The Death Mask

I"ve sometimes mentioned of having near lifelike encounters with the characters in Mapleview—Amber, Mary, Ekaterina and the likes. (Don"t worry; you"ll learn about these other characters in later books of the Mapleview series.) Much of this phenomenon of physically encountering them can surely be attributed to my overactive writer"s imagination. The phenomenon began by taking notice of women who reminded me of Amber, Mary, Ekaterina and the likes—at least how they would appear in my mind while writing of them. Perhaps it"s natural for the mind to place in reality someone who is sorely missed. And perhaps without realizing it, I triggered a self-induced spell of phantasming while writing of Amber. It might sound like a cool thing. But you see, Amber is terribly aggressive as an author’s phantom. You see; in contrast to the other characters of Mapleview, it isn"t enough for her to simply appear in the face of some other woman. She deliberately goes out of her way to interact with me. She"ll smile or wave; sometimes nearly get in my face with a friendly greeting. And it didn"t take long for me to realize that the physical women involved in this phenomenon were unaware of it. Amber, by far, created for me the most hauntings while writing of her. She has the power to briefly weave herself in another person for purposes of carrying out her simple will. In short, I have succeeded in inadvertently conjuring up a "familiar spirit" and then watching it possess other people. And if that weren"t enough, the thing calls out to me through some telepathic means. I"ve sometimes been awakened at night from the assumed calling of Amber, wondering where I am at. Throughout the day I fight her invasion of my mental privacy. Amber is persistent. There"s a heavy feeling of sadness as she begs me not to abandon her and just give her a chance. She"s not as bad as I might believe. Amber urges that she is a really nice person. Needless to say this is frightening for me. Have I lost my mind? Has writing caused me difficulty in differentiating fiction from reality? Then came the day when I formulated a solution. Amber needed to be given her own, special place in the forest where I could visit her on a regular basis. Perhaps this would put a stop to weaving herself in nearby people or mentally calling out to me in the middle of the night, asking where I am. So I found Amber a special, little landscape in the forest and dedicated it to her. A couple times a week I would visit and perform my secret calling. In addition, I would bring pieces of chocolate and leave it in the area so that Amber would feel all-the-more special. Guess what? Amber was not satisfied with her landscape! Somehow she guided me to a place at the opposite end of the forest and urged me to dedicate that place as our special place. "Oh, Amber; it"s beautiful! I can see why you prefer this area." I exclaimed. I now visit her in this place and continue to offer my special calling along with gifts of chocolate. In recent days I have brought with wine and decorated the ground with it to intoxicate her spirit and hopefully ease her inhibitions. One morning in the not-so-distant future, I will bring with a red rose; and kiss the petals that are surely as delicate as her sweet lips. The rose will be left in the forest along with the usual gifts of chocolate and wine. Perhaps these simple gestures of kindness will charm and invoke the imaginary spirit of Amber to oversee the success of this Mapleview series, maybe even ensure that it is all-the-more enjoyable for you. Tom Raimbault Frankfort, Illinois September 5, 2011