What Is It Like To Be A Ghost? Guest Post by Author Katie Jennings
I'd love to welcome author Katie Jennings! Please show her some love :) Take it away Katie!
When I first
decided I wanted to write a book about ghosts, I toyed with the idea of writing
it from a ghost’s perspective. I thought it would be interesting to visualize
what the world would look like through the eyes of a spirit. Would it be like
walking through a dense fog, or would everything appear normal? Would a spirit
be able to hear the voices of the living all the time, or only when addressed?
Could they see us as clearly as we see ourselves, or would there be this veil
cast over their eyes that limits their vision?
I didn't end
up writing my book this way, though I did include one brief scene from the
perspective of a spirit. Today I want to explore how that spirit, a young child
named Sally, would see the world and the main characters from my ghostly
romance So Fell the
Sparrow as they
fight to save her from the evil spirits that plague the house and threaten her
existence. This is a key scene from the novel shown from Sally's perspective
instead of the main character, Grace. It is how I imagine it feels like to be a
ghost.
The
humming noise had returned again, vibrating over her skin in tiny fluctuating
bursts of energy. It followed no distinct pattern, it never did. Instead it
ranged fast and slow and loud and quiet, sometimes punctuated by a sharp zap
that sent shivers down her spine. In the darkness, the noise was comforting to
her. It brought with it shifting shapes and patterns of light, always flowing
as though consumed by an intense whirlwind.
If
she got close enough, the shapes formed into bodies. The humming noise
translated into words, though often it was reverberated so much that she
couldn’t understand what was being said. Sometimes she heard her name, and it
was those times that she sought out the shapes the most.
Sally
liked the shape the others called Grace. She had a pleasant hum, just the right
pitch. It reminded her of her mother’s voice, though it had been an eternity
since she’d heard it. Was her mother even alive? Would she ever know?
Though
the stairs of the old house were a safe haven, Sally let curiosity get the
better of her. The desire to be close to Grace and the other shapes overwhelmed
her young mind, despite the danger she knew lurked in the darkness. The monster
that hunted her and tormented the shapes. Her greatest fear was that the
monster would scare the shapes away and then she would be left alone with him.
Unlike before, she had no bed to hide under now. All she had were the stairs.
It
took no effort to glide from the stairwell to the doorway of the kitchen. In
fact, it happened in the blink of an eye. She stood there, solitary and still,
as the shapes glowed with bright white light through the perilous blackness
that cloaked the house like death. She watched the shapes shift and move, the
four of them paired off in twos. When she zeroed in on one of the pairs, she
was at last able to make out full, echoing words amidst the constant humming.
“I
wonder if Ray knows that we’re on to him.”
Sally
shut her eyes tight at the instant shock of hate that flew throughout the house
at the mention of Ray’s name. She crouched down low and covered her head with
her tiny arms, fearing the wave of black that shuddered through the air around
her. The shapes had made a big mistake, Sally sobbed silently. They’d spoken
the name of the hated one. The dark one. The evil one.
“He
most certainly knows.” Another shape murmured through the haze of cloudy white light.
Sally opened her eyes and looked up, knowing this was the shape that sometimes
looked right at her. The shape that seemed to know she was there. This shape
was as afraid as she was.
A
sound like footsteps exploded upstairs in the beyond, startling Sally. The
earth around her shook from the force of it, her very frame trembling from the
vibration of sound and energy. It meant only one thing. The monster was coming.
When
the sound died a strangled death, she felt the dank, cold wet that meant he was
near, could smell the rotted scent of evil. One look over her shoulder proved
her fears true.
The
monster towered over her, so tall he curved in an arc over the ceiling and
bowed his black shadowy head close to her. There was no face, no features, only
the shadow of an impossibly thin man. Spindly black hands reached out to grab
at her, all the while sharp, fierce laughter punched through the air and sliced
at her skin.
Panicked,
she thought only of her stairs and ran. Vaguely in the distance, she heard
hollow screams of pure fright. Were they her own?
“She’s
being chased! He’s going after her!”
The
shapes came closer, bringing their light with them. It blinded Sally as she
forced her energy to move, wanting the protection of her stairs. The monster
was a whisper behind her, fingers snaking over her shoulder and breath igniting
a fire on her neck.
Run,
run, RUN.
She
felt it the moment the monster gave up the chase, and turned instead to the
shapes. Mortified, Sally stole a look over her shoulder yet again to see the
hulking black shadow making a dive for the shape that could see her. The shape
the others called Jackie.
The
humming sound jolted into a violent pitch as the other shapes tried to cover
and distract for Jackie. Sally reached the safety of her stairs, pressing
herself into the wall. It cloaked her like a comforting wool blanket, and she
buried within to escape the danger and chaos.
Sound
and light fled from view as she slipped into the fabric of the home, hidden
from the clutches of the monster. With it, all knowledge of what had befallen
the shapes left too.
Had
he killed them?
When
the shadow monster dove suddenly into the basement, Sally felt the house around
her groan and shudder in pain. It absorbed the wicked energy and suffered.
If
tears existed for her, she would have cried. Instead, all she could do was
hover in nothingness and hope the monster had not harmed the shapes.
Closing
her eyes, she began to hum softly to herself. The sound filled the void
surrounding her and brought comfort. Maybe, just maybe, if she hummed long
enough the shapes would hear and they would hum again, too.
Maybe
they would call her name. And if the monster wasn’t around, maybe she would
answer.
*
* *
So
Fell The Sparrow is available in eBook and print on
Amazon!
ON SALE THIS WEEKEND ONLY FOR 99 CENTS!!!
After the tragic death
of her parents, Dr. Grace Sullivan inherits more than she bargained for. An
empty house she's never heard of, a nosy neighbor, and the restless spirits of
a violent, century old murder.
A hard-nosed skeptic,
Grace refuses to believe in ghosts despite hearing sounds and seeing things
that can't be explained.
When she unearths
antique furniture from the basement, the spirits become agitated and dangerous.
Ian Black and Alex Gallagher, a team of ghost hunters, come in to investigate.
Still denying the
paranormal events in her home, Grace can't bring herself to take the ghost hunters
or the psychic medium who teams up with them seriously. As Grace struggles with
her grief and the feelings she's developing for headstrong Ian, the disturbing
mystery of the house deepens. Now she'll have to face the unbelievable before
the spirits claim her for their own.
*
* *
Meet
Katie Jennings…
International
Bestselling Author Katie Jennings is the author of eight full length novels,
including the popular fantasy series The
Dryad Quartet as well as the bestselling family drama series The Vasser Legacy.
She
lives in sunny Southern California with her husband and cat, who both think
she’s the biggest nerd ever. She’s a firm believer in happy endings and loves
nothing more than a great romance novel.
