Plot (For the writer with writer's block)

[Artemis Sans]

I was reading Arwen's brilliant writer spreads and I remembered a spread I did for the last play I wrote during a frighteningly-long bout with writer's block. Surprisingly, it worked the first time I tried it. Hope you guys like it as much as Arwen's!

(This part is done first, then the cards are shuffled back into the deck, It focuses on the auhtor rather than the plot.)
..........AS
.....1..........2
AS= Author's significator
1.= what's causing the stagnation
2.= what is needed to work through the stagnation

The Plot-

.......1.................2
......PS...............AS
.................3
.................4
.................5

1. The protagonist
PS. Protagonist significator (a situation or another character influencing the protagonist.) More than one protagonist significator can be added.
2. The antagonist
AS-A. Antagonist significator (same thing as PS)
3. Their conflict
4. The situation in which you last left them
5. A possible resolution to the current situation.

Happy writing!

Smiles,
-Artemis

[Centaur]

Thank you Artemis,

A very neat spread. I am writing at the moment, and will definetly use it if I experience any further bouts of writer's block.

C

[ArwenNightstar]

Originally posted by Artemis Sans
I was reading Arwen's brilliant writer spreads and I remembered a spread I did for the last play I wrote during a frighteningly-long bout with writer's block. Surprisingly, it worked the first time I tried it. Hope you guys like it as much as Arwen's!

(This part is done first, then the cards are shuffled back into the deck, It focuses on the auhtor rather than the plot.)
..........AS
.....1..........2
AS= Author's significator
1.= what's causing the stagnation
2.= what is needed to work through the stagnation

The Plot-

.......1.................2
......PS...............AS
.................3
.................4
.................5

1. The protagonist
PS. Protagonist significator (a situation or another character influencing the protagonist.) More than one protagonist significator can be added.
2. The antagonist
AS-A. Antagonist significator (same thing as PS)
3. Their conflict
4. The situation in which you last left them
5. A possible resolution to the current situation.

Happy writing!

Smiles,
-Artemis

I really like this spread for the differentiating between the author and the work! I will play with it when I get back from vacation.

[ashkta]

Hi there. I was reading over this spread, and I'm interested in trying it, but I'm not completely understanding the cards of the Protagonist's Significator and the Antagonist's Significator. Do you want us to pull those cards out ourselves, at our discretion, or are the cards that we randomly flip over into those positions supposed to count as the PS or AS? I'd like clarification if you don't mind. My understanding of a Significator is that you choose it, so I'd like to know what would be more appropriate in this spread.

[ArwenNightstar]

Originally Posted by ashkta

Hi there. I was reading over this spread, and I'm interested in trying it, but I'm not completely understanding the cards of the Protagonist's Significator and the Antagonist's Significator. Do you want us to pull those cards out ourselves, at our discretion, or are the cards that we randomly flip over into those positions supposed to count as the PS or AS? I'd like clarification if you don't mind. My understanding of a Significator is that you choose it, so I'd like to know what would be more appropriate in this spread.

The way I read it is that you draw the first three cards like you would for any spread. Then place them back into the deck and shuffle and deal the rest.

[HippymomTarot]

I've done similar things with my cards, it was a great way to get inspired and the end result was a lot more mystic than I had intended...which was great!

[ashkta]

Originally Posted by ArwenNightstar

The way I read it is that you draw the first three cards like you would for any spread. Then place them back into the deck and shuffle and deal the rest.

Right, gotcha. I guess my question is that, when they use the term "Significator" should I draw a particular card to represent the author/protagonist/antagonist? That's typically what I understand a Significator card to be...in the Celtic Cross, for instance.

I can see drawing the AS myself and the other two cards representing the following issues. But for the Protagonist/Antagonist Significators, they came after the first two cards are drawn. So I suppose I'm unclear on whether I pull them from the deck by drawing or by choosing them myself.

[arctic-stranger]

Great idea....i cannot wait to try it for myself. Often i use the cards to simply tell a story. but then, for me, everything is plot!

[augursWell]

Originally Posted by ashkta

I can see drawing the AS myself and the other two cards representing the following issues. But for the Protagonist/Antagonist Significators, they came after the first two cards are drawn. So I suppose I'm unclear on whether I pull them from the deck by drawing or by choosing them myself.

My understanding of "Significator" is the same as yours, that you look for and find a specific card in the deck that matches the Protagonist and Antagonist.

This is a really old thread so you may not get an answer but it seems to me, if you are stuck and looking for writing ideas, that you might use both approaches. Both approaches meaning a selected card and also random cards. If the story is already partly written then pull, by visually looking for, Significator cards that match both characters. Then add one or two others below them that are randomly selected from the face down deck. So positions 1 and 2 would be the Significators in my view. and the AS and PS positions would be one or more of the random cards. At least that's how I see it.

[ashkta]

Thanks! Your suggestion makes total sense.