To writers I also suggest, if possible, to choose a deck that suits the feel of your writing, something that resonates with your author voice. There’s a reason I own several contemporary witch tarot decks – because I write a lot of contemporary witch fantasy.

As well as these thematically inspiring decks, you might also like to consider a deck directly inspired by a literary theme. These writerly tarot decks could be used in your readings and tarot writer’s life in a variety of ways. 

You might read with them as reminders of your idols, what you aspire to be in your own writing life. You could also use them as a tone text, matching your deck themes and story themes. For example if you write period romances, the Jane Austen deck could be well suited, or a mystery writer might inspired by the Sherlock Holmes deck. There are decks for so many special works, including the Hobbit deck, the Lord of the Rings deck, Game of Thrones tarot deck, HP Lovecraft Necronomicon deck, and so, so many more.

Here are a few other tarot decks specific to writers (plus a sneaky oracle and Lenormand deck).

You might also like to see the official list of tarot decks specifically mentioned and recommended elsewhere on this site. These are the decks I use in my own writing life.

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American Renaissance Tarot

The American Renaissance Tarot is a 78 card tarot deck inspired by American literature. It showcases 36 prominent writers, including Emerson, Whitman, and Thoreau, and portrays significant scenes from renowned American literary works between 1825 and 1875. The Major Arcana cards also narrate the journey towards the abolition of slavery. In the Minors, the cards depict the literary contributions of Herman Melville, Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Frederick Douglass.

The Poet Tarot

The Poet Tarot is a 70-card deck created by and for poets, writers, and artists. It features 30 well-known poets on its Major Arcana and court cards, and has themed Minor Arcana suits of Quills (Wands), Muses (Cups), Mentors (Swords), and Letterpresses (Pentacles). This deck is specifically designed to help writers, artists, or anyone engaged in artistic pursuits to explore the intricacies of their creative process and embrace a creative lifestyle. The Major arcana showcases renowned poets embodying various roles: Edgar Allan Poe as the Devil; Emily Dickinson as the Hermit; E. E. Cummings as the Fool; William Butler Yeats represents the Ending (traditionally The World).

Sherlock Holmes Tarot

The 79 card Sherlock Holmes Tarot captures the characters, era, and narratives from the celebrated books by Arthur Conan Doyle. The Major Arcana cards feature significant figures and iconic locations from the books, immersing you in the world of Holmes and his adventures. The Minor Arcana depicts scenes from specific stories.

Tarot in Wonderland

The extraordinary 78-card Tarot In Wonderland deck transports you to a fantastical realm where tarot symbolism intertwines with the whimsy of Lewis Carroll’s literary universe. Accompanying this magical deck is a meticulously crafted companion book by Barbara Moore, which not only provides comprehensive insights but also showcases stunning illustrations that perfectly complement the tarot cards. 

A Jane Austen Tarot Deck

A Jane Austen Tarot Deck is a must-have for any Austen loving tarot enthusiast. This set of 53 cards features hand-drawn characters, including Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, and objects from Austen’s world such as bonnets and books. Created by acclaimed artist Jacqui Oakley, each card serves as a playing card and tarot card. The deck comes in an oversized, sleek cigar box with foil stamping, accompanied by a booklet providing an overview of tarot and a guide to Austen’s world. 

The Literary Witches Oracle

Experience the intersection of spirituality, feminist wisdom, and literature with The Literary Witches Oracle. This unique, 70 card deck invites you to infuse your reading with spirituality, feminist wisdom, and literature, featuring remarkable icons like Octavia Butler, Shirley Jackson, Gertrude Stein, Joy Harjo, Virginia Woolf, Toni Morrison Yumiko Kurahashi and Mirabai.

The included guidebook helps you navigate the cards based on your intentions, the writers’ characteristics, and the spiritual symbols at play.

Fairy Tale Lenormand

While this is not actually a tarot deck, the Fairy Tale Lenormand deserves special mention for its stunning art and the way the cards use familiar fairytale motifs to connect with real life parallels.

Lenormand cartomancy is the less known cousin of tarot and oracle cards, and a fun direction for readers to expand their card reading curiosities and deck collecting obsessions… err, I mean interests. Read more about Lenormand cards here.

Do you have a favorite literary themed tarot deck? Tell us about it in the comments below.

The post Great Literary Tarot Decks for Writers appeared first on Tarot Writers.

What next?

If you’re looking to add a specific writing deck to your collection, look for two things:

1. A complementary theme

2. Art you like

The first deck I got specially for my writing was the Thoth deck. It’s deeply symbolic heavy with esoteric symbols, and his has a rather dark and serious vibe to it which comes, for me, from its creator, the infamous occultist, Alistaire Crowley. At the time I wrote darker fantasy, and it was a great match.

Now I write lighter fantasy blending romantic and some mystery elements over a variety of fantasy subgenres including contemporary fantasy, high cozy fantasy, and paranormal romance. There’s a lot of witches, a lot of goddess power. I rarely use the Thoth deck any more.

For most of my contemporary work, I use the Witches Tarot by Ellen Dugan and the Gilded Tarot by Ciro Marchetti, both modern decks, with vibrant colors and rich contemporary art styles. The Witches tarot suits particularly well for obvious reasons.

When my imagination ventures into the more mystical or mythical stories, I dabble with the Llewelyn deck, ancient welsh myths from Anna-Marie Ferguson, the same artist who created my beloved Legend deck. For medieval flavored inspiration, I use The Golden Tarot: The Visconti-Sforza Deck by Mary Packard.

At the time of writing, I’m dabbling with a Davide Corsi’s Ghost Tarot because there’s a ghost draft in the works.

I was recently gifted the Motherpeace deck by Karen Vogel and Vicki Noble. This unusual and highly stylized deck (the cards are round!) is drenched in feminine energy and goddess archetypes. I use it for finding deeper layers in my complicated women characters, and have also found it a beautiful addition to my personal readings (as a complicated woman character myself!)

These decks are thematic matches to the vibes I’m intentionally creating in my work.

You aren’t limited to tarot for this, remember. You might also consider oracle cards.

I really want to get a dragon deck, and there are many around, but I haven’t found one with art I really love yet. So for my dragon stories, I use an oracle deck – the Dragonfae Oracle by Lucy Cavendish.

If you’re writing fantasy, you might stick to a deck with these themes. There’s dark fantasy, plenty of Goth vibes, vampire tarot, and the list goes on.

For the lighter vibes of fantasy, you might look to one of the many fairy decks, or fairy tales. 

Do you write contemporary stories set in the real world?

You can get all kinds of decks to suit just about any theme of life. Knitting decks, parenting decks, housework, vehicles, alcohol, ferrets, cats, computer programing… And it goes on.

You might consider directly matching different elements from your stories to multiple decks, especially if you’re writing in a hybrid niche genre like vampire knitting, or paranormal pets for example. 

If you use multiple decks for the same stories, stick with using one deck per spread.

Like so much of tarot reading, the deck you choose for your writing all comes down to what feels good and right to you. 

Shop around for a deck that matches your art taste and your story themes.

Then spend some time examining the cards, thinking about your stories, but not asking anything of the deck yet, just enjoying the art and exploring the symbolisms at play.

This process in itself can be an excellent brainstorming session, so get ready to make notes.

When you’re ready to set the cards to work, start using some specific tarot spreads for writers and let the real creative explorations begin.

The post How to Choose A Tarot Deck – A Guide for Writers appeared first on Tarot Writers.