“It sounds goofy,” I said after hearing the pitch.

“Think of it like free advertising for the books!” he encouraged.

“Yeah, but these things never make the psychic look good,” I argued. “You know they can do anything they want in that editing room.”

“But think of how many books you could sell!” he countered.

I had a feeling Jim had a one-track mind on this one. Finally, however, after a whole lotta back-and-forth I conceded, with one condition: Jim had to fly to California with me and hold my hand during the shoot.

And everything was moving forward until Jim found out that the location of the shoot and our accommodations would be aboard the Queen Mary, aka the most haunted ghost ship in America. After that little tidbit came out, the excuses began:

“Uh, about going to California with you . . .” he said.

“Mmm-hmm?”

“Yeah, well, you see, the thing of it is . . . I might not have room in my work schedule after all.”

“You don’t say?”

“And I think I have some other personal conflicts that weekend.”

“I see. . . .”

“And”—cough-cough—“I may be coming down with a cold.” Sniffle, hack, wheeze, sniffle. “And you know how they say to avoid flying when you have a cold. . . .”

So it came to pass that Jim weaseled out, which, truth be told, was a good thing, because I didn’t have a great feeling about attending either and we eventually informed the producers that we were no longer interested in participating.

A few months later I saw a small clip of the actual show, and all I can say is thank God I backed out! There were some crazy happenings going on during that clip that I knew I’d have been totally freaked-out over. (Just ’cause I can communicate with the dead doesn’t mean I don’t find it creepy at times.)

Still, the concept of a haunted possession intrigued me enough to use it in a story with my favorite ghost hunting team of M.J., Gilley, and Steven. And now you know that I’m much braver, sitting in my nice, quiet, decidedly unhaunted home writing about things that go bump in the night rather than hunting them down myself.

To that end I would like to thank all those who helped me along the way:

My fabulous editor, Kristen Weber, who is so easy to work with and full of enthusiasm and encouragement. Thanks for taking such great care of me, Kristen. It means a lot!

Thanks as well to everyone at Obsidian for their efforts on my behalf, and that list includes Leslie Henkel and Rebecca Vinter, along with many, many others who work so diligently behind the scenes. Please accept my boundless appreciation for all you do for me.

My agent, Jim McCarthy, who always has my back (unless it involves spending the night on a ghost ship), and who is simply the best damn agent in the biz! Also, thanks to the entire staff at Dystel and Goderich, Literary Management, for their advice and support over the years.

And I’d like to thank my family for their continued support and encouragement, along with all my friends who cheer every time I show up on their doorstep with a new release. I usually name you all individually, but that list is getting a bit long, so know that if you think I might be including you, I definitely am!

One small individual mention here, and that is to Leanne Tierney, to whom this book is dedicated: Leanne, you’re simply wonderful, and every time I talk to you it’s like getting an adrenaline shot of sunshine. Thank you for being a great friend and providing such inspiration. You amaze me with your attitude, boundless enthusiasm, and continued strength and determination. Hugs and love, gal pal!