"How to" create a Tarot deck

tarotbear

i think it was said at one time robin wood said she wasnt' allowed to release any tarot work that would complete with the robin wood tarot, which we disussed among ourselves did that mean a sequal to her first deck even if it was released by the same company ?

In my book contract there is a clause somewhere that says the author is not allowed to do anything that would be considered detrimental to the publisher's selling of the 'work' - such as buying 1,000 copies to give away for free, or quoting large sections of it on the Internet - both actions of which would make people think twice about purchasing a copy when they were being given away for free.

I know people are thinking that Llewellyn should be thinking 'If one RW decks sells well, why not have TWO RW decks?' Chances are the Marketing Dept figured out that people would probably NOT buy both decks, so sales for #2 could possibly cut into the sales for #1. Also, if RW was to create a sequel deck many people might see it as "same ol' same ol'", so RW would have to create an entire new and different deck and a big company like Llewellyn does not kill their cash cows or geese that lay golden eggs.
 

Mageborn777

Deck creation

I'm one of the founders of the Tarot Deck Creators group (and page) on Facebook and what Ricardo has written to start this thread is very informative and most enlightening.
I can assure everyone creating a tarot, Lenormand or oracle deck takes more than skill and desire. It requires dedication and focus.
My first tarot deck was released in July 2007. The second edition of the first one was released in 2010. My second creation of a full length tarot deck finally made it to the shelves in January 2014 after a lengthy delay due to a dock workers strike. Today I'm working on my 3rd. Its addictive.
Once you get one into print, there is a lull where you feel like you've just given birth to 78 (or more) children. Spiritually, artistically and emotionally that's exactly what you've done. There is nothing quite like holding that first copy in your hands.
That being said, I should also mention I am self-published. There is a massive learning curve there and I saw in the threads everything from copyright to the finer details being covered. There are certain things, like aspect ratios and RGB versus CMYK and which dpi to scan if you're working with traditional mediums, all have to be factored in and should be done before you begin working on your deck.
All in all, if anyone has questions they think I might be able to help with, please don't hesitate to ask. I'm always happy to help.