I know there are a lot of professional and amateur writers on these boards, so I thought I'd give this a shot--
I'm writing scripts to a graphic novel, in which some characters seem to have magic-like abilities that are actually all telepathic in nature.
I don't want to fully explain the nature of these powers, since I can later continue to exploit the feeling of the unknown to create a Lovecraftian sense of awe or cosmic dread, but I do want to show that at least a few other people in this world have begun documenting these psychic/paranormal phenomena. The overall plot doesn't focus on these abilities, but I want to indirectly let the reader know that abilities like this exist in this world and may possibly be explainable.
I'm keeping my mind open to other ideas, but I have a hazy picture in my head of a letter written by a doctor/professor visiting an orphanage where a child has started manifesting some psychic abilities, leaving doctor/professor somewhat confused and totally freaked out about the experience. I'd have the letter shown after a chapter, like how Alan Moore has those documents after each chapter in Watchmen.
Are there any works (fictional or otherwise) that you recommend I take a look at? I'm trying to get a feel for how other writers may have handled something like this. If it seems like it's been written by someone in the 17th-19th centuries (1600s-1800s), all the better.
I've already looked through a bunch of Lovecraftian letter props, Jean Grey/Phoenix discovery scenes, Dracula letters, Harry Potter scenes, Hellboy origins, a few Christopher Nolan films, some Alan Moore stuff, X-Men 117, X-Men 134, Scanners, Firestarter, and Shutter Island, among other things, but I can't find anything that resonates with me enough to put together a more concrete plan for writing my own document/scene. I'm not a big supernatural horror or cosmic mystery fan, so my range of potential references may be more limited than yours. I'm hoping to create something that feels mysterious/haunting.
All well-intentioned suggestions are appreciated-- Thanks!