My First Séance

Yes, I know: this is a book review and writing blog. What’s a description of a séance doing here? I’m doing research for a new project that involves some otherworldly elements. (Don’t get too excited. I’m not doing paranormal romance or urban fantasy.) Also, I needed a girls’ night out, and I know it might be shocking to some, but if you want to get a bunch of women together, invite them to a séance. It’s better than spa night. It’s better than book club. Why? I don’t know. I think women are more curious about the possibility of another realm. The one we’re in is pretty misogynistic, so we’re shopping. Anyway, you probably want to know what a séance is like, so let’s get to it.

The Place

I originally tried to book a séance “experience” with The Séance Parlor, but they are still preparing their summer menu of experiences. However, I found the Saturday Night Séance on EventBright hosted by Charles Cox at The Goddess Isis Books and Gifts in Englewood. (For those who haven’t been, yes, the building has some Egyptian elements because . . . why not?

The séance was scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. which is an hour after the store closes. If you feel inspired to attend one of these after reading this, take the side entrance. The side entrance leads to a hallway where I passed offices for several practitioners who see clients there for various spiritual journeys. It’s kind of like walking into a mental health clinic with more incense.

The room for the séance is located at the exact center of the building. No windows and minimal airflow when the fans are off. We had an oriental style rug in the center of the room, music studio style, and a wooden TV tray with two lights on it and a large green candle.

The People

I don’t remember exactly how many people sat in the circle there besides Charles. I came with three other people. Two men were in attendance in the rest were women. In total, I’m guessing around 11 people.

We began the séance with some ground rules including how to avoid “side-talk” during the séance. Etiquette, at least in this group, is to raise your hand if you see something strange that you want to point out. Spoiler alert: the only sighting during our séance was the glow of Charles’s Aura ring.

The Process

Charles invited all attendees to place an object on the table if we wanted to energize it. I didn’t have much, but I thought I might as well let my writing notebook soak up some vibes.

After Charles turned off the overhead lights and the fans, and we sat in silence for a moment, he led us through a guided meditation where we were asked to imagine a column of white light coming from the ceiling to the candle and tumbling down to the floor and coming up through our feet. This was supposed to create a protective energy for the room.

Throughout the séance, Charles asked each of us, “May I come to you?” and he shared messages from any spirit or guide present in the room with us. These can be a bit like fortune cookie messages. Some people were happy. Others wanted to trade immediately after.

Final Thoughts

Is it all just a party trick in being good at reading people? Highly likely, but I still like the idea of connecting to another realm.