My Mother, My Domain

To the rest of the world, I took a seemingly inconsequential step forward yesterday: I retired my old website domain and its associated email. Not the most newsworthy move, right? After all, I already have another website that I’ve been using for months and people change domain names all the time. So what’s all the fuss about?

Confessions of a Psychic Medium

When I advertise my products and services, I rarely mention the fact that I am a psychic medium. It’s not that I lack the self-confidence to promote myself as such or believe that I’m not a legitimate medium, but I avoid marketing my gift because it typically presents itself when I least expect it. Connecting with the dead doesn’t work like on-demand television viewing. I can’t command it or control it; therefore, I could never in good conscience offer it as a service for money. I admit that I’m somewhat skeptical of those to profess to have the ability to conjure communication with spirits at will. I can, however, share my experiences with others and have considered putting together another writing project based on some of those experiences.

Celebrating Life

The Summer Solstice is generally recognized as the longest day of the year and many celebrate it in some form or fashion. For pagan folk, this day holds a special meaning and is one of eight holidays in the wheel of the year. While I revel in the longer days that build up to this one particular day and eagerly anticipate the eighteen hours of daylight that the solstice brings, I also dread the ever shorter days that follow, eventually plunging us back into the darkness of winter – the seemingly endless cold, damp days when my life hangs in limbo waiting for the sun to dry the earth and warm the chill in my joints.

What Would Nancy Drew Do?

As a writer, my passion lies in the telling of a story, in being able to take a single moment within the story and describe it with such vivid detail that the readers can experience that one moment as if they were living through it right along with the characters. I want them to taste the sea salt as they feel the cool ocean breeze on their faces, to envision the vibrant shades of red and orange filling the sky during a sunset, and to imagine the water sizzling as the sun dips below the horizon to take its nightly rest at the bottom of the ocean. I strive to create a story that captivates my readers as if they were inside the fictional world I have created, and if I am able to create the desire to visit the places in my stories, if it were possible, then I consider myself successful.

Starving Artists, A Starving Nation

We’ve all heard stories of celebrities who endured hardships before they received their first real break and became famous. It’s hard to feel sympathy for them now that they’re successful, right? Just because we can see how their struggles have paid off, doesn't mean we should discount them. It is easy to admire their tenacity. Not everyone reaps the rewards for their efforts, however. Many give up when things get too difficult and they choose to follow an easier, less satisfying path simply to survive.

The Art of Meditation

As we wander through this world, our busy lives can take us down some fairly chaotic roads filled with stress. Thankfully, most of us find a few side streets where we find joy and peace, and we are privileged to spend more time on those side streets than on the hectic thoroughfares. Whenever we find ourselves on a path of uncertainty, however, we reflect on what brought us there and we wonder what we could have done differently or what we can do going forward to change our situations.

How do we change our path, find a more pleasant path, or know whether we’re on the right path?

Welcome to Wandering Spirit

J.D. Hanning is the pseudonym I use for my written work. Although the "J" really does stand for Joanne, most people know me as Hannah. I'll be posting some updates on my writing projects here, but if you're just looking for updates, you can follow me on Facebook or Twitter. If you want to know things about my writing process, what I'm working on, things I find maddening about the world (or about my writing process), and other random thoughts that come to me that I think might be interesting to share, then this is where you need to be.