Author: Eleni Papanou

Eleni Papanou is an award-winning author of Jessie's Song. A spontaneous kundalini awakening thrust her on a spiritual path that pushed her to her breaking point by challenging her world-view and everything else she had held sacred. She emerged from the experience a spiritual agnostic. Her journey led her on the path to writing visionary fiction. She has two daughters and also sings and composes music. She has a B.M. in Music Performance and an MS. in Psychology. Other books by Eleni Papanou: Beyond Omega's Sunrise, and Unison: The Spheral Series.
Finding Light Through Darkness in Dystopian Fiction – Part Two

Finding Light Through Darkness in Dystopian Fiction – Part Two

In part one of the dystopian book series, we discussed how tales like 1984 raised our collective consciousness to the horrors of totalitarian systems. If that’s true, why is it difficult for us to join together and articulate current events to lessons we’ve learned from the book? In my mid-twenties, I had the realization that…

Finding Light Through Darkness in Dystopian Fiction – Part One

Finding Light Through Darkness in Dystopian Fiction – Part One

I’ve seen a meme floating around on Facebook of a Euler diagram linking together a host of dystopian movies and novels to an ominous undisclosed location. It started popping up during the start of the pandemic. Comments about the meme varied, yet I got the sense that those who responded were bound together by a…

Spiritual Stagnation, a Temporary Layover–Redux

Spiritual Stagnation, a Temporary Layover–Redux

[Looking back three years to a favorite post from 6/1/15. To see Comments on the original , click HERE.] By Eleni Papanou One major facet of writing visionary fiction is that the author  spiritually grows during the writing process. There are periods where I have to put my work aside, either when I’m in spiritual stagnation…

Once Upon a Time – A Visionary Fiction Perspective

Once Upon a Time – A Visionary Fiction Perspective

I first started watching Once Upon a Time with my daughters this year.  The visionary fantasy story was created for television by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. It focuses on a young boy, Henry, who believes that his book of fairytales is based on real-life events. The setting is Storybrooke, Maine where Henry’s foster mother, Regina,…

The Hero’s Journey and its Connection to Visionary Fiction
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The Hero’s Journey and its Connection to Visionary Fiction

HERO’S JOURNEY What is the Hero’s Journey, and why do so many visionary writers like George Lucas use it to craft their stories? To answer that question, we need to understand where the Hero’s Journey comes from. Joseph  Campbell recognized that myths around the world follow a similar template. He referred to this as monomyth. The…

Dark Characters in Visionary Fiction Can Reveal the Light
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Dark Characters in Visionary Fiction Can Reveal the Light

By Eleni Papanou Visionary fiction’s theme is the evolution of human consciousness. But what does that mean? What is consciousness? Psychologist, William James, coined the phrase stream of consciousness . He identified consciousness as something that is shaped by experience and how the experience is processed in our minds. So it’s our life experience that…

Interview with Author Jacklyn A. Lo
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Interview with Author Jacklyn A. Lo

By Eleni Papanou This week, the Visionary Fiction Alliance is focusing on author, Jacklyn A. Lo  and her debut novel, Redemption. She was inspired to write the story because of the “magic of it.”  To set the mood, we begin with Jacklyn’s path to writing the book. Read how she beautifully explains what drives her to create visionary fiction….

Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Application – Part 5
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Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Application – Part 5

This is the final installment of the Visionary Fiction as Personal Therapy Series.  In part 1, we discussed recognition, when a reader experiences a sense of familiarity while reading. In part 2, visionary fiction authors expressed their feelings of recognition while they were writing their stories. In part 3, various authors discussed how they reacted to issues…

Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Examination – Part 4
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Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Examination – Part 4

This is part 4 of the Visionary Fiction as Personal Therapy Series inspired by  an article on bibliotherapy by Debbie McCullis in the February, 2014 issue of the Journal of Poetry Therapy. In part 1, we discussed recognition, which is when a reader experiences a sense of familiarity while reading.

Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Examination – Part 3
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Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Examination – Part 3

This is part 3 of the Visionary Fiction as Personal Therapy Series, which was inspired after I learned about bibliotherapy in my psychology classes.  It led me to discover an article by Debbie McCullis in the February, 2014 issue of the Journal of Poetry Therapy.  McGullis listed  a four step process used in bibliotherapy, which…

Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Recognition – Part 2
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Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Recognition – Part 2

By Eleni Papanou This is part two of the Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction Series.  In part one, we discussed recognition from the reader’s perspective. In this week’s installment, we’ll focus on it from the author’s perspective. Authors have their moments of recognition during the writing process. This phase is important to many of them….

Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Recognition – Part 1
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Therapeutic Benefits of Visionary Fiction – Recognition – Part 1

Some authors find their focus in their childhood. It’s something they know they’re born to do. Not me. I was a late bloomer—a seed stuck beneath a thick layer of earth. Something kept the water supply from reaching me. For many years, I pondered if there was something wrong with the way my brain functioned. Turns…

Harold Ramis: A Comedic Visionary Crosses Over

Harold Ramis: A Comedic Visionary Crosses Over

By Eleni Papanou March 3, 2014 “When I was twelve, I read the line, ‘An unexamined life is not worth living.’ I took it seriously to heart. And literally. Like it was a requirement in life, akin to the Buddha’s suggestion that we maintain ‘sufficiently inquiring minds.’” Harold Ramis interview in Shambhala Sun When Harold…

Valis by Philip K Dick – A Visionary Fiction Alliance Book Review by Eleni Papanou

Valis by Philip K Dick – A Visionary Fiction Alliance Book Review by Eleni Papanou

Wow! That’s how I’ll start my review on this book. Philip Dick uses the vehicle of fiction to understand the meaning behind his spiritual experience. I have had a similar experience, and much of what is revealed in Valis runs parallel to what happened to me, which is why I personally resonated with the story….

Unison by Eleni Papanou (Excerpt)

Unison by Eleni Papanou (Excerpt)

RESONANCE   First Incarnation   Time is relevant to sound. An infinite voice sings life into this universe, and I’m but one note resonating within this expanse of boundless potential. While that’s an easy abstraction to grasp, my own potential remains elusive. After eight parallel lifetimes I’ve been adrift somewhere between struggle and mastery, both…

Babylon 5 – Visionary Fiction on the Small Screen

Babylon 5 – Visionary Fiction on the Small Screen

By, Eleni Papanou “‘To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.’” Captain Jeffrey Sinclair With the recent passing of Michael O’Hare, I thought it was the opportune time to write about  my favorite example of Visionary Fiction on the small screen, Babylon 5. The series is mostly  written by one  man,  J. Michael Straczynski, as…

Visionary Fiction – Light Carrier Of This Dark Age – Eleni Papanou
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Visionary Fiction – Light Carrier Of This Dark Age – Eleni Papanou

Eleni Papanou I see visionary fiction as a timely genre and one of the light carriers of this dark age.  It’s the ideal counterbalance to western pop culture that seems to favor violent themes and images that permeate the whole media landscape. The present cycle will continue until a contrasting alternative presents itself. I see…