December 2021: Tarot Cards for Writing Inspiration

 

“A sad tale’s best for winter: I have one of sprites and goblins.” ― William Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale

Before I drew the cards for this reading, I was thinking that winter would be a good time for inspiration of the dark romance (gothic, dark fantasy, et al.) sort. So, let your mordant imaginations take you through the sinister pathways of the heart. It promises to be an intense read, as every card I drew was a major arcana card. In any case, I hope your upcoming holidays (or Winter Season festivities) are just as deliciously dark and depraved!

 

Main Character: The Fool. This card could represent a person with a certain “joie de vivre” that has compelled them to spend a lifetime seeking adventure and entertainment. Eschewing anything static and conformist, their impulsive nature has put them in some sticky situations, but their innocent nature has protected them from the darker side of human nature. They seem to coast along on the surface, and nothing seems to penetrate too deeply beyond this person’s lighthearted nature and positive view of the world.

 

 

Theme/Development: Illusion. But this character’s innocence can only protect them so far, and the crowd that this person has fallen in with is weaving the strands of duplicity around this young/young-at-heart adventurer. Lured on by the excitement of the unknown, the main character doesn’t see the situation for what it really is. They are too intent on having a good time with their newfound friends they have met on their travels.

 

 

Setting: Temptation. The main character is lured into the ever-darkening world that is entwining itself around them, the likes of which they have not yet experienced. It’s a world that’s as wonderfully alluring as it is dark and depraved, and the main character submits to the temptations as proffered to them by their friends. These friends are not intent on simply sharing these darker pleasures with their new initiate, they only want to corrupt the innocent nature of this too-trusting person that has stumbled into their clutches.

 

 

Conflict/Climax: The World. But what the false friends don’t realize is that they are the initiates in a ritual that’s almost as old as time itself. These tricksters are the ones that have been duped, and they are the ones that have been led down some unimaginably disturbed path beyond their wildest imaginings. Because of the energy driving their actions, a gateway has been opened between worlds. The world they know is soon to be flooded with horrors beyond their most depraved imaginings. And, leading this invasion, is none other than the main character, still full of a childlike innocence and joy. Because nothing gets beneath its surface, not even the horrifying extent of death and destruction that is now taking place all around it.