Tell us a little about your latest release.
The Accidental Psychic is my debut novel, which has been a long time coming. I’m 63 years of age and after many years of researching everything about Spiritualism and the paranormal … I felt it was the right time to finally put pen to paper and use my knowledge, beliefs and imagination to produce a novel that would not only be entertaining but to inform and help those who are bereaved. Although the storyline is mainly fictional, all the characters bar one, are named after my ancestors going back to the 17th century; The book is loosely based on my family’s history of Clairvoyance, and I used my daughters persona for the protagonist, Annie Prior, also using her image on the front cover with her aqua eyes as the main focus.
The novel opens with Annie, commuting from Southampton in the UK to London where she works. The train she is on crashes, and from there on a psychic ability that had lain dormant since her childhood, suddenly returns. She finds herself seeing the spirits of the dead so clearly, that she mistakes some—for the living.
Another commuter on the train, a handsome, dark haired stranger rescues her to safety, and they begin a relationship that tests both of them through many ups and downs.
A malevolent spirit who died in the train crash, returns to haunt her. Also, her narcissistic family and a boss with a dark past all prove to be a challenge. But she uses her new found ability to deal with every trial that comes her way.
Have you ever based your book or characters on actual events or people from your own life?
All the characters in The Accidental Psychic are based on real people, although mostly in name only, as I’ve used my ancestors names as all my characters. Apart from Poppet, AKA Nurse Mark in the book, but in real life he was the manager of one of my hair salons going back 40 years. Poppet is gay, and incredibly camp, which I love him for as it is so endearing, and all my clients at the time felt the same way to. I simply had to reproduce his amazing personality in my book, and I think it works really well, so much so, that he has become a character that I’m definitely holding onto for all three books in The Annie Prior series.
My protagonist, Annie Prior, shares the name of a Great Grandmother of mine, but her looks, persona and front cover image is that of my daughter Frankie. She has long strawberry red hair, with the craziest aqua-green eyes, and has psychic abilities too.
Quite a few of the clairvoyants readings and messages in the book are true stories that I’ve gathered over the years, and a lot of what has happened to Annie in her younger life has been copied from mine.
Is there a theme or message in your work that you would like readers to connect to?
As I am passionate about spiritualism and have been actively involved with all aspects of it for years, I would love my readers to gain help and solace from the many spirit messages within the book. I’ve been recording them over the last 43 years from the many clairvoyant meetings I have attended. All the messages that have come through contain words of wisdom that can be applied to everyone, and not just the recipient. The messages I have used in Annie’s meetings are personal to me, some are true, and others are fictionalised, but they are a collection of humanised stories that I know will help with bereavement, and go a little way to understanding how our loved ones don’t change when they pass over.
When you’re not writing what do you do? Do you have any hobbies or guilty pleasures?
I have always painted portraits of horses, people and their pets, and although I was paid well for commissions I always recognised it as a hobby which I thoroughly enjoyed. But since writing The Accidental Psychic, I’ve been much busier than I thought I’d be, so painting has had to take a back seat.
One of my hobbies, vegetable growing has proved to be a great form of relaxation. After hours of writing in the mornings, I go to my secret garden as I call it, which used to be an area of field that was overgrown with weeds and where the septic tank for the house was. It seemed such a shame not using it for something, and then I was inspired by a market garden near my home to change my scrappy field into a vegetable garden. It has taken me just over a year to create my special place during the cover lockdown, and now it has escalated into something that could feed a village with all the varieties of veg that I grow.
If this book is part of a series…what is the next book? Any details you can share?
The Eternal Psychic is the second book in The Annie Prior series and is due for release next April. But it is going so well at the moment I’m hoping it will be out much sooner.
When I was writing the debut novel, Annie Prior seemed to be adding her own adventures, so much so, that I had to make it a series, otherwise the first book would have been at least 200,000 words!
Annie continues on with her extraordinary new life as a psychic medium after having time away to mentally sort her future out—which she does—with an unexpected twist. A few exciting new characters are standing in the wings ready to make their debut entrance which will add more depth to her continuing story.
Annie finds a way in the new novel, to visit her ancestors from as far back as the 16th century, which finally helps her to understand the reason for her existence
Annie Prior Series
Book One
Carol-Anne Mason
Genre: Paranormal Murder Mystery
Date of Publication: 20th August 2021
ISBN: 978-1-8384305-0-4
Number of pages: 424
Word Count: 89,560
Cover Artist: Miblart
Book Description:
A horrific train crash turns Annie Prior’s life upside down, by triggering an extraordinary psychic ability that had lain dormant since her childhood.
After being rescued in more ways than one by a dark haired stranger from the train, two fatalities from the accident return to haunt her; and as Annie’s new Clairvoyant and Mediumship abilities grow, she is immersed into a realm of both needy and malevolent souls.
Despite an ongoing battle with her narcissistic family, and a boss with a dark past which continues to plague her, she comes to realise her strange new powers are also there for reasons beyond the present.
She embarks on a life journey helping both the living and the spirit world to gain closure.
But, not all are happy with Annie’s new vocation.
Excerpt
Prologue Southampton
A cold morning in early spring 2017
Unbeknownst to Annie, a mundane commute to London on a train — will change her life forever. A fatigue crack in one of the front wheels of the train’s control car had started to open up, and further up the frozen track, a set of points were waiting for the fail...
Chapter 2 The Crash
The previous babble of voices had now risen to a headache-inducing hullabaloo, prompting Annie to put her earphones in to listen to her favourite track ‘Human,’ from the new Rag’n’Bone Man album. She closed her eyes to concentrate on the haunting words.
Suddenly, the train shuddered, then jerked violently. Annie sat bolt upright and yanked her earphones out. The carriage had fallen silent, everyone froze; all eyes widened just before fear kicked in. Then, an unprecedented sound as loud as an overhead thunderclap exploded through the carriage. The screeching of brakes set the students screaming and running for the exits, tumbling over each other like waves. Some commuters stood still, straddling the aisles, and holding onto anything that was bolted down.
Annie could only watch in terror and disbelief; none of it seemed real.
Then, the impact came. A jolt so violent it sent bodies crunching onto the floor of the carriage. Annie was forced backwards with a massive thud into her seat, knocking the wind out of her. If she had she been facing forwards, she would have been horribly smashed.
The screaming in the carriage had become unbearably loud, with commuters slamming into solid objects. The train rocked on its tracks and tilted violently over to her side; and just—kept— tilting.
Annie grabbed a pole on the aisle side of the seat and instinctively lifted her legs from the footwell below the table, tucking them under her. There was a combined screeching and scraping, whilst brakes and metal sparked and twisted, before the train succumbed to gravity.
About the Author:
Carol-Anne Mason is an artist, writer and at the age of 64, author of the new award winning novel The Accidental Psychic.
She has lead a busy and full life with many professions under her belt including: dancing, writing songs and performing. Hair salons, tutoring at college, running a night club and antique shop. Although, has continued throughout the years with her painting and writing.
Her strong belief in spiritualism has grown since her early teens, after realising her premonitions and intuitiveness was a family trait going back many generations. And after immersing herself into the paranormal world and researching all aspects of spiritualism, she felt herself well equipped to write on the subject. Also her love for reading horror stories from the likes of Stephen King and James Herbert has also influenced her writing.
Carol-Anne works from her home in the rural Hampshire countryside of The New Forest UK. Where she lives with her eccentric husband and Maltese terriers, and spends much of her time with her two grown children and new grandson. Also, res- cuing any animal in need—large or small—often to the annoyance of her patient husband.
Website: https://carolmasonauthor.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarolAnneMason3
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/camasonauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolannemasonauthor/
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