F.A.Q. page

I think that I covered most of what I might be asked and do recommend that you read these questions before you email or message me with a question. But if you don't see your answer here, or want me to further clarify something, feel free to reach out.

Do you read for the public?

No, I don't do that anymore. I had to tell myself the truth about this and I found that I am not of the temperament to read for the public. 

And this is something as a reader you need to think about too. Can you sit through clients that are going to be most likely 80% trivial questions, doing it for a laugh, want you to "prove you have powers", or are otherwise not ideal clients?  Not everyone is there to work on their soul connections. Not everyone is going to listen to the good advice that you have. Not everyone will even be polite.

I am not the person who can sit through that for most of my workday, so I stopped reading for the public. I still read for myself and people who I know who are the kind of clients that I get the most satisfaction from working with. 

Who are you and why should I listen to what you have to say?

Good question. You don't have to listen to anything I say, ever. Much of what I will be trying to teach is subjective. Some of it will depend on your particular situation and preferences.

For instance, I might say that it's fine to read for yourself, but you find that you don't like it, can't do it, aren't comfortable with it, whatever. So you don't have to do it. Or I say that Tarot decks with fully illustrated minor arcana cards are better than the pip decks that just have cups or circles or something in place of an image that tells a story. You might love pip decks. That's cool too.

I'm just handing out the information that I have from my nearly 30 years of reading Tarot. Everything that I teach is from my personal experience or my personal learning journey. None of it may work for you. That's fine, man. You do you. 

Dude, you have such a potty mouth. Am I supposed to take you seriously?

Fuck, don't be so judgmental, dude.

I don't censor myself because I want to make sure that you're getting the realest, rawest data from my frankly overloaded brain. Unfortunately, trying to watch my fucking language also means that I am examining every goddamn thing I'm saying and that stops me from giving you the best information that I have. That means a few f-bombs are going to fall out. If that offends, well, shit. I'm fucking sorry.

And as for taking me seriously, nah. You don't gotta. See the last question. 

How do I pick out a deck?

This is probably the question I get the most. I should probably do an entire lesson on it, but for now, I'll give the short answer.

If you're wanting to just start with a basic deck, you want to get a copy of the Rider-Waite deck. It's classic, probably the imagery everyone is most familiar with.

I definitely recommend NOT getting the mini version that is out there, at least until you are super familiar with the deck. The mini cards are too small to really let you sink into the imagery, but if you are hella familiar with the Rider-Waite deck (or whatever deck you work with) to the point where you barely need to even look at the cards to know what they're saying, then one of those cute little mini decks might be a nice, portable tool you can carry in your purse, backpack, glove compartment, whatever so that you aren't carrying your actual deck and worried about it being damaged.

However, like everything else that I say, if you don't like the R-W deck, then you can browse around to find one that you like. Also, oracle decks are as valid a tool as Tarot decks and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

The important part is that you are vibing with your deck. You can use any damn deck you like. I've done readings with Uno decks and a box of Cards Against Humanity game cards. You just need to find the one that you like. Also, contrary to what bullshit might be floating around out there, there is no standard, required starter deck for learning tarot. 

What Layout do you use or recommend?  Can you use multiple ones?

I personally use a couple different layouts that I have picked up over the years that work really well for me. But I also have a notebook where I keep about 50 more that are more attuned to specific questions and situations. Every deck and book about Tarot will have a few reading layouts that you can check out and work with until you find the ones you like.

Some people only use one for everything and there are some really nice all purpose readings out there (like the Celtic Cross).

But what I suggest, just like when you're picking out a deck, is that you should feel around and find the layouts that work for you.

I was told not to buy my own deck, but wait for one to be gifted to me. Is that true?

No, that is not true and I'm not sure what gate-keeping asshole started that rumor but I'd like to slap them. If we all waited around for someone else to buy us a deck, no one would start reading tarot.

Most readers get their own decks because it's so important to find a deck that you connect with. That's a very important aspect of using a deck that would be very hard to achieve if you waited and waited for someone else to get it for you. Especially since this falsity implies that you aren't even supposed to ASK for a deck. 

I have a question that you haven't answered yet. How do I ask you? 

You can pop over to my Facebook. There's a pinned post there that will be for questions that I will either answer there or if they are something I tackle in a lesson or post, I will drop a link to the appropriate spot to get you an answer.

Or, if you're shy, you can DM me on Facebook or hit up my email (though Facebook is the fastest way to get my attention. I only check my email a couple times a week, tbh.) 

My email is hermittarot (at) hotmail (dot) com (don't judge, I've been using that hotmail addy for my tarot business since like 2009. It works.)