"As I begin to remember back three years ago when this preposterous idea of eight women writing a book together – online at that – about a man who was willing to give away a million dollars for proof of the afterlife," says Dorothy Thompson, one of the co-writers of THE SEARCH FOR THE MILLION $$$ GHOST, "I had to search my files to trigger names, dates, all those million things that people forget as time goes by.
"And I came upon something I had written which went:
“May 6, 2002. How well I remember it. Eight ordinary women with the same passions embark on a journey testing writing abilities, paranormal know-how, and enduring friendship.”
"The key phrase here is “enduring friendship”.
"We started out with eight women who believed they could put together a book based on a story we had read over the internet about a man, James Randi who was looking for proof of the afterlife and was willing to give away a million dollars to anyone who could.
"Actually, the talk started in my writing group, The Writer’s Life, where another member and I were talking about spiritual phenomena. I had just started the group and already people were unsubbing because, frankly, I don’t think they were comfortable with it.
"It was then decided to start another goup, an online spiritualist group ran by Heather Froeschl, where we could discuss these things without interfering with the flow of my writing group. One by one, people signed up until we had a great group going. Everyone shared a common interest—the paranormal.
"One day, one of the members made a post about a man who was looking for proof of the afterlife and was willing to award them with $1,000,000 if they could. Wow, we said, wouldn’t it be great if WE could do that. So, I said, “Why don’t we write a book about this and WE’LL be the characters?”
"Everyone thought it was a wonderful idea, as most of us were writers anyway.
"I therefore formed another group solely for the writers of the book we called “The Search for the Million Dollar Ghost” and the rest is history.
"However, throughout the writing process, many things happened we didn’t count on. While we envisioned no obstacles, naïve little writers that we were, we hit one after the other. And, it didn’t help that we were doing all this online, plus the fact that writers have very strong egos, as much as they like you to believe otherwise.
"It started out with eight members and eventually dwindled down to three. Heide AW Kaminski, Pam Lawniczak and myself. The three desperados.
"While we still hit a few potholes along the way, we endured until we finally came to the part where we wrote “The End.”
"But, let me tell you, it was the most exciting, if not sometimes aggravating, journey to be on.
"Because the other members jumped ship, we had to rewrite their parts, but we left the names of the characters in.
"I was Shiolah Swallowtail, Heide was Ezra Anne Thornberry and Pam was Pam Ryan. Each of us wrote the chapters where our characters fitted in and filled in the gaps for the other characters whose creators couldn't be a part of it any longer.
"It was maddening, but we got through it.
"One thing we needed was to find out if it was possible for a spirit to appear since our main character, Rodger Hawthorne III needed this as proof.
"I consulted Victor Zammit, B.A.(Psych), Grad. Dip. Ed., M.A.(Legal Hist.), LL.B, Ph.D, lawyer, Euro-Australian, attorney-at-law, Solicitor of the Supreme Court of the New South Wales and the High Court of Australia (ret.) and author of A Lawyer Presents the Case for the Afterlife, on this and he said: “What is a ghost? Let me tell you that there is no such thing as a standard ‘ghost.’ A ghost is a person who used to live on this planet earth, passed on and either is caught in the darkness between earth and the next world all confused and not knowing what is going on in his environment. Or that the ghost was a person who passed on, proceeded to the next world but willfully decides to come back to earth, usually to finish off some unfinished business…psychic research these last one hundred years has provided evidence that materialization (spirits with the same medium’s ectoplasm can lower their vibrations and become as solid as you and I) can take place.
"The Helen Duncan chapter of my book tells of a sailor who materialized, that is from a spirit he materialized to be seen by people on earth, he was touched etc…and found to be solid as you and I. He then related information that his destroyer was sunk by a German U boat and wanted to tell his mother that he is OK in the spirit world. Another incident in the chapter on MATERIALIZATION in my book is about two mums who lost their sixteen-year-old child and were reunited when the boys physically appeared during psychic meetings. I talked to the two of the mums at length and re-confirmed everything they stated. But you must notice very carefully, that the energy for the spirit to become solid and be seen as normal person on earth DOES NOT LAST VERY LONG. This is because Ectoplasm is gaseous element which is emitted by gifted mediums from the medium’s mouth—this ectoplasm is the agent which actually reduces the spirits vibrations to physical vibrations (Einstein theory of E=MC Squared—our physical molecules are vibrating at the speed of light). Spirits’ molecules are vibrating FASTER than the speed of light—180,000 miles per second. Ectoplasm actually reduces the molecule speed to earth’s physical speed—which is at the speed of light—then that is why we will be able to see the spirit as one of us. Your particular problem, Dorothy, is that you will be extending the time significantly. Unless you can use ‘license’—technical expediency—to accommodate the written script. That is something you have to think about.
"Heide Kaminski, one of the other co-authors, consulted another well-known expert in the metaphysical field, Dr. John D. Trent, Vice-President of the Mid-Michigan Ghost Hunter’s Society. We asked him his opinion of a ghost materializing into a human being.
“I have never heard of spirit appearing for any longer than 60 minutes in my studies,” he told us. “There was this woman that hitches a ride in Ohio. She gets a lift home but she isn’t really a living breathing being. She has been dead since the late 1800’s. But she looks real and talks to the person/persons giving her a ride. She even “dematerializes” right in front of them after getting out of the car. Some paranormal investigator rated this phenomenon as a time warp. He must have been a moron! The woman talks to different people, with different questions and gives different answers. Therefore, she is a spirit/ghost, not a time warp at all. Another well known story: A very beautiful girl is at a ballroom/dance club and dances with various men. She touches them while dancing so she is fully materialized, but has been dead for over 50 years. Within an hour or so, she will just “dematerialize” and be gone.”
"A dear friend, Robert Egby, a Certified Clinical Hypnosis Counselor, a Certified Sound Healer, an ordained Interfaith Minister, a Dowser, a Psychic Medium, a lecturer and workshop leader on Enlightenment and Higher Awareness, and who also helped me with the passing of my twin soul five years ago, came to my rescue on several questions about the afterlife. I asked him, “Robert, do you believe that we are all earthbound spirits in some respect? I mean, we are all spirits. I suppose there are differences, but could you clear that up for me?”
"He answered, 'We are all spirits on spaceship Earth. Technically, earthbound spirits are souls that have been snagged in transition. They were people who could not or would not let go of the physical to cross over into the Spirit World. They live in a dream-state, wandering around places they had on earth, and unable to make contact with loved ones and friends (unless they are clairvoyant, then people can see them and make contact). Earthbounds get frustrated and angry and generate a cold vibration. Sometimes they hear loved ones in spirit and spirit guides calling them from a higher vibration and are attracted up. In which case, their hardship ends. No one knows how many Earthbounds there are, but many are suicides, people who died violently as in war, auto accidents. Now, we are all earthbounds in the sense that we are spirits preparing to go up to a level into the Spirit World. Some people compare earth to an 18th century penal colony, such as Australia where England sent its criminals and forgot them. I prefer to think of earth as a stopping place, an oasis on the spiritual journey.'
"While this is a book of fiction, all three of us—Heide, Pam and myself—all believe in the spirit world and it is through this book that you will find that ghosts do indeed exist. Enjoy your journey into THEIR world. ;o) "
Heide Kaminski, one of the other co-authors of THE SEARCH FOR THE MILLION $$$ GHOST, was looking through old notes just the other day from the time when we were tossing our ideas around.
"I am a pack rack," she says, "and I rarely throw stuff away, even though some pages I have in triplicate and more form, all slightly different as we tossed ideas, scratched ideas and changed wording and added little tidbits here
and there.
"It was an outrageously fun time. I was a stay-at-home mom at the time we created the book and I spent a great deal of my day working on my ideas, researching possibilities and learning things such as tea-leaf reading, so I could write believable chapters.
"Then we (the other authors) started fighting.
"It made me sad, because I believed we had something really great in the works. We dwindled down to three people, but our relationship has remained strong. I have never personally met Dotti, but Pam lives fairly close to me and we met up occasionally to work on the book and we would act out the different parts and start dreaming about the actors we wanted in the book which we were - and still are - sure of will
make a smash hit on the big screen.
"Pam always wanted Kathy Bates to play the part of Pam and I am totally psyched about Goldie Hawn as Ezra. I can just picture her, in the Carp Deem chapter, ketchup running down her face. I could scream! I actually stuffed my face with a burger and said the words I put into Ezra's mouth, so I would write them down appropriately. I am also a big fan of Eminem and think he would make a great George, and Madeline... well, she just HAS to be cast by my older daughter, Sarah (no, she is not the basis for the character Sarah in the book!).
"Henri, btw, lives with my friend Peggy, the Peggy in the book is loosely based on my friend in real life. However, as we were creating the book, he constantly hovered over my shoulder and told me what he thought should be written. He is quite a character! He demands that David Paymer plays his part.
"Anyhow, there was a time, when we turned down some publishers, because we didn't like their contract and they wouldn't modify it for us. Then the book sat in the drawer for a while and I just couldn't bare the thought of it withering away. Then, one day, I came across MardiGras Publishing and Tahdah!
"Now, I am REALLY looking forward to becoming rich and famous! Ron Howard or Shirley McLaine, I hope you are reading this, cause this book is right up your alley!!!"
"LOL, Heide always thought this would make a good movie," says Dorothy. "Who knows...maybe one day it will. ;o)
(Pam Lawniczak could not be reached for comment.)
If you would like to interview these ladies for your publication, you may contact Dorothy Thompson at thewriterslife(at)yahoo.com, Heide Kaminski at mommyk(at)tc3net.com or Pam Lawniczak at metaphysicalmatters(at)yahoo.com.
