I love cards.
I love the way a deck of cards feels in my hand. I love the randomization of imagery and ideas, the way a single pull can change your mind, the way subsequent pulls speak to each other. I canāt get enough of it.
I have a lot of cards for all kinds of purposes, but some of my favorites are the cards I use for storytelling and idea generation. You can use pretty much any deck of cards to help you in your fiction writing if you know what to look for (tarot and oracle decks are an obvious example) but today I thought I would list out my favorite decks that are specifically designed for storytelling. Because why not?
(I have linked all of these to their Amazon pages to make them easy to find, but I would absolutely encourage you to find and purchase these through your local booksellers wherever possible. Support indie if you can!)
Okay, letās do this.
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Best for Idea Generation š”
These decks are general enough to cross genres but can also add color, helpful aspects when youāre not sure what to write about and you just want to generate some interesting ideas.
The Moth Storytelling Deck: The Moth Radio Hour is a longtime staple of live personal storytelling, and while these cards arenāt meant specifically for fiction stories they are great as general prompts to get your juices flowing about what kind of story you might want to tell. The box contains 100 cards split into three colors, so you can play around with color-coding if you choose.
The Storymatic āFamilyā: Storymatic is a fairly well-known name in prompt decks these days, and for good reason. The original Storymatic deck gives you literally thousands of ideas that you can mix and match, and the other decks in the āfamilyā dig down into even more specific prompting. Whenever Iām in the mood to write but donāt know what to write about I always reach for my original Storymatic first.
Fun Fact: You can use the discount code TALEBONES for 10% off at the Storymatic online store through the end of the year! I donāt get anything from that except the joy of sharing a storytelling tool I genuinely love. ā„
Bonus - Writing Dice: Okay, yep. Iām cheating. But these dice are actually great for starting simple story ideas. You can roll to create characters, basic plots (theme and conflict), and setting/genre. Really helpful for randomizing the basic skeleton of a story. I use these most when I donāt have any ideas for a protagonist and I just want to randomize age/gender a little bit, see what fits best.
Best for Plot Help š£
These decks are ideal to help with the twists and turns of plot. They are more āevent basedā and can help broaden your scope to allow new ideas in.
The Writerās Oracle: This is arguably one of the weirder decks in my collection. I like it, but itās not quite as intuitive as other cards, so you may need to experiment a bit to get the most out of these. The deck is split in half. One half of the cards have visuals that you are meant to interpret however you wish to help you with your story, and the other half have lists of themed questions that are meant to fill out your plot and world. Itās a weird deck but has a lot of merits.
Woracle: Admittedly, I reach for this deck the least, but thatās only because of the way I write and not the fault of the cards themselves. Each card in the Woracle has a very specific scenario to help you throw a wrench in your plot and up the stakes. I tend to outline my plots a little too much for this deck to be useful, but for a discovery writer this thing would be gold.
Best for Troubleshooting š§
Stuck? These decks ask you the right questions.
The Story Oracle: Based vaguely on the tarot, this deck has 78 cards each bearing one simple word and an image. These cards are vague enough that they could fit in any genre and the imagery is very basic, too. Despite putting this in the ātroubleshootingā category I think these cards are the most multi-purpose out of the whole list. Iāve used them to create simple outlines, ask myself structure questions, or jog myself loose if Iām stuck. Very versatile.
Writer Emergency Pack: This oneās a serious goldmine. If youāre truly stuck in your plot, the Emergency Pack has a card to help you. Each card has ideas and questions meant to help you interrogate where the issue might be and get yourself out of your plot rut. (Note that the āXLā is the updated version of this deck and the one I personally use. While the cards are a little big, they are chock-full of goodness, so I donāt mind.)
Best for General Inspiration šæ
Because good creative hygiene means nourishing your creative self.
Kickstart Creativity: Not strictly a writing deck, this is more of a philosophical deck that can help you set intentions for yourself and your projects. This is just good nourishment for the creative soul and can be used in all kinds of ways. I like to pull a card from this deck when Iām feeling particularly out of sorts and need a clear and positive path forward for my brain to follow.
Art Magick: For those of a more witchy persuasion, Molly Roberts has created a beautiful and colorful deck to help you build creative rituals, break out of patterns, and find deeper layers of inspiration. I adore this deck. (Even if youāre not fully witchy you can take what you like and leave the rest. This deck is just a lovely piece of art written with a generous heart behind it. Molly is a gem.)
The Observation Deck: I apologize in advance. This one is out of print and tough to find, but I had to include it because itās the deck that started it all! This was my very first writerly card deck. I bought it on a whim when I was about twelve, and I have never turned back. The cards are great on their own, but The Observation Deck by Naomi Epel has one of the best guidebooks Iāve ever seen, full of practical tips for writing, brainstorming, and dealing with writerās block. I reach for it all the time. A true treasure if you can score one for yourself! (Check eBay or other secondhand sites online!)
And there you have it! My collection, broken down for your creative consumption.
Do YOU use cards for your writing and storytelling?
Which deck most appeals to you and the way you write?
Do you use other tools? How do you generate ideas? Inquiring minds want to know!
Do you ever think about using any of these decks for actual divination purposes? Speaking as someone who's used tarot for decades. I can guess to use them that way would be totally trippy, and a bit of a headache, especially because life is full of curveballs as it is. At the same time, you may end up with the box of chocolates thing. But on the other paw, it might transcend some of the more predictable aspects of stuff like tarot and suchlike, and tell you something you'd never otherwise think of.
Although even if I didn't use them at all I'm such a collector-ish soul that I would end up totally addicted.
I love the Moth! Will have to check out their cards.
I have a deck called the Campfire Stories Deck by Dave and Ilyssa Kyu-itās all prompts meant to inspire you to come up with the type of stories youād tell around a campfire. I like bringing them to gatherings of friends or family and itās made for some really fun community moments.