The Séance by Tricia Drammeh
I thought I’d use the new-look Writers with Vision site to showcase Indie books I’m particularly fond of so look out for some great features in future. Please use the contact form to suggest other books you’d like to see featured, but I’d prefer if you nominated other people’s books rather than your own. Also for this site please stick to non crime books as I feature crime authors on my crime author site
My first featured book is by my good friend Tricia Drammeh. Tricia has written several YA books but this one is the best of her non Spellbringer series books. I asked Tricia to provide a couple of favourite excerpts and a little bit about why she wrote the book. So over to Tricia…
Why I wrote the story: The Séance started with a character named Abby who is obsessed with the supernatural. My original plan for the story was that it was going to a fun and humorous account of Abby’s adventures as a wannabe medium. When I wrote the scene with the séance, the story took a darker turn. I didn’t want to trivialize Abby’s experience or give teens the impression that it’s okay to experiment with Ouija boards, so I took a more serious approach to the story. Even with the dark subject matter, I think it’s still a fun, though scary read.
Excerpt #1 (This is the beginning of the séance, before everything spirals out of control)
“In a minute, I’m going to call the spirits.” My voice was soft so as not to disturb the mood we’d so carefully created. “Then, we’ll let go of each other and put our hands on the Ouija board.”
Martha’s eyes were wide with expectation. Yasin’s head was tipped slightly to the side, his mouth slack. He was skeptical, but I planned to change his preconceived notions about the paranormal. Before the end of the séance, he’d realize I was right all along.
I took a deep breath and began. “Oh spirits, we ask that you join us in this circle of energy. Please come to us. Communicate with us, dear spirits.”
“What if more than one shows up?” Martha whispered.
I shook my head at her and frowned. “Shhh. Concentrate on our greater purpose.” As the Medium, it was up to me to take control of the séance.
After a few moments of silence, I tried again. “Spirits of the dead, join us, be one of us, communicate with us from beyond the grave.”
A sputter erupted from Yasin. I shot him a sharp glance. His eyebrows rose and he cleared his throat. Laughter twinkled in his dark eyes. I tugged my hand from his tight grip. Martha moved her hands from mine and Yasin’s, and folded them in her lap until I motioned toward the Ouija board. I placed one finger on the planchette, the guitar pick shaped pointer. Yasin and Martha followed my example.
“Don’t push it. Just rest your fingers and wait.” The only sound in the room was our soft breathing. I couldn’t remember the séance instructions I’d read. Was I supposed to speak again, or just wait for the spirits? What if the spirits were too far away when I made the initial summon? I figured it wouldn’t hurt to call them again.
“Oh, spirits…” A deep rumbling shook the floor next to me. A hoarse cry escaped Martha’s throat as she hurled herself away from the Ouija board.
Excerpt #2 (This is one of my favorite creepy scenes)
Gritting my teeth, I flung open my closet door. Everything looked the same as it did before dinner—the usual heap of clothing still covered the floor. I bent over at the waist and looked under my bed. Again, nothing amiss. With slow trepidation, I went to my bathroom and turned on the light. Everything looked normal. Or, no. Wait. I never closed the shower curtain because after I watched Psycho, I couldn’t get past the freaky shower scene. My breath came in short, frightened puffs as I took baby steps toward the tub. Would it be better to open the shower curtain slowly, or was it better to rip it aside like a sticky bandage on a hairy forearm? I preferred to leave it closed and never return to the bathroom again, but that wasn’t really an option. Besides, I wouldn’t be able to sleep that night if I didn’t know what horrors awaited in the shower.
I counted to ten and yanked the curtain open. I bit back a scream as my eyes darted back and forth, taking in the horror before me. The bloody, chaotic scene set against the stark porcelain backdrop would forever be seared in my mind. My American Girl doll, panty hose stretched over her head, her body dangled from the shower head. Limbs were ripped off and strewn across the bathtub floor. A red substance resembling blood (Oh, God please don’t let it be blood!) splashed across the doll and the tub. Bright red words on the shower wall spelled out my family’s doom:
Our new baby
The essential warning in this book is don’t muck around with the spirit world especially not with Ouija boards. It may seem like harmless fun but, as Abby discovers, it’s anything but. If you need advice then please contact a spiritualist church or accredited psychic medium as there are too many online charlatans who just want your money and who have no real connections despite what they claim.
If reading this book prevents just one person messing about with what they don’t understand then Tricia’s book will have done a good job.
You can get your own copy of The Séance from these Ebook sites.
Amazon.com
Amazon UK
Smashwords
I thought I’d use the new-look Writers with Vision site to showcase Indie books I’m particularly fond of so look out for some great features in future. Please use the contact form to suggest other books you’d like to see featured, but I’d prefer if you nominated other people’s books rather than your own. Also for this site please stick to non crime books as I feature crime authors on my crime author site
My first featured book is by my good friend Tricia Drammeh. Tricia has written several YA books but this one is the best of her non Spellbringer series books. I asked Tricia to provide a couple of favourite excerpts and a little bit about why she wrote the book. So over to Tricia…
Why I wrote the story: The Séance started with a character named Abby who is obsessed with the supernatural. My original plan for the story was that it was going to a fun and humorous account of Abby’s adventures as a wannabe medium. When I wrote the scene with the séance, the story took a darker turn. I didn’t want to trivialize Abby’s experience or give teens the impression that it’s okay to experiment with Ouija boards, so I took a more serious approach to the story. Even with the dark subject matter, I think it’s still a fun, though scary read.
Excerpt #1 (This is the beginning of the séance, before everything spirals out of control)
“In a minute, I’m going to call the spirits.” My voice was soft so as not to disturb the mood we’d so carefully created. “Then, we’ll let go of each other and put our hands on the Ouija board.”
Martha’s eyes were wide with expectation. Yasin’s head was tipped slightly to the side, his mouth slack. He was skeptical, but I planned to change his preconceived notions about the paranormal. Before the end of the séance, he’d realize I was right all along.
I took a deep breath and began. “Oh spirits, we ask that you join us in this circle of energy. Please come to us. Communicate with us, dear spirits.”
“What if more than one shows up?” Martha whispered.
I shook my head at her and frowned. “Shhh. Concentrate on our greater purpose.” As the Medium, it was up to me to take control of the séance.
After a few moments of silence, I tried again. “Spirits of the dead, join us, be one of us, communicate with us from beyond the grave.”
A sputter erupted from Yasin. I shot him a sharp glance. His eyebrows rose and he cleared his throat. Laughter twinkled in his dark eyes. I tugged my hand from his tight grip. Martha moved her hands from mine and Yasin’s, and folded them in her lap until I motioned toward the Ouija board. I placed one finger on the planchette, the guitar pick shaped pointer. Yasin and Martha followed my example.
“Don’t push it. Just rest your fingers and wait.” The only sound in the room was our soft breathing. I couldn’t remember the séance instructions I’d read. Was I supposed to speak again, or just wait for the spirits? What if the spirits were too far away when I made the initial summon? I figured it wouldn’t hurt to call them again.
“Oh, spirits…” A deep rumbling shook the floor next to me. A hoarse cry escaped Martha’s throat as she hurled herself away from the Ouija board.
Excerpt #2 (This is one of my favorite creepy scenes)
Gritting my teeth, I flung open my closet door. Everything looked the same as it did before dinner—the usual heap of clothing still covered the floor. I bent over at the waist and looked under my bed. Again, nothing amiss. With slow trepidation, I went to my bathroom and turned on the light. Everything looked normal. Or, no. Wait. I never closed the shower curtain because after I watched Psycho, I couldn’t get past the freaky shower scene. My breath came in short, frightened puffs as I took baby steps toward the tub. Would it be better to open the shower curtain slowly, or was it better to rip it aside like a sticky bandage on a hairy forearm? I preferred to leave it closed and never return to the bathroom again, but that wasn’t really an option. Besides, I wouldn’t be able to sleep that night if I didn’t know what horrors awaited in the shower.
I counted to ten and yanked the curtain open. I bit back a scream as my eyes darted back and forth, taking in the horror before me. The bloody, chaotic scene set against the stark porcelain backdrop would forever be seared in my mind. My American Girl doll, panty hose stretched over her head, her body dangled from the shower head. Limbs were ripped off and strewn across the bathtub floor. A red substance resembling blood (Oh, God please don’t let it be blood!) splashed across the doll and the tub. Bright red words on the shower wall spelled out my family’s doom:
Our new baby
The essential warning in this book is don’t muck around with the spirit world especially not with Ouija boards. It may seem like harmless fun but, as Abby discovers, it’s anything but. If you need advice then please contact a spiritualist church or accredited psychic medium as there are too many online charlatans who just want your money and who have no real connections despite what they claim.
If reading this book prevents just one person messing about with what they don’t understand then Tricia’s book will have done a good job.
You can get your own copy of The Séance from these Ebook sites.
Amazon.com
Amazon UK
Smashwords