Why did I invent the term prophantasia?
In short, there was no language for it, and images like the "red star test" (see left) were only causing tons of confusion as to what regular visualizers actually experience.
Now, I've always been a moderate visual imaginer, but back in 2010 I taught myself how to generate projected imagery. So I went from not experiencing any projected imagery to being quite proficient at it. This is the main reason I was able to identify the difference between the two experiences to begin with.
This wasn’t aphantasia or hyperphantasia. It wasn’t about vividness in the mind’s eye. It was something else entirely: a projected experience. But no one was talking about it—so I gave it a name.
“Prophantasia” literally means projected imagination—imagery that projects out, into one's physical sight.
Prophantasia - What is it?
Prophantasia is a term I created to describe something radically different from ordinary visualization. It refers to the ability to project imagery into the physical field of view—not just the mind’s eye.
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This isn’t visualizing in your head; it’s seeing something with your eyes open (or closed) as if it were out in front of you. Like a visual overlay—faint or vivid—appearing in physical space and one's physical field of view.
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It’s the ability to project images externally, rather than just internally conjure them.
Prophantasia - Key Concepts
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It’s Not Mental Imagery
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Prophantasia doesn’t happen in the mind’s eye. It happens in your field of view. You see the image in front of you, with your eyes open or shut—not inside your head.
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It Can Be Subtle or Vivid
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Some experience this as faint outlines or glimmers. Others report vivid, colorful forms. The key isn’t intensity—it’s location and intentional projection.
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It’s Trainable
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Like a muscle, the ability to project imagery can be strengthened. With practice, what starts as a flicker or afterimage can become steady and rich.
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At this stage of the research, it seems that prophantasia is fairly rare. Even hyperphantasics sometimes do not experience any prophantasia projections at all.
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So far, no formal brain imaging has attempted to determine the operational difference between mind's eye imagery and prophantasia imagery. Though, my new questionnaire, the PIQ, attempts to put a metric to one's ability to project.
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More research on this curious ability must be done to fully grasp its use, function, and mechanisms.
Prophantasia
Simulation
Watch this video to simulate the experience of prophantasia.
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Notice how even after the triangle leaves the frame, there's still a lingering image of it within the black.
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This is the most accurate simulation of prophantasia that I know of.
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Rule of thumb: if it's not physically seen, it is not prophantasia.
Read the Full Story
Read the Full Story
If this clicks for you—or if you’ve ever glimpsed something that felt real but wasn’t physically there—you might be closer to prophantasia than you think. Here's where I break down the full story:
👉 Why I Had to Invent the Term "Prophantasia"
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