Trending Fandom or My Creative Home? Let the "Two-Choice Tarot" Save Your Struggling Creator's Soul

Hi there! I'm Aries Yoko, the fortune-telling manga artist. Are you enjoying your creative activities?

"I want to ride the wave in a currently trending fandom!" "But I also want to settle down and draw for my 'home' fandom—the roots of my inspiration..."

When you're doing secondary creative activities (doujinshi), you're bound to face this conflict at least once. Being drawn to a high volume of reactions and wanting to stay loyal to a familiar favorite are both parts of your pure creative urge. Today, I'll talk about using the Tarot's "Choice of Two" (Binary Choice) method to find hints for solving the dilemma of "Which one should I focus on?"

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Two Futures Told by the Tarot

The "Choice of Two" method involves laying out cards in a V-shape to predict the developments of "Choosing Option A" vs. "Choosing Option B."

1. If You Choose the Trending Fandom (The Path of Reactions) A trending fandom is like a lively festival. Here, you should look for "what lies beyond the desire for recognition."

• If [Wheel of Fortune] appears: Now is exactly the chance! It's the perfect time to ride the wave and expand your followers and interactions at once.
• If [The Devil] appears: You might worry too much about numbers, and your "love" for the work might get lost. You need to be a little careful.

2. If You Choose Your Home Fandom (The Path You've Always Been On) A home fandom is peace of mind. What you see here is the "purity of your soul."

• If [The World] or [The Hermit] appears: A sign that a definitive work that only you can draw will be born, regardless of the number of reactions.
• If [The Moon] appears: You might be feeling a bit of a rut. It might be a period where you need a new interpretation or a challenge in expression.

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Which One Does "Current You" Need?

When looking at the card results, don't see them as "good or bad." Instead, feel which result is "what your heart is seeking right now."

• If you just want someone to look at your work and want to feel energized: Then reactions in a trending fandom will be the best nourishment for you.
• If you're tired of numbers and want to dig deep at your own pace: Then the quiet time in your home fandom will likely refill your spring of inspiration that has started to run dry.

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To Regain Initiative in Creation

The most important thing isn't the "place" (trending or home), but whether you are "moving your pen with excitement." Tarot doesn't command you to "go this way"; it shows you a map saying, "if you go this way, you'll see this kind of scenery." The person who looks at that map and says, "Oh, I want to see this scenery right now!" is you.

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In Closing

Blooming brilliantly in a trending fandom and rooting deeply in a home fandom are both wonderful forms of creation. If you "absolutely cannot decide!", it's also okay to ask the cards, "How can I get the best of both worlds?" The stars and the cards are watching over the stories born from your hands more closely than anyone, no matter what fandom you are in.