Paula C. Scardamalia Talks About Dreams, Tarot, and Writing
~Getting Ideas~
I met fellow Wild Rose, romance author Paula C. Scardamalia at the New Jersey Writer’s Conference where I was privileged to participate in her Tarot for Writers workshop. Since then I have become a Tarot enthusiast too. Paula and I also share having been professional handweavers. My first book was also about handweaving. So let’s welcome Paula and find out about her writing life and where she gets her inspiration.
Take it away Paula…
Where do you get your ideas?
Everyone asks this question of writers. I wonder if artists and musicians get this question. The answer can be as varied as the types of stories and as the persons writing them.
The idea for my novel, In the Land of the Vultures, came from a dream. For years, as book and creativity coach, I’ve taught writers and other creatives how to remember, record and then use their dreams to inspire and guide their creative work. How could I do less?
In the dream, I was a woman of an ancient time and place similar to Egypt or Turkey, where things were dying and vultures feasted on dead horses. In the dream, I wasn’t afraid of the vultures or repelled by them. I knew they were doing necessary work. When I woke from the dream, something about it resonated strongly in me. I had to write about those vultures and that woman. She became my heroine, priestess to the goddess of Death.
If you pay attention to your dreams, you will never run out of ideas.
Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult?
Along with my dreams, the other source of ideas arises is myth and fairy tale. When I was in elementary school, my mother’s older sister gave my siblings and me The Fairy Tale Book, a beautifully illustrated, over-sized Golden Book. It contained fairy tales from around the world, and the images and stories influenced the name of my weaving business, and, along with Western myths, became part of my lexicon for storytelling. That book sits on the coffee table in my family room today, and is much treasured (and very worn).
What interesting jobs have you had? How have those jobs affected your writing?
My very first job out of college was as a visual merchandiser for the Gimbels department store in Pittsburgh. I learned two valuable things there, how to maximize display to catch a customer’s eye and encourage them to buy, and how to trust my own sense of design, my voice.
Years later, I put those lessons to work as a professional weaver on the craft show circuit as I sold my handweaving to shops across the country and abroad. Being a weaver taught me how to pay attention to my customer’s likes and needs. It also taught me how to deal with rejection, understanding that not everyone is going to like or is interested in what I create. And I learned how to deal with the competition of the marketplace.
All valuable lessons for an author.
Have you written non-fiction or children’s books? How has that influenced your fiction writing?
Even though I started writing and pitching fiction decades ago, my first published book was my self-published nonfiction book, Weaving a Woman’s Life: Spiritual Lessons from the Loom. I published it back in 2006 before all the social media and online places to market and promote your book. I won several awards for it, including Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Bronze for self-help.
And this month, my book, Tarot for the Fiction Writer, is being released from Red Feather, an imprint of Schiffer Publishing. The book shows writers how to use the tarot for improving their writing process, developing story, plot, character and settings, and for breaking through blocks.
I’ve been using tarot for my writing for years—I just used it the other day to give me insight about a new character on my current work in progress—so my fiction and how I wrote it informed the nonfiction instead of the other way around.
What project are you working on now or what book will be next?
I’m currently about a third of the way into my next novel which I hope will be the first in a series inspired by the mythology of the Muses. I’m also just fleshing out a new nonfiction book on using myths and fairy tales for writing based on articles from my newsletter and the workshops I’ve taught for the last several years.
What do you do when you are not writing?
When I’m not writing, I’m often helping others write. I’m a book coach who offers story development as well as editing services. Often, coaching clients includes helping them understand the messages of their dreams, or doing tarot readings for story questions.
I receive so much joy from helping writers, especially new writers write their stories and find their voices. It’s why I teach workshops at writer events like RWA conferences and retreats, and the International Women’s Writing Guild annual weeklong conference.
I love to travel and meet new writers.
In the Land of the Vultures by Paula C. Scardamalia 
“Secrets, betrayal and death… Can love be the bridge to a new life?”
Samara dreams of a man to love her and give her children. But she serves as priestess to the goddess of death. No man dares touch her, until she is rescued from the desert by a man who compels her to lie about what she is.
For Darouk, as Maker for the realm of Nehmir, death is his enemy. He’s lost too many of his family too soon, including his infant nephew. He’d rather give his care and attention to building roads and buildings that last. He won’t risk loving and losing a wife and family.
But in order to save the king, the queen, and their chance at happiness, both must honor death, then choose love.”
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Thank you, Barbara. I’ve been very fortunate in many ways…especially in the variety and quality of people I’ve met on the journey.
You’ve had an interesting life, Paula. And, great ideas for story-telling. I think I’ll keep the link for this post to read again.
Thank you, Sandra. A very interesting life…so far. I hope there are more adventures ahead. And, of course, there are always those imaginative adventures. Happy writing.
Goodness, what a rich and varied life you have had–and still have. Fascinating information about dream inspiration. The tarot class sounds interesting, too. Best of luck with your book–sounds intriguing!