Actually writing the book was a little intimidating, because it was so personal. But I've had such a positive response to my story that I'm working on a follow-up book now. This second book is tentatively titled, Ghost House Diary: Digging Up the Secrets of a Haunted House (release date: September 2009), which will delve into the lives of some of the past residents and explore all of the interesting and weird things I've been told by psychics who have come to my house since my first book came out. For example, I was told that there is a mentally ill male ghost in my house (I have since discovered that one of the past residents died in the state "insane asylum"). Two different psychics have told me that I lived in my house in a past life and was karmically bound to come back.

Emily: What was it like for your children to grow up in a home that you believed to be haunted?

Annie: My kids were teenagers at the time, and I think they thought it was novel and interesting. They also had fewer experiences than I did because, between going to school and work and hanging out with friends, they were home less often than I was. We had some very scary experiences, but overall, I didn't feel like the ghosts posed a threat to us. At the time, my daughter had blue hair and was into metal music and my son was going through an Elvis impersonator phase. I believed that my strong, creative kids could hold their own in a haunted house.

Emily: What advice do you have for families with similar experiences who aren't comfortable with the idea of sharing their home with ghosts?

Annie: Well, I believe unfriendly spirits and beings should be asked to leave. Some families may feel comfortable doing a small banishing ritual on their own, or they could enlist the help of someone they trust, like a clergy member or a psychic. I really believe it's a good idea for all of us to be good energy stewards of our dwellings, and keep the energy as clean and balanced as possible. This can be done through prayer, burning sage, opening the windows and letting fresh air circulate, keeping things uncluttered and clean, dealing in a straightforward way with problems or issues in your home, and so on.

For friendly (but unwelcome) spirits in a home, I recommend trying to get as much information as possible on who they may be and what their purpose is for staying in the physical world. The spirits may need your help, and once you help them, they may move on. But even if they don't move on, it helps a lot just getting to know who and what is going on in your own home.

The most active spirit in my house is named Leon (the other spirits have told psychics "he's the boss"). Once I found out about what Leon had been like when he was in a physical body, it made him a lot less intimidating to me. As one psychic said, "He was a nice man when he lived in a body. Just think of him a nice man without a body." My house is like Grand Central Station for spirits, and I consider Leon an ally, a protector of my home on the astral level. I guess that would be my final piece of advice — if you don't want to share your home with ghosts, ask family members, ancestors or friends in the spirit world for assistance.