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Astrology:
Excerpt from Donna's e-book:
The Outer Planets and Inner Live, Volume 2: Outer Planet Aspects to Venus and Mars. |
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Finding Your Write Niche—Astrological Clues to Authorship
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by Donna Cunningham, MSW |
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Note: The following is an excerpt from Donna’s booklet of writing tips at http://www.moonmaven.publications.com, which is the text for her new seminars, “Writing for Astrological and Metaphysical Markets.”
The astrology clients I most enjoy working with are professional wordsmiths who want to maximize their potential. Among the many functions chart readings can serve for writers—or potential writers—is to identify their personal niche among the endless topics covered by books, articles, and other media. The chart can also provide clues to their style and the conditions most conducive to getting the writing done. For instance, a Pluto or Scorpio writing signature would show a person who needs solitude and long uninterrupted stretches to devote to their work, while someone with a strong Libra or 7th house writing signature might blossom with a collaborator.
What does a writing signature consist of? Naturally, we would think of Mercury first, and yet a strong Mercury does not automatically make you a writer—what it makes you is a communicator. Many bright, interesting, verbal people with Mercury conjunct the Sun, Moon, or Ascendant or with a strong Gemini emphasis (Sun, Moon, Ascendant, or a stellium) are brimming with ideas, yet never sit still long enough to get those ideas down on paper. They may use up their Mercury energy in communications-oriented careers, enjoy a reputation as a gifted raconteur, or simply graft a cell phone onto their ear and annoy the rest of us by carrying on long, animated, one-sided calls while we try to relax over a gourmet meal.
Natally or by transit, a strong, well-aspected Saturn or Pluto as an element in the signature helps such individuals apply the derriere to the chair long enough to write something of substance. (If you are an astrological novice or beginning student and also an aspiring author, the following may be too technical, but a chart interpretation can be a good investment.)
In working with pros over the years, I have observed some keys to a writing signature, given here in the order of importance. Look at all aspects to Mercury, especially watching for conjunctions and other hard aspects to lend the energy and motivation to write. The urge to work through inner conflicts, as described by such aspects, is often part of what spurs an author to wrestle words and ideas to the mat. Look, also, at planets in the 3rd house and aspects to them; consider Mercury’s sign and house; and bring in the sign on the cusp of the 3rd. Analyze all of the above and blend them together for a complete picture. To assess the potential for more creative types of writing like fiction, poetry, film, or music, look for Neptune in the mix. For creativity—and the conditions needed to inspire it—analyze the 5th house. I won’t go through all the possible sign/house combinations in cookbook fashion, but here are a few examples so you can get the picture of how this principle works.
For the person with Mercury in Aries, Mercury/Mars aspects, Mars in the 3rd, or Aries on the 3rd, the best genres include action and adventure tales, sports reporting, war stories, how-to pieces, and romance with plenty of passion. You like to call yourself a groundbreaker and enjoy nothing better than being the first to explore and write about a particular topic. Keep your subjects—and your slant on them—fresh, for when the pack catches up with you, you tend to lose interest.
A series of short pieces—perhaps an ongoing column—on a particular area of interest can provide the immediate rewards that a Mars-Mercury type tends to need, while ultimately collecting enough material for a longer publication. Another way to maximize your output is to take an action-oriented approach in which you learn by doing—get out and interview people, go see the site where your story occurred, and participate in the actual activities you describe. Tape your notes on the fly, in the car coming and going. Lead groups who are doing the things you want to write about. A scrappy writing group with lots of male members can also provide the motivation and stimulation to keep you going—as well as the element of competition some of you like. In fact, creating something for a writing contest can also motivate you.
Health or self-improvement writing might be a fruitful field when Mercury or the 3rd house features the sign Virgo. Virgo health care practitioners tend toward the more physical forms of healing such as body work, herbalism, or nutrition, and when Mercury is in Virgo as well, they may want to share what they know in practical and yet detailed articles or books. For technical writing of many kinds, including instructional manuals, some connection between Virgo and Mercury or the 3rd house is an asset. To satisfy that relentless inner critic, Virgo authors can over-prepare, double-check all facts, and research, research, research. This is also the sign of editing. My best book and article editors have been Virgo Sun, Moon, or Ascendant, and, yes, they CAN be picky. The thing is, they are usually right, and putting your manuscript under their microscope before the public sees it can make you look great!
An element of romance in the writing would be indicated by a strong 5th or 7th house Mercury or else Venus or Libra planets in the 3rd, especially when Neptune is somehow involved. If this is you, you’d probably do your most impassioned work when you are either falling in love, falling out of love, or hopelessly enamored with someone inaccessible. Scorpio or Pluto as a top note in a writing signature could also be quite passionate, but not always about sex, whatever Plutonians' reputations might lead you to expect. They might be just as passionate about exposing and reforming corruption or about transformation and healing from traumatic experiences.
These examples should give you an idea how a writing signature works. Consider what matter to the sign Mercury is in—like finding the answer to life’s larger questions when there is a strong Jupiter or Sagittarian emphasis, or exploring unusual perspectives on modern life to those with Uranus or Aquarius spotlighted. Think about the areas of life indicated by the house in question—such as foreign countries, education, or the justice system when the 9th is involved. Imagine what milieu might present the best writing conditions for natives of Mercury’s sign—snugly tucked away at home for Cancerians, challenged by an eccentric bunch of gadflies for Aquarius, or involved in lively chat room discussions for Gemini. If you want to write—or have a client or friend who does—you can find a wealth of helpful hints in the astrology chart.
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Donna Cunningham,
Astrologer
& Healer |
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Donna Cunningham is an internationally respected astrologer and the author of 19 books on metaphysical topics.
She has been an astrologer for almost 40 years.
Her newest career direction is to lead writing seminars for those who wish to write about astrology, metaphysics or self-help subjects. See her summer offerings at www.moonmaven
publications.
com/writingseminars.html.
Donna Cunningham has a dual background in astrology and psychotherapy, with a Masters in Social Work from Columbia University and over 30 years experience as a professional astrologer. She considers doing the astrology charts of children to be a sacred trust. It is a way of knowing who these Indigo children are on their own terms rather than as their families, teachers, and society expect them to be.
In these sessions, she focuses on typical childhood concerns such as family and peer relationships, the best educational approaches, and the child's special gifts and abilities. She can be reached for consultations at (503)291-7891, by email, or at her web page. Ask about her special rate for children's charts.
Donna is also co-editor of Vibration and a frequent contributor. She has written fourteen books on astrology and other metaphysical topics, including her Flower Remedies Handbook. Astrologers who want to know the special considerations involved in doing children's charts can read the chapter on this topic in Donna's text, The Consulting Astrologer's Guidebook.
Listed in several Who’s Who volumes, she has given seminars on astrology around the world and won the prestigious Regulus Award at the 1998 UAC.
email:
moonmaven @spiritone.com
Phone:
(503)291-7891.
Donna teaches astrology classes online at:
Academy of
Astro-Psychology:
www.astropsychology.
org/index.asp?pgid=1
For the past 20 years, she has worked with the flower remedies, and she is co-editor of Vibration Magazine, a free online educational quarterly at:
essences.com/
vibration/
Donna has 17 books available, including 7 ebooks with more to come! See them at:
www.moonmaven
publications.com
This series is reprinted with gracious permission from Donna Cunningham.
©2002 Vibration Magazine/The World Wide Essence Society
PO Box 285
Concord, MA 01742
978 369-8454
www.moonmaven
publications.com
If you are interested in ordering a copy of Donna's ebook:
"Flower Remedies--How Plant's Energies Can Heal Us,"
It is $15, available at Moon Maven Publications:
www.moonmaven
publications.com
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