Creative Draw of the Day: Seven of Swords

Confession: I love this card. Yeah, the character it portrays is a thief--but what's a story without a rogue?

I call this the 'Neal Caffrey Card,' in honor of the most charming con artist known to television (although Remington Steele is a close second). For those of you who aren't familiar with White Collar--shame on you! Remedy this immediately.

We're dealing with a smart, cunning rogue here à la Neal; swords represent mental prowess, after all. And, like Neal, this isn't a violent criminal. In fact, I love this blurb from Isabel Radow Kliegman in Tarot and the Tree of Life: 

The prankster . . . has come up with a creative solution to an embattled situation: it will be hard for the enemy to attack with five of their seven swords gone. With a little luck, they'll fight among themselves over who shall wield the remaining two.

I have only one issue with this card: how do I create a charming rogue who doesn't owe too much to Neal? I'll just have to remind myself that Neal has his predecessors too.

Matt Bomer as Neal Caffrey in White Collar

Must . . . Control . . . Jealousy

White Collar

No 'Creative Draw of the Day' today--I'm miserably under the weather.

I've been cheering myself up watching White Collar. But my sheer joy in that show is tainted by the fact that someone wrote a piece of fan-fiction for it that is superb.

Normally, that wouldn't be a problem for me. I'd be overjoyed. I love good fan fiction. But the piece was in answer to a prompt I was thinking about answering. Now I know I can't top what this author wrote. I am madly jealous.

On the plus side, jealousy isn't always a bad thing. I gained one of my best writing buddies by being madly envious of her work. I sent her a private message letting her know that I despised her for writing something I wished I had written. She took that as a compliment and before long we were real-life friends. So maybe my current bout of writing-envy will lead to another friendship . . .

Creative Draw of the Day: The Emperor

I've studied the Tarot for a while now--I think the cards are a marvelous aid to creative writing. So I've decided to start drawing a card at random each day for inspiration.

I'm using the Universal Waite Tarot Deck. Ok--I have lots of issues with Waite's deck, but it's the closest thing to a standard, so I'm sticking with it.

The Emperor is part of the twenty-two cards that make up the Major Arcana; these cards are also known as 'trumps.' They speak to the big issues in our characters' lives; while the cards of the Minor Arcana speak more to everyday issues.

To me, The Emperor is a benevolent authority figure who estabishes boundaries, gives you rules to follow and expects instant and, generally, unquestioning obedience. Basically a Dom Extraordinaire. On White Collar, Peter Burke has a bit of The Emperor in him in: he sets boundaries for Neal and tries to keep the kid out of trouble. But, unlike The Emperor, Peter has learned to be flexible.

So for me, The Emperor represents a character in authority who doesn't have that kind of flexibility yet. He (or she--I'm all for gender-bending with the Tarot) knows how to keep order and wants the best for everyone in his domain. Unfortunately, he also wants to control every aspect of their lives. His intentions are good, and he usually knows what's best for the people under his thumb, but he's too rigid, controlling and uncompromising.

Hmmm. I have plenty of stories in mind with room for just such a character . . .

Universal Waite Tarot Deck **ISBN: 9780880794961**