Learn with me...
- Visit my YouTube Channel for tutorials and demos.
- Get my book on Amazon or Book Depository.
- Download "The New Celtic Cross" spread (below)
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New Workshop:
In days of old, fortune tellers had a reputation for gloom. The fortune telling decks of yore show why: death, disaster, disease, doom. And for sure the dominant cultural moderator (the church) had nothing to do with this perception, right? Then, death and disease lived check-by-jowl with birth and marriage. And marrying well for sure augered your fate, too.
Life’s different today—but not as much as we think. Many of us are just great at divorcing ourselves from the idea of death and disease, we manifest and self-empower, we vibe and we think positive. But we still get the mean reds. And we still want what humans have always wanted: food, safety, and sex. We’re still afraid of what humans have always been afraid of: the unknown. And we still want someone who tell us what the actual fuck is going on.
That’s where fortune tellers come in.
Life’s different today—but not as much as we think. Many of us are just great at divorcing ourselves from the idea of death and disease, we manifest and self-empower, we vibe and we think positive. But we still get the mean reds. And we still want what humans have always wanted: food, safety, and sex. We’re still afraid of what humans have always been afraid of: the unknown. And we still want someone who tell us what the actual fuck is going on.
That’s where fortune tellers come in.
Lesson 1: No Rose-Colored Glasses
To reflect the world as it is, we need to let go of the frosty-pink glow of pop divination practice—at least some of the time. We need to recognize that there are times when The Empress shows us the fertile beauty of our fluid, creative natures. And there are times when The Empress represents handmaids of the patriarchy, stepping on other women as she climbs the ladder of influence. We need a Fool who sees possibilities, but we need a Fool who represents a doctor’s inability to listen to Black women’s pain. This lesson won’t steal your adoring tarot icons, but it will provide you the ability to look past the glitter and into grit when you need to.
Lesson 2: Autonomy and Agency
Modern “new age” thought loves the concept of personal power and possibility. And, sure, there are times our attitude can change the outcome. But there are times when, let’s be frank, it’s not “manifesting,” it’s privilege—gender, financial, race, etc. Sometimes we have agency, sometimes we have power; sometimes—for many of us, many times—we don’t. In readings, we need to see who’s got the power and who lacks it; we’ve got to understand when we’re up against a surmountable obstacle, and when we’re up against systemic gates actively stopping us from getting ahead. We need to know what elements of any situation we can impact or control, and those we can’t. Telling a person that they need to believe in themselves, as the Knight of Wands does, can create a cycle of self-blame for someone who tries their damndest and doesn’t know their boss is a gossiping jerk who has been lying about your client for years. That client needs to know what they can do, if anything, to make it better—even if that means looking for a new gig.
Lesson 3: Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll
Almost every time someone tells you they don’t “know” what they want a reading about, it’s because they’re too shy to admit they really want to know if their hot, new neighbor likes them—or something similar. This lesson is in two parts: First, creating an environment where querents feel safe and comfortable with you so that they ask what they really want to know. Second, it’s looking at the cards through the lens of our desires and vices. Is the Devil over-doing it, or are they 100% the belle of the carnal ball? Everyone has an appetite for something and those are things people want readings about it, even when they’re too embarrassed to say it. Explore how to make them feel comfortable doing that and explore skills that’ll help you spill that tea.
Lesson 4: OK, Sometimes “Good” Things Happen
Many readers are afraid to give querents bad news. Others (maybe more than would like to admit it) turn over the cards to discover the client’s much longed for lost love actually will return—and our stomach sinks because we’re convinced that tool needs to stay lost. Still others of us have gotten so jaded by life, we simply don’t expect anything good to ever happen to anyone ever again. But that doesn’t stop good things happening to people and we need to be able to see and admit that, too. This lesson has as much to do with seeing the good in life as it does reckoning with reader bias. Even us cynics have to get over our gloom so that we can tell that forlorn querent that, yes, he will in fact be coming back—and we need to be able to do that without judging the client or their desires, which is a big, bad, icky thing to do.
Lesson 5: It’s a Free-for-All
In all my workshops, I leave the final week for the attendees to create. This is your time for us to dig deeper into a topic we’ve already covered, ask questions about what we haven’t covered, dish on the latest divination dirt, or anything else that strikes your fierce little fancy.
To reflect the world as it is, we need to let go of the frosty-pink glow of pop divination practice—at least some of the time. We need to recognize that there are times when The Empress shows us the fertile beauty of our fluid, creative natures. And there are times when The Empress represents handmaids of the patriarchy, stepping on other women as she climbs the ladder of influence. We need a Fool who sees possibilities, but we need a Fool who represents a doctor’s inability to listen to Black women’s pain. This lesson won’t steal your adoring tarot icons, but it will provide you the ability to look past the glitter and into grit when you need to.
Lesson 2: Autonomy and Agency
Modern “new age” thought loves the concept of personal power and possibility. And, sure, there are times our attitude can change the outcome. But there are times when, let’s be frank, it’s not “manifesting,” it’s privilege—gender, financial, race, etc. Sometimes we have agency, sometimes we have power; sometimes—for many of us, many times—we don’t. In readings, we need to see who’s got the power and who lacks it; we’ve got to understand when we’re up against a surmountable obstacle, and when we’re up against systemic gates actively stopping us from getting ahead. We need to know what elements of any situation we can impact or control, and those we can’t. Telling a person that they need to believe in themselves, as the Knight of Wands does, can create a cycle of self-blame for someone who tries their damndest and doesn’t know their boss is a gossiping jerk who has been lying about your client for years. That client needs to know what they can do, if anything, to make it better—even if that means looking for a new gig.
Lesson 3: Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll
Almost every time someone tells you they don’t “know” what they want a reading about, it’s because they’re too shy to admit they really want to know if their hot, new neighbor likes them—or something similar. This lesson is in two parts: First, creating an environment where querents feel safe and comfortable with you so that they ask what they really want to know. Second, it’s looking at the cards through the lens of our desires and vices. Is the Devil over-doing it, or are they 100% the belle of the carnal ball? Everyone has an appetite for something and those are things people want readings about it, even when they’re too embarrassed to say it. Explore how to make them feel comfortable doing that and explore skills that’ll help you spill that tea.
Lesson 4: OK, Sometimes “Good” Things Happen
Many readers are afraid to give querents bad news. Others (maybe more than would like to admit it) turn over the cards to discover the client’s much longed for lost love actually will return—and our stomach sinks because we’re convinced that tool needs to stay lost. Still others of us have gotten so jaded by life, we simply don’t expect anything good to ever happen to anyone ever again. But that doesn’t stop good things happening to people and we need to be able to see and admit that, too. This lesson has as much to do with seeing the good in life as it does reckoning with reader bias. Even us cynics have to get over our gloom so that we can tell that forlorn querent that, yes, he will in fact be coming back—and we need to be able to do that without judging the client or their desires, which is a big, bad, icky thing to do.
Lesson 5: It’s a Free-for-All
In all my workshops, I leave the final week for the attendees to create. This is your time for us to dig deeper into a topic we’ve already covered, ask questions about what we haven’t covered, dish on the latest divination dirt, or anything else that strikes your fierce little fancy.
It’s time to reclaim the role of fortune teller for modern life. It’s time to eschew gatekeeping and dogmatic divinatory conservatism—reeking still of superiority lingering from the self-important men of the Golden Dawn, among others—and even to upend the new-thought positivity of American Exceptionalism. It’s time to show the world what it really looks like. Something fortune tellers are uniquely qualified to do.
Fortune tellers hold a mirror up to the world the way it is. But only if we’re capable of articulating that to those seeking answers. And that is what this workshop is built to help you achieve. Using a pack of tarot cards and an unflinching look at the world, we can help clients see what’s holding them back and what paths could lead them forward. This is a tarot class designed to work clear, precise, confident readings that don’t shrink away from life and that tell you what’s really going on.
My workshops are always participant-centered but introvert friendly. I tell my groups, “participate to your level of comfort.” Some folks jump right in, others take a week or two, and others lurk. All of this is fine, but to those lurkers I encourage at least a little participation. And the reason is that these sessions are interactive.
Throughout our time together we’ll have our cards out and we’ll be reading, sharing, and discussing. I prepare a lesson guide for myself, but I’m a facilitator, not a dictator—and the joy of learning is doing, and the greatest lessons come from each other.
This is why I don’t sell recordings of past classes, because the content is as much the group’s as it is my own, and the specifics and focuses change based on each group.
Throughout our time together we’ll have our cards out and we’ll be reading, sharing, and discussing. I prepare a lesson guide for myself, but I’m a facilitator, not a dictator—and the joy of learning is doing, and the greatest lessons come from each other.
This is why I don’t sell recordings of past classes, because the content is as much the group’s as it is my own, and the specifics and focuses change based on each group.
Workshop Agreements
Before committing to a class with me, read the following. These are the “rules of the road” for the learner-centered space I work to create.
- We recognize the realities of history and modernity that leaves people oppressed, disenfranchised, and traumatized. While this may sound dramatic, my expectation is that, at a minimum, class participants accept that homophobia, transphobia, other queerphobias, white supremacy, racism, ableism, classism, ageism, misogyny, and other systematic dogmas are alive and well and hurting people as we speak. This is my first rule, because:
- Learning only happens when we feel safe, dammit! The workshop space should be an actively safe place for queer people, people of color, people of any age*, people of any body type and ability, people of any nationality or faith**, any gender expression, etc., can be comfortable to relax and experience the class. (*Except for the fact that my classes cover topics considered are 18+; **Unless that nationality or faith makes you actively harm others and you’re actively doing that now or plan to.)
- Nobody’s perfect. Any one of us might use the wrong pronoun, mispronounce a name, stumble on an accidentally awkward sentiment, use a word we don’t realize is no longer acceptable parlance, or say something dumb or weird that we didn’t quite mean as it sounded. We’ll all actively attempt to make the generous assumption with each other. (Unless a trend of not-very-thoughtful, easily avoidable behavior appears.) If someone corrects us, we thank them; if we notice we’ve said something incorrect, we fix it. We’re human. And many of us have lingering COVID brain.
- If you’re consistently being a dick, I will kick you out and I will not refund you. Sorry.
- No comparing ourselves! My workshops are designed assuming you have a foundational tarot practice, but are created to compliment the development of your foundation if that’s still in progress. Some of us will have been reading for 20+ years, some of us for 20+ minutes. That’s OK. Some of us charge money for readings (which, supposedly, makes us “professional”) and some of us don’t (which, supposedly, makes us “amateurs.”) In my workshops, the definition of a pro is someone who wants to learn, who is open, who gets excited by new ideas—even when they don’t agree with them. And the mark of an amateur is someone who is closed, refuses to learn, and doesn’t want to encounter anything that runs contrary to their assumptions.
- It’s your time! If you can’t make it, no worries. We’ll miss you, but life happens.
- Introverts: I won’t make you do anything that you don’t want to do. I will occasionally ask you if you want to add anything, and this is to give you the opportunity to chime in if you’ve been too shy so far—but you can feel free to decline. I think you’ll eventually warm up, though.
- Extraverts: You make my job so easy! Your enthusiasm lights us all up and gives the workshop a motor! Once in a while, though, you need to shut up and let others talk, OK? Just a reminder!