Tarot Journaling

SunChariot

JustJazzie said:
Cherrs to hoping I picked the right forum for this!

I've tried keeping a physical tarot journal in the past. Mostly in a 3 ring binder with loose leaf paper, and then tabs to organize it all. Unfortunately. I would often forget to file the pages away and I lost many spreads that way. And honestly, after logging a 10+ card spread, my writing gets pretty illegible.

I finally found a method that I LOVE and thought I would share. But I am also curious to hear other methods of tarot journaling, as I am always looking to tweak things for the better!

So, right now I have scanned all the cards from the 3 decks I own into the computer and keep the cards in separate files.

Then I downloaded Microsoft's one note (its a free program) and I started a notebook in there that I call "all things tarot." Inside, I have tabs for my personal readings, spreads that I am working on or want to file away, pages for my thoughts on each individual tarot cards, tarot exercises, and then a "reading for others" tab.

Being a visual person- I love that I can actually create a table for the spreads and insert photos of the cards from whichever deck that I used, either just as, or very close to the layout they are in on my mat. Then I can keep my journal either inside a table, and or/ an over all reading right beside it.
I love that it's available on my phone and computer, and backed up in the cloud.
The downside is that it's technology so if the apocalypse ever happens I'll loose everything. I could print the pages- but that's a LOT of ink since I've added photos.

I would love to hear how you keep your tarot journal. Do you keep one for all readings, including those you do for others? Or do you only keep one for personal readings? Visa Versa? What have you felt helpful to include as you look back?

Thanks so much!
Click to expand...

Maybe our journal experiences were much the same. :grin:

I started off with the 3 ring binder. Better to me than a bound book as you can move things around.

Then I took my Tarot journal online. I keep mine on Evernote. And now that i have it I save all kinds of things there. I just use the free version. But it's been amazing to me. I keep pretty much everything there I want to keep note of that I would not want to lose if I got a computer virus or something. That was I always have a saved copy.

Back to the Tarot journalling, I much prefer it online now as it is so easy to just copy and paste Tarot articles online that I want to save. And I could never read my own handwriting anyway. LOL

Me too, very much so. I tend to be a visual person. And having the journal on the computer makes it easy to add in photos and image so things too, even photos of things from our lives that we took.

Although honestly, to answer your question, I very rarely save anything in my Tarot Journal anymore after over 15 years of reading. I don't save readings I do at all anymore for the most part. Only the ones that tell me very important life information that i want to remember for later on. I only save it for content, not to check in meanings or to develop my techniques as by now I feel comfortable that the ways I developed to read are working for me. If they stopped working and I had to think out and develop some new ways, then I would likely keep note of that.

Babs
 

JustJazzie

cybercat said:
I have Evernote but have only used it for things I needed to get at the store. Will have to look more into it. But I have Fools Dog Tarot app that has a journal. My certification course also has saveable journal. Lots a nice options these days.
Click to expand...
Indeed there are!

SunChariot said:
Maybe our journal experiences were much the same. :grin:

I started off with the 3 ring binder. Better to me than a bound book as you can move things around.

Then I took my Tarot journal online. I keep mine on Evernote. And now that i have it I save all kinds of things there. I just use the free version. But it's been amazing to me. I keep pretty much everything there I want to keep note of that I would not want to lose if I got a computer virus or something. That was I always have a saved copy.

Back to the Tarot journalling, I much prefer it online now as it is so easy to just copy and paste Tarot articles online that I want to save. And I could never read my own handwriting anyway. LOL

Me too, very much so. I tend to be a visual person. And having the journal on the computer makes it easy to add in photos and image so things too, even photos of things from our lives that we took.

Although honestly, to answer your question, I very rarely save anything in my Tarot Journal anymore after over 15 years of reading. I don't save readings I do at all anymore for the most part. Only the ones that tell me very important life information that i want to remember for later on. I only save it for content, not to check in meanings or to develop my techniques as by now I feel comfortable that the ways I developed to read are working for me. If they stopped working and I had to think out and develop some new ways, then I would likely keep note of that.

Babs
Click to expand...

Oh it does sound terribly similar!
I was wondering the same...how long to I need to log these? But I do go back and see what cards keep coming up. Or see how events turn out. Ive only been reading for 5 years, so maybe some day I won't find it necessary anymore!

It also keeps me from accidentally asking the same questions over and over! lol
 

practical magic

I still use a 3-ring binder for exercises which I then scan into Outline (similar to OneNote but independent developer which means, in my experience, they're more likely to implement suggestions). I called my journal Practical Magic (after the book& movie which also inspired my user name). I have a section group called journal for all my readings, exercises, etc., and sections in the main notebook for:
Interpretations
Spreads
Techniques
...and the various other "magical" things I dabble in.

I copy spreads using Lucid Chart with a free account. I export the spreads as png and copy them onto a separate page. I tag them with the number of cards, category, and where I got the spread.

In the interpretations section, I have a page for each card and then a page for each deck specific interpetation, and a page each themed interpretation I pick up from books. I have over 200 pages in this section.

Under techniques I have information about various things you can do with tarot cards. Methods of reading, etc.
 

rubyofjoy

I use evernote and love it.I love being able to create notes into notebooks that I can keep organized according to current studies or journals of creative uses. One of the things I enjoy about tarot is that I doubt I ever will reach the end of finding new doors opening of something I want to delve in deeply. So Evernote helps me do this. I love the flexibility of using evernote, as I can access things when i am away from my home, using ipad etc.

I do have a couple of folders on my desktop where I keep current tarot studies, I want to follow up on, perhaps tips I got from a book or video, or podcast, and also another folder that I keep small number of spreads in that I am exploring or would like to try.

I also started with 3 ring binder, but just found it cumbersome.
 

Ix Chel

I write everything in a Word file on the computer. I always make a pdf Version of it. I sent the document to serveral e-mail accounts and I save it on the Drive cloud Account. I have already 500 pages. It is a lot of work, but it has a lot of benefits. I can always search to keywords in the document. And my Journal is on the phone, my computer and in cyberspace. I still did not print it. I still make notes in a paper Journal, which I use for my computer Journal.
 

Achlys

For me personally, I prefer a written journal since I can remember things better that way.
I currently am using a 3-ring binder and loose leaf. I carry a small journal with me for readings on the go if it's not an event.
If it is an event, I will usually jot down specific keywords for each card quickly while conducting the reading. I usually provide a copy for the Seeker as well.
I am usually a very organized person and haven't really lost any pages or spreads this way.
The idea of an online journal or a tech journal is appealing, but I feel like things don't stick in my memory as easily if I just type it out on a computer. I'd also be afraid of losing it somehow or accidentally deleting it ._.
 

Atalanta

I also use Evernote for saving personal and professional readings, as well as notes etc. The upside is my handwriting is so bad, not even I can read it reliably but it doesn't always "feel" right to look things up on the computer. My plan is to start printing out notes on parchment paper and then pasting them in a leather bound notebook, sort of the best of both worlds. I have something physical to look up but at the same time, I can also read the writing.
 

Grizabella

My advice is to make sure you keep other copies of the journal if you're doing it on the computer. Put it on a thumb drive, a disc or on paper because I've found that keeping something only in the computer is the least secure of all. Computers can become unusable, laptops can be stolen, etc.

I don't use the Cloud. It's bad enough that anything I google turns up on my Facebook page. I don't need to voluntarily put information where it's apt to be used by Big Brother. I don't have anything sacred that I'm wanting to store, but it still seems better to me not to blindly trust "the powers that be."
 

Nemia

I'm diving quite intensely now into the world of playing cards (French decks and German Skat and Schafkopf decks) and Deste cards - a lot of new material that is sometimes confusing. I recognize that for tarot journaling, Evernote works for me because I have a solid base of knowledge by now that I can build on. But for learning something from scratch, there is really nothing better than the scratching of the pen on the paper :) That really lets sink in what I learn, helps me too keep track of my progress and make sense of everything I hear, read and experience.

So for total beginners in tarot, I guess my Evernote advice is not really useful... I'd say start with a binder and 'graduate" to a computer file once you feel you've found your feet.
 

DecemberBliss

I love that you mentioned OneNote! I've just started working my way through an online tarot course and wanted to keep the results of the exercises in one place so I could refer back to them and repeat them. Just yesterday I started using OneNote for this and I absolutely love it.

I feel like my use of it for all things tarot-related is going to expand a lot in future and although lots of people seem to prefer pen and paper for tarot journaling I feel a lot more comfortable with a digital system for this. I adore my notebooks and write by hand for other things but when I'm learning something and there's a system involved, being able to see it all on a big screen seems to work better for me.
 
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