telling though is astrology (admit it, you read your horoscope in the paper every week, right?). Some fortune-tellers didn't use the stars to predict things, however - seers, psychics, prophets, and clairvoyants. These people performed roles of great importance in shaping our histories, often serving as advisors, priests, and judges. Think about it - how many seers and prophets are there in biblical accounts alone? And who can forget our old pal, Nostradamus? People with psychic abilities are all around.
In my first novel, Immortal Obsession, while at work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the Decorative Arts Department, Amanda (who possesses the gift of psychometry - the ability to discern information about the owner of an object just by touching it), is handed an archive box labeled "Ladies diary, Paris, 1793" by her boss. She impulsively opens it and runs her hand along the diary inside as jumbled images barrage her:
Amanda reached over slowly to place her fingertips gently on the binding. Her hands vibrated with energy as the image of a stone bridge filled her mind’s eye, turning into the Pont Neuf, illuminated by torchlight and surrounded by the murky waters of the Seine. Across the bridge she could barely make out the outline of the king’s palace set against the dark sky. Looking around she spotted a diary at her feet covered in blood. As she reached for it, the energy shifted and she found herself in a beautiful bedroom complete with a roaring fire.
They stood across the room.
A dark-haired woman stood by the fire. She was petite with dark curls that fell to her shoulders and her blue gown flowed around her like water. A blond haired child clung precariously to her skirt with one hand while he sucked his thumb with the other.
He’s in danger.
The woman lifted up the child and turned and Amanda knew it was the dark haired beauty that Christian and Michel had both loved beyond words, centuries earlier: Josette Delacore.
Amanda grabbed her yellow legal pad and jotted down the following, trying to keep the images fresh in her mind:
Josette Delacore, Paris ~ very sad
Child –boy – blond hair, dark eyes, maybe two years old – in danger
The Pont Neuf – diary covered in blood.
After exiting the museum she headed home. Could she be wrong? Perhaps her obsession over Josette Delacore was rooted in the fear that not only was Christian and Michel’s long-dead lover very much alive, but she was also biding her time, waiting to strike.
Do you believe in psychic abilities? Do you have one? Share your story!