Astrology 101

Using the Zodiac to Create Vivid Characters


OK, OK I can hear you already that astrology stuff is a bunch of hooey. NO PROBLEM you don't have to believe in astrology to make it work for you. I recently read an article for fiction writers called "How to Create Convincing Characters." The author suggested aspiring writers create stacks of index cards with various character traits on them both desirable and undesirable and collect them for future use in their stories. Well I am going to suggest you save yourself a bunch of time, energy and space: buy a basic astrology book.

Please don't make a judgment about astrology based on what you read in the newspaper each morning. Many people are only aware of the fortune telling aspects, and do not realize that astrology it is a great tool for learning to understand, appreciate and value each other; even when we're very different.

Begin to think of the 12 signs of the Zodiac as just symbols for all the different types of energy it takes to make the world go round.

Aries is the first sign of the Zodiac. It's ruled by the planet Mars. It's the energy of "GO," and raw masculinity. It initiates leads, thrust, drives, pushes, champions and reaches. It is the energy of the alpha male, the warrior, jock, daredevil and Hunter. It manifest in us as, independence, confidence,sexiness, bravery, upfront-ness, progressiveness, outspokenness, bravado, combativeness, aggressiveness, lustfulness, brashness, foolhardiness, self-centeredness, hot tempered- ness, egotism and violence.

Women with this energy were often described as "feisty," fiery and domineering.

When you think of Aries think of the qualities of star Athletes

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Taurus is ruled by Venus the sign of peace, quiet and maintaining the status quo. It collects, maintains, builds and distributes; it's the energy of "The Gatherer." It manifest in us as easygoingness, pleasantness, attractiveness, practical-ness, dependable-ness, steadfastness, worthiness, comfort loving-ness, earthiness, simple-ness, laziness, greediness, hoarding-ness, selfishness, stubbornness, backwardness, materialism and gluttony.

When you think of Taurus think of the qualities of Bankers

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Gemini is ruled by the planet Mercury It is the energy of intelligence, communication and dissemination. It moves, travels, transmits, transfers, transports ideas and information. Sometimes reliable sometimes not. This is the energy of the, journalist or the town gossip. It manifest in us as communicativeness, articulate-ness, knowledgeable-ness, cleverness, wittiness, brilliance, Funniness, nosiness chattiness carelessness, mischievousness, sarcastic-ness, flightiness, trendy-ness shallow-ness and irresponsible-ness.

When you think of Gemini think of the qualities of News Reporters

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Cancer is ruled by the Moon. Cancer is the energy of feeling and connection. It protects, attaches, connects, nurtures and preserves. In manifest in us as caring, kindness, tenderness, sentimental-ness, sensitiveness, moodiness, old fashioned- ness, nervousness, possessiveness, homebody-ness, clinginess, fearfulness and insecurity.

Cancer men are the classic "mama's boys"

When you think of Cancer think of the qualities of Mothers

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Leo is ruled by the sun. The Sun is our center or essence. Leo is the energy of, fun, joy, creativity, self expression, and satisfaction. It manifest in us as star quality, charisma, liveliness, creativeness, generousness, worthiness, glamorousness, luxuriousness, sociable-ness, shiny-ness, pompousness, bossiness, know it all-ness, self centeredness, attention seeking-ness grandiose-ness, pretentiousness, inconsiderate-ness and egomania..

When you think of Leo think of the qualities of Celebrities

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Virgo is also ruled by Mercury. In Virgo mercury is the energy of order, precision, exactness or perfection. It manifest in us as intelligence, directness, competence, sharpness, reliable-ness, thoroughness, helpfulness, cleanliness, timeliness, humbleness, detailed-ness health consciousness, prudishness, frumpiness, finicky-ness- crankiness, hair splitting-ness, pettiness, criticalness and hypochondria.

When you think of Virgo think of the qualities of Good Servants

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Libra is ruled by the planetVenus. Libra is the energy of beauty, grace, harmony, justice, and all things pleasurable. it manifest in us as refinement, moderation, sophistication, good looks, charm, glamour, sociable-ness, tastefulness, luxuriousness, wealthy-ness, peacefulness, sweetness, contrariness, shallowness, blandness laziness indecisiveness, vanity and self indulgence.

When you think of Libra think of the qualities of Super Models

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Scorpio is ruled by the planets Mars/Pluto . Scorpio is the energy of death, decay, rebirth and transformation. It manifest in us as will power, passion, determination, magnetism, sexiness, stick to it-ness, overcoming-ness, healing-ness, intuitiveness, psychic-ness, brooding-ness, intenseness, lustfulness, obsessive-ness, stealthy-ness, self destructiveness, willfulness, treacherousness, unforgiving-ness, revengefulness and do or die-ness.

When you think of Scorpio think of the qualities of the underworld

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Sagittarius is ruled by the planet Jupiter. Sagittarius is the energy of teaching and learning. It investigates, examines and experiences to find out the ultimate truth of things. It manifest in us as honesty, optimism, Searching-ness, adventurousness, growth oriented-ness, luckiness, expansiveness, philosophical- ness, open-mindedness, curious-ness, sociable-ness, generousness, inquisitiveness, insensitiveness, bluntness, offhanded-ness, know it all-ness, sloppiness, carelessness, bombastic-ness, and restlessness.

When you think of Sagittarius think of the qualities of professors

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Capricorn is ruled by the planet Saturn . It is the energy of STOP. It is law, order, rules, regulations, discipline, integrity, structure, solidness, steadiness, loyalty, and earthiness. It manifest in us as hardworking-ness, productiveness, determined-ness, trustworthiness, resourcefulness, seriousness, reliable-ness, piousness, self-righteous-ness, hypocritical-ness, anal-ness coldness, aloofness dullness, stinginess, judgmental-ness, snobbishness and elitism.

When you think of Capricorn think of the qualities of stern fathers

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Aquarius is ruled by the planets Uranus/Saturn. it is the energy of innovation, newness and modern-ness. It "thinks outside the box", and looks ahead. It invents, inspires, makes changes and wants to do and be different. It manifest in us as genius, friendliness, humanitarian-ness, open-mindedness, freethinking-ness, uniqueness, creativeness, cool-ness, eccentric-ness, zaniness, oddness, weirdness, unisex-ness, contrariness, stubbornness and perverseness.

When you think of Aquarius think of the qualities of hippies

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Pisces is ruled by the planets Neptune/Jupiter . It is the energy of dissolution. It blends, transcends, joins and bypasses walls and barriers. In manifest in us as sympathy, empathy, kindness, understanding-ness, calmness, soothing-ness psychic-ness, mysteriousness, spiritual-ness, sacrificing-ness, surrendering-ness, passive-ness, laziness, fuzziness, Dizziness, drunkenness, vagueness, deceitful-ness forgetfulness, otherworldly-ness

When you think of Pisces think of the qualities of Clergy .

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Unless you've had a professional horoscope done, you may not know that every planet in the solar system appears to be in some constellation of the Zodiac at any given time. A horoscope is a snapshot from the earth's perspective, of all the planets in the solar system, and where they appear to be in the Zodiac at the exact time of your birth. Each sign of the zodiac describes the way we experience a particular kind of energy. Each planet relates to a particular sign and energy, but also an area of human experience or psychology.

Sun -Is our essence or soul purpose (whatever your sign)
Moon -Our emotional nature and instinctive reactions to things and situations
Mercury -How we observe the world, think, and communicate.
Venus -Our capacity for love and harmony the things we value or desire.
Mars -Our physical constitution, energy level, sex drive and temper.
Jupiter -How we are generous, and therefore lucky. Our capacity for growth
Saturn -Our degree of self discipline, integrity, and grounded-ness.
Uranus -How we take chances, experiment and break rules and conventions
Neptune -How we are inspired or can be deceived. Our level of spirituality.
Pluto -Our ability to "overcome," our depth of thinking and feeling, how we Might harm ourselves and others.

We make our fictional characters interesting by exaggeration, or making them larger than life. Using the archetypal or pure energies of the Zodiac can make for clear, consistent, vivid, easily identifiable characters and sharp contrast; but often at the risk of them seeming cartoon-ish.

So here's where it gets interesting: you can add a few subtle notes to your personalities by mixing and matching. Yes, all in one character. This happens to be the way we're all created.

So you could conceivably be a hot blooded Leo with a tender, romantic Pisces moon, have Mercury and Venus in picky Virgo, and mars in cool calculating Capricorn. It happens. The mixing, matching and overlap, is what makes us unique, gives us our strengths, colors, quirks, idiosyncrasies and personal demons. It's also the reason were able to get along at all. If we were all pure types, life on earth truly would be a living hell.

I won't bore you with any more details. My goal is to inspire you to do your own research. I've given you just the basics. There are lots of good basic astrology books out there, and a lot that will cure your insomnia really fast; but my favorite author for beginners is Linda Goodman.

I'll bet many of you already have at least one of her books. I'd say she was pretty much responsible for introducing baby boomers to the world of Astrology. She's did a brilliant job of putting "flesh and blood" on the signs of the zodiac. Many astrology books will only list the traits of each sign.

WARNING: you might want to have some allergy medicine handy. Her prose gets a little flowery at times; but she's definitely worth a sneeze or two.

As a doctor, farmer, scientist, or writer I believe there's a lot of comfort and even power, in being able to name a thing. In this case a particular kind of human energy. Once you've mastered knowledge of all the traits and developed a real feeling for the nature of each sign, you can use the Zodiac as your "spice rack" to create truly appetizing and believable characters.

Now I hope you're never able to write a story, read a book, watch TV, see a play or movie the same way ever again.

Write On!
Venuzian