Tarot for writers.

Do this spread when your mind is quiet and you feel grounded, maybe after a yoga session or a walk.

Shuffle the deck while considering the questions below, and then lay the first 5 cards out in a row, so you can read them left to right.

Leave space above cards 4 and 5, and place card 6 in this space, for guidance.

Because this is a writing spread, you can read the cards the same way you read as a writer: notice the images, colours, shapes and symbols, and see what they have to tell you.

After you note your own personal meanings for the cards, you can consult your favourite guidebook for clarification and supportive insights. I love and recommend Theresa Reed's Tarot: No Questions Asked for intuitive readings.

Card 1: What do you really want to write?

Card 2: Who do you have to let go of being, in order to be the writer you want to be?

Card 3: What is already in place? What’s working for you? What’s going well already?

Card 4: What scares you about writing what you want to write?

Card 5: What excites you about writing what you want to write?

Card 6: When you reflect on cards 4 and 5, what do you need to know?

The energy of fear in our body mirrors the physiology of excitement — what we want to do with that information may depend on the context of the situation, how resourced we feel in our life, and the quality and nature of our desired outcome.

When I did this spread, one of the cards I drew was The Tower, reversed. It’s a scary card — I mean, everything is burning, people are falling out of windows in flames, screaming as they face certain death.

But upside down, the card looks like a firecracker. There’s a surge of fire below, powering the people into flight! Their arms are raised as they fly up, and they have glimmering sparkles around their feet. Their eyes and mouths are open wide from a rush of adrenaline.

So, here’s my question…

What if our fear is just excitement, standing upside down?

As you continue to write what YOU want to read…

…may you find flow in your work and power surges in your scenes. And may you fly, with sparkles at your feet!

Note: the 6 reflection questions I used in this post are by Caryn Gillen; I just turned them into a tarot spread and made them more writing-focused. I recommend signing up to receive her 30 Questions to Clarity — she sends you one powerful question to journal about every day for a month. (As I write this, I’m on Day 8 of 30, and I’m loving them so much!)

Photo credit (top): Viva Luna Studios on Unsplash.