Heather Jones - The Great Work Book

NO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE WAS USED IN THE CREATION OF THIS BOOK.

The Great Work Book is a combination journal, logbook, and DIY encyclopedia for students of tarot. I created this project initially for my own tarot study after journaling became a disjointed way to track my studies over the years.

I began entering data into spreadsheets to compare the astrological and Qabalistic symbolism of the cards, and a new way of looking at the cards began to emerge. I decided to create a book from my spreadsheet's data, with space for logging further study, and what would become The Great Work Book was born.

I spent the next two years designing, writing, studying, and prototyping the book. I wanted the book to hold space for the common symbolism in traditional tarot decks while allowing each student to customize it for their studies. I also wanted the book to have a structure that offered easy cross-referencing from multiple angles. To this end, I developed a series of activities that allowed students to fill in information from their chosen tarot deck. Some of these became too long to fit on a single page, so I created a fold-out system for those pages. I then developed specialized journal pages with sidebars for common information and space for free-writing. I used InDesign's table feature to create unique grids for all of the activity and journal pages.

For the book's physical structure, I chose wire-o binding for ease of writing. I use the concealed-wire binding method so the book has a presentable spine, and the front and back covers are double-folded for stability. I use high-quality opaque papers throughout to withstand writing and coloring. The covers and pages are printed at a local printer, hand-assembled, and bound in our studio.

The book borrows its title from Aleister Crowley’s term "The Great Work," which describes an individual's pursuit of spiritual identity. You can purchase The Great Work Book from Numinous Press.