Using tarot cards as a creative writing tool can set you on a journey to better understanding yourself. Here's how I do it — and why you're going to want to try it. Plus: Free Live Tarot Writing Stream to help you start a conversation with your soul.
There are days when I am lonely and anxious. I feel like I don't belong in this world like I am all on my own, and no one could ever understand me. Shuffling a tarot deck then and getting a card that tells me I am protected and not alone is like a warm embrace of the universe.
With the tarot, I don't have to hide from myself or play a role. Using the cards is my way of connecting with the inner self I usually hide from the people in my life. No card is going to hurt me or mock me or laugh about me. It brings me closer to home. The universe inside of me, sparked with the cards that are so beautiful and mysterious. The tarot offers answers to my problems, brought forth from my subconscious. The cards help me get grounded and start a dialogue with my soul.
You don't have to believe in higher entities to start using the Tarot. You also don't need to know and learn about the traditional meaning of Tarot cards. These cards help you connect with your true self. The emotions hiding underneath a shell that even you sometimes fail to acknowledge. They awaken this gentle soft voice inside you. A voice you tend to ignore when the loud thoughts in your head stress you out.
The cards are an invitation to sit down, take a breath and start journaling: a practice that in itself is powerful and healing.
I use the cards in two ways. I like to ask questions about problems I deal with right now. I let them sit in my head while I shuffle. I look at the cards that fall out: Then I wait for what their pictures and symbols evoke in me. I write down the stream of consciousness that follows into my journal. This method helps me reflect on the issues I have. I learn to understand what lies beneath anger or sadness and how to go forth with those emotions.
You don't need to have a question at hand to do this process, though. You can create writing prompts with the cards themselves. Draw a card and look at it. Breathe, relax your shoulders and wait for what springs to mind when you see the pictures and symbols on this card. It isn't about the traditional meaning, but what the figures mean to you! How they might relate to what is going on in your life right now. A question, a statement; your subconscious will react. Now write down what thoughts come to you. Don't judge. Don't edit. Just write down the gentle conversation with yourself.
Do you want to give it a try? Why not join me and my friend, Peg Cheng, for a live tarot writing stream on June 27. We will create writing prompts with the help of Tarot and Oracle cards.
Peg Cheng is the author of Rebel Millionaire, a guide for how to retire as a millionaire even if you make a modest income, and The Contenders, a novel that asks, can enemies become friends? She is also the proud owner of Plaid Frog Press with her husband Marcus Donner. Born in Southern California to Taiwanese parents, Peg currently lives in Seattle, Washington. www.pegcheng.com
The event is FREE. Please, register here. Half the tickets are gone, so don't wait too long. If you like what we do, please, consider supporting us on ko-fi. ☕️
If you want to know what you are getting yourself into, please, watch our past tarot journaling live streams here.
Anja, aka AS Renner, is the author of the novel City of Lies. She has a passion for people and their stories. As a writing coach, she supports creatives who feel stuck. The subscribers to her newsletter are currently receiving the free eBook "Intuitive Writing. My Seven Steps to a Finished Novel."
