Writing On The Fine Line

Beyond December is now available for preorder in both e-book and print formats. Thanks for your interest!

I often saw my favorite grandfather after his death in 1979 (I was 20). Grandpa Ed had been a janitor at a local elementary school and I would see him occasionally around town in his “Mr. Ed” janitorial outfit.

I never thought of these sightings as ghosts nor did they scare me. It was clear to me that they were a case of the heart tricking the eyes into seeing what the heart wanted to see.

As an adult I learned that visions of much-loved deceased ones are not rare. In a 2023 Psychology Today article by Dr. Karen Stollznow, Ph.D., an Australian-American linguist and author, she estimates 30-50 percent of people experience grief—or bereavement—hallucinations after a loved one has died.

From the article: “According to psychology, a common explanation for these ghostly experiences is that they are illusions or hallucinations. These are a side-effect of grieving the loss of a partner, family member, or close friend. … They are a perception-like experience of someone who has died, and usually a reaction to acute grief. Grief hallucinations can seem very real when they happen.”

Makes a great “what if” for a novel

When I started writing Beyond December (available November 5, 2024, from Scrivenings Press), I had not heard of this phenomenon. I only knew about my experiences. But I knew I wanted to write about a strong marital love that was lost and what that loss meant to the surviving spouse. This love also leaned hard into this Bible verse:

Place me like a seal over your heart,
    like a seal on your arm;
for love is as strong as death,
    its jealousy unyielding as the grave.
It burns like blazing fire,
    like a mighty flame.

Song of Solomon 8:6

While researching Zak Cooper’s story, I learned much. Such as, the closer you are to the deceased, the more likely you are to see them. And, the more involvement you have with death, the more loved ones who’ve died, especially unexpectedly, the more likely you are to experience an encounter.

Why do some of us see bereavement hallucinations? Dr. Stollznow suggests it may be because we’re not ready to let go. “We’re so attuned to the presence of our loved ones that, when they are no longer there, we still expect to see them and hear them. The sense of loss and loneliness is so great that we can be watchful for signs of (our loved ones), and then our minds unconsciously fill in the gaps.”

Beyond December brings bereavement hallucinations to life

Zak, my main character, has had many unfortunate experiences with death and abandonment, beginning as a young boy. In fact, as part of a badly timed childhood prank, Zak becomes nicknamed “King of the Dead.” When, as an adult, yet another close loved one passes unexpectedly, he descends into and embraces as real, an extraordinarily strong bereavement hallucination.

Does Zak find his way home or does his hallucination define his life? And at what cost?

That’s what Beyond December is about.

Beyond December in Kindle and print formats is now available for preorder from Amazon. Use this link.

From the book’s back cover:

Marriage is for life, but love lives on.

Newspaper editor Zak Cooper knows his wife, Kay, is dead. She died mere weeks before Christmas and his newspaper covered the story extensively.

So why is he seeing Kay around town and why is she talking to him? And why can’t he touch her?

Are they “bereavement hallucinations,” as his doctor suggests? Or is it something more?

And what about Jenny Miller, new in town with her young daughter? A daughter similar in age to what Zak’s daughter would be if she’d lived?

Can Zak move beyond this life, this love? Can he move beyond December?

Talk back: What are your experiences, if any, with bereavement hallucinations? Share below.

Available November 5, 2024, from Scrivenings Press.

Michael Ehret loves to play with words and as the author of the novella “Big Love,” (and soon the full length novel, “Beyond December) he is enjoying his current playground. Previous playgrounds include being the Managing Editor of the magazine ACFW Journal and the ezine Afictionado for seven years. He also plays with words as a freelance editor and has edited several nonfiction books, proofedited for Abingdon Press, worked in corporate communications, and reported for The Indianapolis Star.