Horoscopes, Heroes, and Heroines

You have to admit that, whether you truly believe in them or not, horoscopes are fun to read. If anything, they can energize you, give a spark of hope, or encourage positive thinking. Hey, we could all use some good planetary alignment once in a while. But I think there may be something to it. Mind you, I have a science background. I'm a dreamer, yes. It comes with being a pisces. However, I have a pretty close split between left and right brained dominance, so I tend to question things from a realistic/scientific standpoint.

Having doubts about planetary influence? How about the moon? I've personally witnessed animals (particularly birds) go berserk on a full moon...every full moon...like clockwork. Plus, there's this book I bought years ago on a whim. It's called The Secret Language Of Birthdays by Gary Goldschneider and Joost Elffers. FREAKISH! You have to check it out (the link takes you to amazon). It goes beyond horoscopes to give you a personality analysis based on your exact day of birth. There may be one or two things that don't fit you, but I'll bet 99% of it does. It even worked on my family members (we had a few laughs reading it). So where do heroines and heroes come in? Well, for every birthday, it lists three main strengths and three main weaknesses. Every character needs strengths and weaknesses...along with other personality traits. There's no end to the ideas and strength/weakness pair ups you can get out of this book.

For example (opening book up randomly), if you're born on August 3rd, you're courageous, idealistic, and determined...but you're also reckless, self-destructive, and egotistical. For January 2nd, it's responsible, profound, and dedicated vs workaholic, self-inhibiting, and overdemanding. It goes on for every day of the year. Pair those key words up with the analysis it gives you, and there's no end to brainstorming characters.

Now if you want to read a horoscope and/or personality profile specific to your place and time of birth, check out www.astro.com. Go to free daily horoscopes where you can put in several birthdays for free (no registering...I think). Here you can get charts that tell you your ascendant, exact positions of the planets at your time of birth, profiles, relationship stuff etc... It's pretty cool, but don't get so caught up in it that you zap your writing time, LOL.

Other fun and accurate horoscope sites include www.cafeastrology.com, www.jessicaadams.com, and www.astrologyzone.com/forecasts/. These will give you monthly forecasts as well.

Need a different, fun way to brainstorm or dig deeper into your characters? Look to the planets.

What do you think about all this? Are you a horoscope reader? Have you ever read your birthday profile? Do you know your ascendant...or what one is? Do you know your hero or heroine's zodiac sign?