Want to Write? - How Astrology Can Help You
By: Donna Cunningham

Do you yearn to be more creative and to put your creativity into words? The trick is to discover your special gifts and make the most of them. Analyzing your astrological chart can provide hints, not only to your niche but to times when those gifts can bear fruit.

The birth chart is a rich source of insight into your talents.

A part of the chart that describes some of them is the fifth house-the house of self-expression and leisure activities. So, for instance, if you have Venus or Libra planets there, you probably have a desire to create beauty and romantic expression through writing.

The fifth house also shows what conditions will foster your gifts, and in the case of Libra, you'd be most inspired when you write in partnership. The Sun or Leo planets there might show a flair for drama. When Virgo is featured, that well-known fine eye for detail and precision often lend craftsmanship. Cancerians' love of mementos and memories might lead you to pursue memoirs and family history

When the third house, Gemini, or Mercury are high-focus in your chart, you doubtlessly have the gift of gab and may have writing potential. When the Moon is strong, especially in the earth signs Taurus or Virgo, you may be a gourmet cook or master gardener who writes to share your knowledge. Neptune is the planet most associated with imagination, inspiration, and mystery, so the person with Neptune or its sign Pisces strongly featured might well be a poet, musician, or dancer.

Each sign and house has its own special interests and abilities, and we don't have space to cover all the possibilities here.

As both a writer and an astrologer, I've learned to use astrology to maximize my writing output. If you are knowledgeable about astrology or can ask someone who is to help you, following the current positions of the planets can significantly boost your productivity. An ephemeris-that is, a table of the planets' daily positions-is a writing tool with even more muscle than a thesaurus!

FOLLOW THE DAILY MOON SIGNS:

In general, writing should go well while the Moon is in Gemini each month or during the month or so each year that the Sun, Venus, and Mercury are in that sign (usually late May and most of June). You can follow these periods on a calendar that includes astrological information or by subscribing to an astrology magazine.

The Moon or inner planets in Virgo are good windows for editing your work. If you write consistently and follow the planets as you do, you will doubtlessly discover which Moon signs and transits are most productive for you-the periods when you work most effortlessly and effectively-based on your own personal chart. Watch for those intervals, block off the time, and use it to the hilt.

CAPITALIZE ON MERCURY RETROGRADE PERIODS:

Mercury represents all communication media, and Mercury retrograde has a bad press in popular astrology venues. To avoid the snafus popularly associated with Mercury retrograde, be certain to make copies of everything you write and regularly back up the disk. However, in my years as a writer, I have learned to make productive use of the three spans of time each year that Mercury is retrograde for about 20-25 days each.

Capitalizing on the natural backward and forward rhythm of Mercury's movements can be useful to a writer. In the course of writing a book over a year or more, use these intervals to go over and refine what you've already written, rather than waiting until the end, when you are mentally exhausted, fed up with the subject and yearning to be finished.

FOLLOW YOUR CHART FOR GOOD WINDOWS:

If you are advanced in astrological studies, watch the Moon as it travels through your own chart and note which signs and houses seem to correspond with your own most inspired and lucid times. Block those times off on your calendar for writing.

Similarly, observe the passage of the faster moving planets, especially Mercury, through the various houses and signs to see which are most productive and then use them more consciously. For instance, schedule your annual vacation or long weekends during peak times, and get away to a quiet place if need be.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Donna Cunningham, an internationally respected astrologer with over 35 years experience, is the author of 15 books on metaphysical topics. 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. She also has a Master's Degree in Social Work from Columbia University. She uses this combined approach in her "Dear Abby" type column in Dell Horoscope and her ongoing series of articles in The Mountain Astrologer.

Note: This is an excerpt from the teaching materials Donna Cunningham uses in her online writing seminars-a basic writing class and a class on how to create content for a web page for Fall, 2008. For more information, visit her website at
http://www.moonmavenpublications.com/writingseminar.html

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