Tag: tarot

I was feeling a little stuck with the PNR today.  I had to start the Evil Day Job early yesterday, so I didn’t get any words in the morning.  I had to run PE clothes to Littlest’s school over lunch, so no words then.  Then I had to drive around picking everyone up from Spanish and yearbook club after school, cook dinner, etc.  This morning, I just couldn’t get into what I had.  Did I write myself into a corner?  What happened next?

Something was wrong or missing and I didn’t know what it was.  I felt like I was missing something with the hero.  It was too easy.  He knew what–I mean whom–he wanted, and there wasn’t anything to keep him from getting it.  He didn’t have any conflict or angst.  He knows what she is and what she’s capable of, and he doesn’t care.

But it can’t be a romance if there’s not conflict.  Why shouldn’t these two people be together?  What could keep them apart, from his POV?  I had no idea.

When that happens, I always go to tarot and just see if a card will spark some ideas.  For this project, I’ve been using Deviant Moon.  Most of the cards were familiar, refreshing my memory about many of the other characters, but didn’t really speak to me about the hero, until I got the Ten of Swords.  That reminded me that his sanctuary could also be a coffin.  I’d neglected to remember that detail, so I need to go back and tweak a few things to bring that motivation into line.  Not a big deal and not the key missing piece I really needed.

So I was going to look at my Steampunk tarot…but I forgot I lent them to my beloved sis.  Hmmm.  I don’t like my Rider Waite.  They just don’t speak to me at all.  The only other cards I have are the New Orleans Voodoo tarot that I intend to use for a different series.  I haven’t done anything with them, other than flipping through to see the artwork when I first got them.

It was worth a shot.  So I shuffled them and pulled out a card.

And I about fell out of my chair.

I can’t tell you the exact card because I don’t want to give everything away.  Just know that it could NOT have been more perfect and yet more unexpected to find that particular card in a voodoo set.  I took an entire page (front and back) of notes.

To those who give all, all will be given.  Masked faces twist in the abandonment of self.

And I got a brand new plot point that will come in very handy near the end of Act 2.

I’ve posted before that I often turn to tarot for brainstorming (my friend Raelyn Barclay has lots of good posts here).  What I’m finding (for me) is that I end up buying a new deck for each new idea.  *sheepish*

For Lord Regret’s Price, I used the Steampunk Tarot exclusively.  The gorgeous, rich artwork and the Victorian/steampunk elements really spoke to me. I hope I can continue to use those cards for other books in the series.

But when I sat down to work on the new paranormal idea, I didn’t want to use that same deck.  It just didn’t work.  It didn’t say masks or shifters or demons or anything spooky.  I was wandering around on Amazon for something and saw the Deviant Moon deck and it was like cymbals started crashing in my skull.  Yes, yes, yes!

Looking at the cards is even more exciting.  I’ve been working with them all week with mixed results (so I thought).  First, I used their recommended “deviant moon” spread for my villain and got some incredible ideas.  Then I tried the same spread for the hero, and I just didn’t seem to feel it.  I mean, the cards just didn’t seem connected.  I couldn’t visualize anything, it didn’t spark a plot point, or anything.

When that happens, don’t despair!  Here’s a few things I tried:

1. I took notes anyway and saved them for later.  Upon reflection and some shifting in my mind, the cards filled a gap for something else that I needed.
2. Try a different spread.  When all else fails, I go back to the simple 3-card past, present, and future.  I got lots of good stuff for the hero then.
3. If nothing seems to gel, maybe just flip through the deck and examine cards for fun.  See which ones seem to speak and take notes.

All of these options paid out cool ideas this week.  The cards I drew the first day that didn’t seem to work for the hero were actually calling up a missing character I needed.  (They were all strong women, like the Empress, the Queen of Wands, but I knew it wasn’t the heroine.)  I got another card that gave me a plot point that had nothing to do with the hero — but did involve the book.

And when I just picked some cards that really seemed important, I ended up building characters around those cards.  I just KNEW they needed to be used because they were so cool.  This time around, I’m actually building most of my cast straight from the cards themselves.  Not all of the characters are a single card.  e.g. the hero begins as a mix of the hermit/magician, but ends as the Ace of Pentacles.  Without going into too many details about what I’m doing, here are a few pictures of how I’m pairing stuff up.

These cards represent my hero and heroine’s growth throughout the book.  For the heroine (right), she has to make a choice.  The bottom card is what will happen if she falls to the Dark Side.  She’s quite dark, so while I know she’s not going to make that choice…I want to remind myself of that risk as I write.

For my villains (yes there’s more than one), I knew the card on the right was significant.  It was a meeting between my two major antagonists.  But I wasn’t sure where else she might show up.  I flipped through the cards looking for a woman colored the same way to get other clues.  I did the same thing for my heroine — looking for other cards that had wings.

So I guess my point here is that it doesn’t have to be based on random chance.  You can sit down and look through the cards for specific characteristics to get ideas too.

Man, I’m loving this creepy weird deck!  I’m getting so many wicked ideas!!!

If you’ve been intrigued about my tarot and writing posts inspired by Jenna Reynolds, you have a chance to take a class with her!  The details can be found here.  Starts 10/23!

First, in case you missed it, I’ve added pages for both Golden and Return to Shanhasson with links to excerpts.  I also have some good news:  Vicki is officially going to Samhain!  I don’t have a release date for Yours to Take yet but the contract is signed and I’ve got a few edits I need to work on.  We’re shooting for FRIDAY for Return’s release, but I’ll make an official post once it’s up and available.

Now, the meat of this post.  Since I finished the first draft of The Bloodgate Warrior, I switched my attention to preparing the next WIP, either a new contemporary erotic novella (longish) or Lord Regret’s Price, a follow up to Lady Wyre.  Since I have the most notes on Phantom, I decided to whip it into shape first.

So I’m going through my folders and notes, and there’s something wrong.  Something’s missing.  It’s small, but the project doesn’t FEEL right yet.  It needs to be more than a retelling, more than an erotic menage.  Something had me not wanting to write yet but I didn’t know what it was.

Before getting too frustrated, I pulled out my tarot cards.  My good friend Jenna Reynolds has taught me several tricks to use tarot for inspiration.  I started out by writing down my concerns on a sheet of paper.  Then I pulled a card at random and thought about what it could mean.  What was missing?  What did I need to figure out?

The first few cards were generally encouraging but nothing seemed to speak specifically to the solution.  The Fool.  Sure, my protagonist must take that leap of faith to start the story.  Ace of Wands, inspiration, the spark that starts the fire.  Yes, that’s exactly what I’m looking for!  But WHAT IS IT?

Where things started clicking:  The World card.  Something about the circle, neverending story, circle of life.  I drew a circle on a clean piece of paper and started doodling. 

Of course the next card I drew:  The Wheel of Fortune.  Again, with the circle!

Before too long, I realized that I’d missed the heart of my story.  Yes, I had it plotted on 4 spreadsheets.  I had character maps.  But in the end…  I didn’t have a solid THEME, around which everything should revolve.  That one little picture suddenly unlocked everything I needed.  My characters are the spokes in a wheel.  They’re all either trapped inside a vicious circle of their own making… or they thought they’d broken the circle, only to realize they’d broken themselves instead.

I need to break those circles, and then come full circle to heal them at the same time.

It doesn’t change my plot much, but it gives me that extra emotion I needed that will take this from a pleasant retelling to hopefully a killer emotional ride.

Do you have a favorite trick that helps you gain insight or inspiration when you’re stuck?