You can create a tarot spread when an existing layout does not quite fit your question. Begin with what you want the reading to answer, then give each card a separate job. The shape comes afterwards.
A useful spread helps you read the cards together without confusing their roles. You should be able to point to any position and say what it contributes to the answer, whether that is background, an obstacle, advice or a forecast.
Start with one question
Write the question in a sentence. “What do I need to understand about starting this course?” gives you a subject you can divide into positions. “Tell me everything about my life” leaves you deciding what the cards concern after you have drawn them.
If you want a forecast, include the period and situation: “How is this course likely to develop for me during its first month?” You can then give one position to the likely development and others to the conditions affecting it. Our question guide explains how wording changes a reading’s focus.
Decide what kind of answer will be useful. For a decision, you might compare two paths under the same headings. For a relationship, you might distinguish your experience, the other person’s role and the shared dynamic. For spiritual guidance, you might separate the message from the action it asks of you.
Give each position a clear meaning
List the aspects of the question you need to understand. Choose a manageable number and remove positions that repeat one another. “My difficulty”, “what is blocking me” and “my obstacle” may all ask for the same information unless you define their differences.
Write each meaning as a question or a short description. These labels work well because they give a card a specific context:
- What is happening now?
- What resource can help?
- What needs attention?
- What approach is advised?
- What is likely to develop within the period named?
Keep a desire position distinct from an outcome. “What I want” can show an ambition. “What is likely to happen” gives a forecast. An appealing card in the first position does not turn that ambition into a predicted result.
The Ace of Cups makes this difference easy to see. In a desire position, it can show longing for a new emotional connection. As advice, it may invite you to open yourself to one. In a future position, it can herald the arrival of that opening. The card’s meaning remains recognisable while its role changes.
Choose a shape and drawing order
A line is easy to read as a sequence. Two matching rows can compare two options. A circle can suit a cycle, while a central card can hold the main theme with supporting positions around it. Choose the arrangement that makes your position meanings easy to remember.
You do not need to assign a universal meaning to a shape or to an odd or even number of cards. The layout should serve this reading. If you give the shape a symbolic role, decide what that role is before drawing.
Number the positions in the order you intend to draw. Use the same numbers in your sketch and written definitions. Keep enough space between cards to see the pictures and their orientations clearly.
You can begin with three or five positions. Add another only when it answers something distinct. A larger spread asks you to connect more messages; size alone does not make an answer more complete.
A five-card spread for a new undertaking
Here is an example design for the question, “How is my new undertaking likely to develop over the next four weeks, and what will help me?” It can concern a course, creative project or practical commitment. This is an example layout created for this guide.
- 1Starting point
- 2Resource
- 3Difficulty
- 4Advice
- 5Likely development
| Position | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1. Starting point | The situation as you begin. |
| 2. Resource | An ability, person or support available to you. |
| 3. Difficulty | What may complicate progress. |
| 4. Advice | How to approach the undertaking. |
| 5. Likely development | Where it is heading over the next four weeks under present conditions. |
The fifth card has a defined timeframe because the question supplies one. The resource and advice positions can help you understand how to respond to the direction it shows.
Worked example: joining a collaborative project
Imagine using that spread for a small project with several contributors. All cards in this hypothetical reading are upright.
| Position | Card | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | Ace of Wands | The project begins with enthusiasm and a creative idea. |
| Resource | Three of Pentacles | The contributors bring useful skills and can improve the work together. |
| Difficulty | Five of Wands | Competing ideas or unclear roles may slow progress. |
| Advice | Queen of Swords | Define responsibilities and discuss disagreements directly. |
| Likely development | Six of Wands | The project is heading toward a visible achievement or favourable recognition. |
The Ace supplies the beginning. The Five shows why energy alone will not settle how people work together. The Three of Pentacles and Queen of Swords give a response: use the available skills and make the arrangement clear.
The Six of Wands forecasts progress that can be recognised within the period asked about. It does not tell you the exact size of the achievement. The surrounding cards explain what is needed to bring the group toward it.
Review the design after using it
Keep the position definitions with your reading notes. After the session, ask whether each position contributed something different and whether the spread answered the original question. If two cards seemed to repeat the same job, make their roles clearer in the next version.
Revise the design between readings. Changing a position midway through a session because a card seems awkward makes it harder to know what you asked. For the current reading, return to the definition and examine how that card can answer it.
To test a new layout, try it first with a clearly labelled imaginary situation. Then use it for a real question and compare the answer with what unfolds. Keep the versions separate in your notes so you can see which changes helped.
Further reading
Joan Bunning’s lesson on tarot spreads explains how positions shape card meanings. The Celtic Cross offers a larger established layout, while our spiritual spreads show how a question can lead to two different designs.
