The Spirits of the Dead Exist and They Want to Communicate

First appearing in the late 1800s, spiritualism became a religious movement that swept the world. Under the assumption that the dead live on in the afterlife, spiritualists believed that contact with the dearly departed was not only possible, but something those who crossed over longed for. Contact was usually made through a medium, a person who claimed to have the ability to speak with the dead.

In a time of uncertainty, women in the movement were given a voice. Most notably, the Fox sisters became the faces of spiritualism—young, innocent, and cunning. As the popularity of the religion grew (along with the skepticism), the sisters and others like them swindled believers out of their hard-earned money, ultimately causing spiritualism to come crashing down around all those who claimed to have psychic abilities. However, there are still some who follow the movement to this day, driven by their belief that they can, in fact, communicate with the dead.

Featuring a mix of stories set in modern and olden times, THERE IS NO DEATH, THERE ARE NO DEAD tackles all aspects of the spiritualist movement: from the true believers to the nay-sayers, the hoaxes to hauntings, the real mediums to the scam artists. Edited by Aaron J. French and Jess Landry, and published by Crystal Lake Publishing in 2021. Authors include Lisa Morton, Kathe Koja, Helen Marshall, Lee Murray, Gwendolyn Kiste, Gemma Files, SP Miskowski, Seanan McGuire, Laird Barron, David Demchuk, and more to be announced.

In order to fund this project, we need your help. Pre-order your copy today through our Indiegogo campaign (and why not grab yourself a sweet perk like a short story edit from one of the anthology editors or a custom made necklace and custom bobbleheads from Montreal-based jewelry designer, Sofia Zakia?), and please help spread the word. With your support, we can make this book a success.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/there-is-no-death-there-are-no-dead/x/24927435#/

About Scarlett R. Algee

Scarlett R. Algee is the managing editor for JournalStone Publishing and Trepidatio Publishing.