She told me that Mia had a remarkable reputation as a clairvoyant specializing in psychic predictions and hauntings. An ordinary psychic deals with the worst parts of people’s lives: bereavements, breakdowns, trauma and illness.

She was born and still lives on the island of Sheppey, off the Kentish Coast, where her first novel is set.Mia and I were off to a good start but, as we sat in silence, I wondered if people were impressed with the readings they received because they unconsciously, inadvertently coached the psychic.

The ultimate Valentine's Day countdown - here are 10 romantic gestures to help sweep your partner off their feet! We all start wondering if we have our own inner Erics, but Mia tells us not to get ahead of ourselves. Nothing can take away the pain of bereavement, but knowing there is life beyond death, and knowing that she would see her daughter again, made the loss more bearable.Apparently my future is this: I am going to live in a big Georgian house with a painting of a horse on the wall. Not everyone would be comfortable with the idea of sitting in a room with a woman who talked to a spirit from another dimension.

I thought of the warmth of my kitchen on the Isle of Sheppey, filled with the noise and liveliness of my family, my clients and friends. I went to see a psychiatrist and after about 40 months and every test you could think of I was pronounced sane but strange' and told to get on with it. I convinced myself that I must've smelt the smoke and imagined the voice, but that was just the start.We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. Now I was becoming a public face, a woman known for her psychic powers and, any minute now, a journalist from a leading magazine would arrive to interview me. As I knocked on Mia’s hotel-room door, I imagined a mysterious lady in a fringed shawl, but as the door swung open, Mia was no Gypsy Rose Lee. To do a health scan, you have to visualise a line of light about the person's head and let it travel down their body.

Personally I don't think I would make a good psychic but I found the whole afternoon fascinating and was left wanting to learn and find out more. We celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stories, traditions and living cultures; and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. I try to get as many photographs as possible so I can see the child's eyes clearly, then I try and connect with the kid and see what was the last thing they saw.Mia has appeared in countless magazines and newspapers, on television and radio, even making predictions for the Sun and the Daily Mirror about Princess Diana. I'm one of the top two in the country and probably the poorest out of the top 300 because I refuse to do phone lines. Mia said people don't have to believe in her gift to come to the show, or even have dead relatives they want to contact. She was able to cope with her grief much better and felt she should use her gift to help other people.