Why You Should Go to a Tarot Conference

Me gazing at the moon at Readers Studio 2015

So I'm a tarot card reader who lives in Central New Jersey. I didn't grown up in a house full of people doing divination, and none of my close friends, while they are super supportive of what I do, really understand what I do. I don't have a lot of people to talk to about frustrating/amazing interactions with clients, weird card combinations, how I sometimes still get confused about court cards (is this about a person or a situation?!) and anything else that has to do with tarot. That is exactly why I have made tons of tarot friends through the power of the internet. So when I found out that the tart group I was apart of online had convention, I decided I would attend one. I went to my first Tarot Convention in October 2014 and I was super nervous. I was thinking on the way there, "Um... why am I even going to this?". I'm what they call a "social introvert". I'm great and fun, loud and crazy around my friends, but get me around a bunch of strangers and I suddenly forget how to speak and what to do with my hands. But 2014 I deemed "The Year I Do a Lot Of Things That Will Make Me Uncomfortable" so I made myself get on that plane and go to Dallas. And what happened? I HAD A GREAT TIME!!! To just spend time with people who "get me" and just marinate in the knowledge and experience of other readers is so awesome. Now I'm addicted! I honestly wish I could go to every get together of the tarot minds, but alas, I can not. But I do hope that every year I can try and go to a different one, because they are all different and interesting in their own ways. Have you ever been to a tarot convention? Or if you are into some other form of spirituality (yoga, dowsing, astrology, etc.) and wonder why going to some kind of meeting with the minds will benefit you? Here are some reasons you should go to a Tarot Convention.

-Travel: You get to go somewhere you've never been. I don't know if your like me, but I love to travel. Whether I'm staying in the US or going outside of it, the world is huge and you should go see it. 

-Meet tarot friends: Made a bunch of friends on the internet? Religiously read someone's blog? Obsessed with someone's tarot style? Here is your chance to make your virtual friends real friends! You will be attending classes and lectures, but you are also going to have tons of free time to mingle and talk to people who are just as enthusiastic about Tarot as you are! 

-Meet your favorite readers, authors and deck creators: If your anything like me, you have a whole collection of books about tarot and a lot of them helped shape your practice into what it is today. Well guess what? Some of the people who wrote those books might be at the conference! You will get to meet them, talk to them, and tell them how much you appreciate their work.

-Shop: Oh the shopping that will be done! Save up some money so you can get some awesome stuff! Tarot decks, books, bags, and other metaphysical treasures. If the Tarot Garden is there, look out for their bargain bins. I've taken my time to look through them and made a killing! 

-Learn: Learn new techniques and different ways to looking at the tarot by taking different classes and being involved in different groups. Expanding your knowledge and learning different ways to read is the best way to help yourself get deeper into your practice and if you read for others, be a more well-rounded reader for your clients.

-Network: Bring plenty of business cards! You will want to hand them out to all the people you meet. If you are looking to publish a book or create a deck, you might meet the right people right there at the 

-Have fun: Just go for it and enjoy yourself!

Some Tarot Conferences you might want to check out (these are only US ones and ones that I have had experiences with/have heard great things about):

TarotCon: These are conferences put on by the Tarot Association. They are in different locations around the US and in the UK.

Readers Studio: This conference is put on by the Tarot School in Queens, NYC and occurs at the end of April.

Northwest Tarot Symposium: This conference is in Portland Oregon in Early March.

Bay Area Tarot Symposium: Put on by the Daughters of Divination in San Francisco, CA in August.

North Star Tarot Conference: This conference is in Eagan, Minnesota at the end of January.