The Secret Spread: A 3-Card Tarot Spread for What Your Character Is Hiding
Every character worth writing is hiding something. What is it, why, and what happens if it gets out?
What this spread helps you do
Secrets add conflict to any story. The thing your character won't say, to another character or even to themselves, adds an undercurrent of tension in every scene it touches, and the moment it surfaces can topple everything a character has built. This spread is a fast way to brainstorm what your character is hiding and figure out what it's costing them to keep it. Reach for it when a quiet stretch needs tension, or when a plot is missing its ticking clock.
The spread
Draw one card for each position:
- The secret: what your character is hiding.
- Why they hide it: the fear, shame, or stakes that keep it buried.
- If it got out: what happens the moment someone reveals it.
How to use this spread
You will need a tarot deck to do these exercises. Grab your deck and let's get started.
The Tarot Prompting Process works like this:
- First, find a quiet spot where you can concentrate.
- Spend a few minutes thinking about the story, specific scene, or character you'd like to work on. What do you already know? What puzzle piece(s) are you missing?
- Based on what came up in step 2, choose a prompt to help you go deeper into the scene.
- Grab a tarot deck.
- Shuffle with your story question in mind.
- When you feel ready, draw cards and interpret them for your answers.
If you don't yet have a deck, you can go to randomtarotcard.com and click the deck for a random card draw.
Different Ways to Interpret the Cards
- Visual Interpretation: Look at the images and symbols present on the cards. What jumps out at you? What ideas and associations do the visuals trigger related to your question? Often just looking at the imagery can help you pull ideas from your subconscious. You can connect and combine these with what you already had in mind.
- Traditional Card Meaning Interpretation: Look up the card's meaning for further insight. You can use the guidebook that came with your deck, a site like Tarot.com, or the Storytellers Tarot Reference Guide in Tarot for Fiction Writers. I like to look at several different guidebooks for ideas.
- Combination: Combine these two methods and journal or jot down notes.
The prompt
Want more spreads like this to help with your creative process?
Check out the full book Tarot Spreads for Fiction Writers with 200+ prompts to help you deepen your characters, develop unforgettable plots, and get you unstuck.
Get Tarot Spreads for Fiction Writers