Inspiration and Intention Altars
If you’re someone who follows or belongs to the Traveling Museum of the Paranormal and the Occult (i.e. the blessed unicorn, safe-space fandom of the paranormal world), you almost certainly watched Dana Newkirk’s lecture on using divinatory tools during paranormal investigations during February’s online Phenomenacon 3.
Picture Credit: http://paramuseum.com/
While Dana tackled many different kinds of divinatory methods and absolutely crushed the entire class (as usual), one thing that immediately slapped me over the head was the idea of “intention altars.”
In Dana’s words, these are temporary altars created as a hub for specific energies and intentions. In the context of her presentation, this applied to “paranormal” investigations.
Major props to those who are boots on the ground doing thoughtful, intelligent and kind exploration. As for this mom of young kids with two jobs, I have limited time to spread around. I’ve chosen to spend that time writing/creating rather than hanging with my amazing late-night weirdo warriors as they lurk around spooky locations. (One day, my friends…one day)
While I’m not currently living out my dreams of wandering through darkened buildings and cemeteries in the middle of the night, as Dana spoke, it reminded me that certain tools like INTENTION ALTARS transcend the “paranormal” space. Without much pre-planning, this is something that made its way into my own creative process.
For those of you not familiar with the idea of an altar or sacred space in modern pagan practices, this can look like a lot of different things and serve a variety of purposes. Some practitioners use theirs for honoring their ancestors while others may devote altar space to a specific deity with whom they work. Still others use their altars for actual magic workings. Some individuals may have all of these kinds of altars and more in the same home.
Altars can be stationary or portable, permanent or temporary. At its core, an altar is a space devoted to a specific cause or intention. That intention can be just about anything, including communication with the “paranormal,” such as what Dana described.
I decided to test that a bit with one project in particular. If one can create an altar space to honor the elements or even creative energy (both of which currently exist in my own home), why not a temporary space to better inspire and connect (or channel, for those of you on the weirder end of the spectrum with me) with a specific project?
Yeah…I know that sounds more than a little woo-woo to those of you who are not magical practitioners, but stay with me here…
Just as the COVID-19 pandemic swung into high gear, I began to dig into a project that, second to THE HIEROPHANT, is the single weirdest writing experience I’ve ever had. Without going through the entire project details (you can find a teaser here), the project led me to revisiting Appalachian folk magick and traveling to some little known spots across West Virginia and Virginia.
In between making some questionable lodging decisions (more on that to come…probably for the entire existence of this blog), searching for an actual Appalachian shaman, trying my hand at folk magick and making the requisite weirdo pilgrimage to Point Pleasant, I found myself trying to make connections with my characters and the plotline in a more tangible way.
The novel centers around two sisters residing in a West Virginian coal town in the early 1920s. Following a tragedy that takes the life of their father along with many other residents, the sisters set out to take back their hollow through whatever means possible. When the operator refuses to stand down, however, the sisters find themselves crossing their own boundaries to destroy his iron grip.
Needless to say, the everyday lives of West Virginia coal miners and their families in the early twentieth century is an integral part of the story. As anyone who has written anything should know, research is integral to ensuring a well structured, impactful piece. Reading, studying documentaries, visiting both historical and modern coal towns and spending more time in the WV wilderness formed the foundation of the novel…but I still had to build the house itself. For me, that’s where the characters spring to life.
Given that the characters’ experiences are so very different from my own, having physical reminders of their world kept me in the headspace to connect with them. So, what did this look like?
Pretty simple, actually…
I kept a few pieces of scrip, tobacco and coffee (all items directly tied to coal town stores) in a pouch on a piano bench that I turned into a makeshift altar space. I placed pieces of coal and plaster from plates and old housing that I’d found in rivers across WV in a basket there as well. Pulling in more mystical symbols, I also included tiny rough emeralds, a hand drawn sigil, a quill, ink and symbols of the elements to aid with inspiration.
Whether or not you subscribe to a belief system, constructing space for physical reminders of your artistic inspiration could help facilitate a better connection with whatever you’re intent on creating. Our brains are funny things and are often assisted by items we can see, touch and with which we can form a real-life bond. If nothing else, holding a piece of scrip a mining family once held in their hands provides an up close and personal view of the historical setting in which the story is situated.
Is this method for everyone? Of course not.
If you think it’s a dumb idea, take a pass on it. If you’d prefer not to call it an “intention altar,” but still think it could be useful to set aside space for physical reminders of your world-building, cool. Almost every article you’ll see me write will emphasize that tarot and many other magickal tools can be used for creativity with or without subscription to a higher power and a Stevie Nicks album.
As always, let me know if you find this method useful or if you have any tips of your own for finding artistic inspiration! I love hearing your stories as we all navigate this weird and delightful world together.
-Allison
