In this episode, Claire has a LOT to say about The Emperor, Death, and the rest of the number family of the 4’s! This is the energy of structure and stability, of systems and intelligent design, and of intentionally cultivated growth. The Emperor is an often misunderstood card, one with which many folks have a hard time connecting, so here we unpack the card’s associations with patriarchy and toxic masculinity and take a look at The Emperor’s true medicine, which has nothing to do with either. 
 
Tarot Cards in this episode: 
-The Emperor
-Death
-4 of Wands
-4 of Swords
-4 of Cups
-4 of Pentacles
 
If you liked this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review! It would do our hearts (and our stats) such good! 
 
Connect with Claire: 
Instagram: @the.word.witch
Twitter: @WordWitchTarot
Facebook: @thewordwitchtarot
Website: thewordwitchtarot.com
 
If you want to support this podcast, please join us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/thewordwitchtarot
The Word Witch is produced, written, and recorded by Claire Burgess. Editing help and tech support come from Danu Vino. Our logo is designed by Claire Burgess. Our theme music is "Counting Rice" by Bitches in the Beehive. Their album, Itty Bitty Spaces is available now on iTunes, Spotify, and elsewhere!

#12: The Emperor, the 4's, and Cultivated Expansion

Join us to explore Tarot, astrology, magic, and more from a queer and inclusive perspective! With a mix of interviews and solo episodes with host Charlie Claire (they/them), The Word Witch always seeks to highlight folks making magic from the margins.

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Health

Religion & Spirituality

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Health & Fitness

Self-Improvement

It's the triumphant (ish?) return of tarot lesson episodes! In this one, Charlie picks up where they left off long ago with the 8's of the Tarot. We explore the Minor Arcana 8's through movement and change, Strength through tapping into our wild and hidden selves, and The Star through radical acceptance and hope in the midst of upheaval. This group of cards has some potent and necessary messages for the times we're living in.
A transcript of this episode is available here.
Support this podcast on Patreon for as little as $2 a month and get early access to new episodes and other cool patron-only stuff!
Connect with Charlie on Instagram @the.word.witch to get the latest on their new decks and creative projects, and snag your own copy of Fifth Spirit Tarot at thewordwitchtarot.com.

Strength, the Star, and the 8‘s: Hope Through Radical Change

In Part 2 of my conversation with tarot and oracle deck creator and all-around artistic powerhouse Coleman Stevenson of The Dark Exact, we dig into the practical, business side of being an independent creator that not many people talk about! From small-batch printing, to creative inventory storage struggles, to deciding whether or not to put gilded edges on your deck, Coleman peels back the curtain on running a one-person business and also offers excellent, real-talk advice for prospective deck makers.
If you haven't listened to Part 1, I definitely recommend doing that to get Coleman's insights on the creative process of making tarot and oracle decks! It's right before this one in your feed.
We have transcripts now! Find the transcript of this episode at thewordwitchtarot.com/transcripts and support the cost and labor of transcription by supporting this podcast on Patreon.
ABOUT COLEMAN: Coleman Stevenson is the author of three collections of poems (Light Sleeper, Breakfast, and The Accidental Rarefication of Pattern #5609), several books about divination and creativity including The Dark Exact Tarot Guide and two collections of card spreads, and a book of essays on creativity accompanying the card game Metaphysik. Her writing has appeared in many literary journals and anthologies and on the website tarot.com. In addition to her work as a designer of tarot and oracle decks through her company The Dark Exact, her fine art work, exhibited in galleries around the Pacific Northwest, focuses on the intersections between image and text. She has been a guest curator for various gallery spaces in the Portland, Oregon, area, and has taught tarot, poetry, design theory, and cultural studies at a number of different institutions there, most currently for the Literary Arts Delve series, which includes seminars at the Portland Art Museum. She is the co-creator of the divination series Third Eye Sundays. Find her work at colemanstevenson.com and @darkexact on Instagram.
CONNECT WITH CHARLIE:
TheWordWitchTarot.com
Instagram @the.word.witch
Support this podcast on Patreon!
Buy Fifth Spirit Tarot

PART 2: Oracle and Tarot Deck Creation with Coleman Stevenson

Tarot and oracle deck creator and all-around artistic powerhouse Coleman Stevenson of The Dark Exact joins me to talk all about the process of deck creation from concept to art to publication. In this first part of our two-episode interview, we dig into the different processes behind tarot and oracle creation, what makes a good oracle deck (and what makes a bad one), evolving traditional deck systems, and what makes a deck of cards magical.
Tune in next week for Part 2, where we get into the joys and challenges of independent deck publication and running your own business!
Coleman Stevenson is the author of three collections of poems (Light Sleeper, Breakfast, and The Accidental Rarefication of Pattern #5609), several books about divination and creativity including The Dark Exact Tarot Guide and two collections of card spreads, and a book of essays on creativity accompanying the card game Metaphysik. Her writing has appeared in many literary journals and anthologies and on the website tarot.com. In addition to her work as a designer of tarot and oracle decks through her company The Dark Exact, her fine art work, exhibited in galleries around the Pacific Northwest, focuses on the intersections between image and text. She has been a guest curator for various gallery spaces in the Portland, Oregon, area, and has taught tarot, poetry, design theory, and cultural studies at a number of different institutions there, most currently for the Literary Arts Delve series, which includes seminars at the Portland Art Museum. She is the co-creator of the divination series Third Eye Sundays. Find her work at colemanstevenson.com and @darkexact on Instagram.
CONNECT WITH CHARLIE:
TheWordWitchTarot.com
Instagram @the.word.witch
Patreon
Buy Fifth Spirit Tarot

Oracle and Tarot Deck Creation PART 1 with Coleman Stevenson

Nick Kepley (he/they), a.k.a. Man of the Cards, joins me to talk about one of my very favorite subjects: gender in tarot. Together, we dig into the court cards, the masculine/feminine duality, the idea of “traditional” card meanings (who’s tradition are we talking about?), tarot as a tool for deconstructing social programming, tarot as an essentially nonbinary journey, and why we’re both so in love with this deck of cards that we’re trying to evolve and expand them beyond these sticky and ingrained limits.
As Nick points out in the episode, this topic of gender in tarot ISN’T just for trans, nonbinary, and genderqueer folks. It’s for cis people, too. In Nick’s words, “Gender affects all of us in huge ways… It’s not about eradicating gender. It’s about trying to open it up to make it less limiting for everyone.” So tune it, cis friends!
 
SEARCHER’S SOLSTICE TAROT SYMPOSIUM
THE LITERARY TAROT KICKSTARTER
 
CONNECT WITH NICK:
ManOfTheCards.com
Instagram @manofthecards
Patreon
 
CONNECT WITH CHARLIE:
TheWordWitchTarot.com
Instagram @the.word.witch
Patreon
Buy Fifth Spirit Tarot

Moving Tarot Queerly Forward with Nick Kepley

In this special co-interview episode, I sat down with Ashley Brooke James and Elizabeth Moore to talk tarot, spirituality, donuts, and the messy in-between spaces of becoming. Ashley and Elizabeth are the co-founders of TRILUNA Wellness, a non-diet, pro-donut, anti-racist community wellness company in Nashville, TN, as well as the hosts of the Wellness Community Magic Podcast, where they host real talk about the wellness world and seek to make self-care realistic, sustainable, and inclusive.
Our conversation is all about the magic and pain and possibility of transitional spaces, so if you're feeling those vibes right now like I am, this episode is for you!
The Wellness Community Magic Podcast
TRILUNA Wellness
TRILUNA's Instagram
Follow me on Instagram @the.word.witch
My website: The Word Witch Tarot
Get the tarot deck: Fifth Spirit Tarot
If you want to try the cornbread donut recipe I found (no promises it's good--I haven't tried it!):
Cheddar Sriracha Cornbread Donuts
Cheddar Jalapeno Green Onion Donuts

#12: The Emperor, the 4's, and Cultivated Expansion

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