Jacob's Hope

#lightsonforjacob

With my main character of The Whisperer of Storms being clairvoyant, I did a great deal of research on psychic abilities.  In doing so, I learned a little more about their vital role in locating missing people.  My interview with a clairvoyant taught me how they use their sixth sense, which sometimes heightens their other senses, to find people.  One such instance was a plane crash.  Under hypnosis, "Rita" pointed to the crash site on a map, which was within 30 miles of the wreckage.  The smell stayed foremost in her mind...the scent of death.  She also talked about knowing the location of a missing boy who had drowned.  Shortly after, the police recovered the child's body from that very location along the river.  Rita once received a letter from a woman who read about her in the paper.  She had told Rita she shouldn't be doing those things.  I sat there in disbelief as she told me this, "But you do it to help people."

To help people...to give them hope.  That was the reason why I named my heroine Hope.  She found a few missing children in her story.  I always focused on those she could save. There were a few she couldn't.  I never wanted to go there.  The hardest part of writing was putting myself into the parents' shoes.  Feeling their fear, anger, despair.

We took a short family trip last week before school started.  We drove through St. Joseph on Thursday.  My husband reminded me that Jacob Wetterling had lived near there.  I watched a group of boys walking along the street, wondering if they felt safe now that so many years had passed.  Imagine my surprise when I got home on Saturday night to learn they recovered Jacob's body.  I was a few years older than Jacob when he disappeared.  After 27 years, he's finally home.  My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends.  May they eventually find the closure they need.

Veronica

Research

Those who have read The Whisperer of Storms have remarked on the amount of research I've done.  Here's a list of some of my sources.

Gypsy Magic by Patrinella Cooper  http://www.amazon.com/Gypsy-Magic-Romany-Spells-Fortune-Telling/dp/1578632617
Gypsy Witchcraft and Magic by Raymond Buckland  amazon
Adventures of a Psychic by Sylvia Browne  amazon
Psychic Children by Sylvia Browne  amazon
Don't Kiss Them Goodbye by Allison DuBois  amazon
Crossing Over by John Edward  amazon
ESP:  Fact or Fiction by Terry O'Neill  amazon
The Annotated Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen/David M. Shapard
The Jane Austen Handbook:  A Sensible Yet Elegant Guide to Her World by Margaret C. Sullivan:  amazon

One of the best places to look in the library is Junior non-fiction.  It's direct and gets to the point.
England (Enchantment of the World) by Carol Greene:  amazon

Online sources:
Gypsy Names  Ilona means beautiful one.  Mirela means admirable.  Zale means power of the sea.
Romani-English Glossary

Last but certainly not least was an interview with a clairvoyant.  This individual is psychic under hypnosis.  I was skeptical myself as I listened to this person's extraordinary life.  That was until I started reading the books listed above and finding common similarities.  The human spirit is truly remarkable.

Veronica