Writing and reading...tarot? What is the relationship between the two? A powerful one! For a very long period of time, tarot has been used to self-reflect and do divination. However, things have changed.
Today, tarot fans encourage greater use of this mystic, ancient practice, making it sort of a magic wand for writers. Whether you’re a college student busy with English essays and book reviews, someone just starting out a writing career, or a professional author on the lookout for a creativity spark, tarot can help. Here’s how. Discover storytelling ideas with tarot readings online to bring your creative visions to life.
Pick the Right Deck
Before you dive into the world of cards and prose, choose the deck that resonates with you. A lot of options are available out there, from a good old Rider-Waite-Smith to modern designs. choose the one with the creative style that reflects your tastes, preferences, styles, etc. When in need of ideas for unique characters and vivid plots, vibrant cards can evoke the deepest emotions and help bring the desired elements to the surface.
Work on Your Characters
Creating personalities that captivate readers is a hard job. If you feel like your muse is lost somewhere in high traffic, let cards assist. When it comes to the protagonist, pull a card to define his or her (or their) strengths, flaws, and character traits. For the antagonist (an essential part of the story!), draw one more card to define what motivates them and what character traits they have to reach their evil goals. Finally, the ‘background’ characters should be developed, too. Use extra tarot cards to come up with the personalities of side characters together with their relationships with the protagonist/antagonist, their backstories, plans, etc. Here’s a quick example: behind The Tower card, you may find the antagonist with a huge destructive power; at the same time, The Magician might stand for a protagonist full of ambitious and solid will to save the world (from antagonist).
What Is Going to Happen Next?
To cut a long story, all the author has to do is take a deck, shuffle it, and ask a question. You’re welcome to pull out 1 card or the whole spread. Is it something about the plot? Or, perhaps, you wonder how the relationship between the antagonist and his unexpected lover is going to develop? Draw cards! Now, check out the meaning(s) to see how they can be implemented in the story. It’s a simple yet effective technique to get some ideas when writer’s block kicks in.
Dive Deeper into the Plot
To shape your narrative structure, use tarot spreads. First, you can do the classy three-card spread. It’s an effective one to frame the beginning, the middle part, and the end of the story. When it comes to the spread of the Celtic Cross, it might help an author to delve into the subplots and start to find solutions for the conflicts. Finally, One-Card Pull is excellent for those seeking a quick inspiration to battle writer’s block in this or that plot twist. At this point, we recommend considering every card a grandiose moment in your narrative. For example, The Wheel might come with a significant turning point in your plot, while The Fool could be a sign of the leap of faith of the character you’ve expected so much.
Explore Tension, Challenges, Conflicts
Whatever story you’re engaged in, conflict will always be at the heart of the narrative. Using tarot cards, you will be able to reveal the tension, challenges, and obstacles that your characters are going to face. Plus, pull out cards to see how they can (potentially) serve as resolutions for the challenges that came unexpectedly. As you can see, a little deck of cards can serve as fuel for an engaging and dynamic plot.
Give Your Work a Vivid Setting
One of the peculiarities of the tarot cards is the rich imagery. The latter can help a tired writer create vivid and unique settings. For example, as you draw The Moon card, you might interpret it as a sign to infuse a mysterious and dreamlike night landscape into this or that part of your narrative. At the same time, The Sun might stand behind a sunny valley with the most optimistic ambiance. Use your deck to create the most immersive settings for the characters that are so dear to you.
Develop Dialogue
Stuck on a dialogue? It can be literally anything—a conversation between two lovers, an intense interaction between antagonist and protagonist, or a quick (full of wisdom though) talk between the main character and a stranger (who’s about to reveal himself in a couple of pages)—pull a card to have a guiding symbol for your next lines. The best thing about the nature of tarot cards is that they are 100% spontaneous, which means you may find inspiration and the most unexpected solutions in the cards.
How’s It Going to End?
Your story deserves a worthy ending. However, you may find yourself stuck at the crossroads, not knowing where to go and how to end your work. Shuffle the deck and pull out a card (or more!). Use the symbol on the card as the guiding star for the proper conclusion. What is more important, you’re always welcome to trust your intuition as you go. That’s the real beauty of tarot! Your instincts do the job, which means there’s no wrong way to go in your interpretation. You are the author of the story, which means you know better than anyone how to infuse originality and authenticity into your text.
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We hope you enjoy your craft! And keep in mind that whatever symbol the card shows, you aren’t bound to do the same way. After all, it’s your story while the cards are just the hints that can help get those creative juices flowing.
