Today is a very exciting edition of the StaarCon 5 spotlight series. We’re going to take a quick look behind the scenes of the conference and speak with our host, Christiana Gaudet.
Elsewhere in this series, you can tune in and get a closer look at the headliners:
- Siddharth Ramakrishnan
- Cardsy B
And meet some of the other presenters, too, like Mitchell Osborn!
If you haven’t heard about StaarCon yet, then let me just tell you that it’s a divination-themed conference. You can attend in-person or online. Either way, it’ll be filled with tons of awesome workshops from great presenters.
Now, back to Christiana. I guess I could just show you her bio — and I will in a minute, but where would the fun be if that’s all I did? Selene and I have known Christiana for years and are lucky enough to count her amongst our friends. She is an amazing tarot reader and teacher (and the World Divination Association agrees with me because they awarded her some awesome titles). She was even one of the first guests on my show… and if you’d like to hear the fascinating tale of how we met and why I’m indebted to her forever, you can go listen to that episode.
Christiana Gaudet’s career as a full-time tarot professional began in Putnam, Connecticut, in the mid-1990s. Her talents were recognized as she became the Resident Psychic at several radio stations. Over the past three decades, she has served clients from all corners of the world.
The World Divination Association awarded Christiana the title of Best Tarot Reader in 2021 and 2022 and Best Divination Teacher in 2022 and 2023.
Since 2008, she has resided in Florida with her husband, John, where they organize StaarCon, the world’s only hybrid tarot and divination conference.
Christiana is also known as “Your Tarot Fairy Godmother” on her YouTube channel and by many of her clients and students. She has authored two books, Tarot Tour Guide and Fortune Stellar.
Christiana’s other interests include music, writing, being in nature, and playing with her grandchildren.
Alright, you know how these spotlight articles work, right? I ask some questions, people answer, we all read and get to know them a little better and the world becomes a slightly more magickal place. Let’s get to it.
Q&A
What inspired you to start StaarCon?
I attended my first tarot conference in 2000, 25 years ago. At the time, I had been a full-time tarot professional for only four or five years. The people I met and the things I learned there were foundational for me as a growing diviner.
After that, every time I attended a conference, something pivotal happened. I learned something game-changing, made a good friend, or got a great opportunity. It became clear to me that divination conferences are an integral part of our education, collaboration, and community-building and that there were simply not enough of them. I knew I wanted to create a conference to offer those important opportunities.
In 2019, I presented at the Northwest Tarot Symposium (NWTS) in Portland, Oregon. I was impressed with how well the conference ran. On the flight home, I committed to the concept of a tarot conference in Palm Beach County. I pulled a tarot card to give me insight into the idea.
The card I pulled was the Tower. Not once, not twice, but repeatedly. At my first tarot conference, the late Donald Michael Kraig said something during his presentation that I will never forget. He said that we should always perform divination before we do something, but we know the results of the divination will generally not dissuade us from our intentions (even if we get the dreaded Tower).
We planned for StaarCon 2021 to take place in Palm Beach Gardens. Then, at the beginning of 2020, I learned what the Tower had been trying to tell me.
The coolest tarot card ever?
StaarCon 2021 was a huge success as a fully online conference. Since 2022, StaarCon has been a hybrid event. In fact, we are the world’s only multi-track hybrid divination conference. I am hugely proud of this fact, even though it was
not my original intention.
What’s the hardest part of planning big events within the community?
The only thing that is hard for me is the amount of time it takes to create something great. It’s worth it, though!
Outside of yourself, who helps run things behind the scenes?
My partner in life and business is John, whom we call I.T. John. He is our technical director and webmaster and does most of the behind-the-scenes tasks. We are definitely a family business, as my son-in-law, Damian, is second in command of the tech team.
Slaying a fire-breathing dragon…
We also have a wonderful group of sponsors and volunteers. Some of our volunteers are from our local community; others fly in to help out. Our sponsors include major publishers such as Weiser Books, US Games Systems, Inc., REDFeather MindBodySpirit, and Llewellyn Worldwide.
We are fortunate in Florida to have a fantastic community of tarot readers, diviners, and mystical people. I rely heavily on our magical Floridians for support.
Can you tell me a story of the most memorable moment you’ve had so far at StaarCon?
Hmmm. I am enough of a fangirl to say that meeting Benebell Wen in person was a huge moment for me. And some stories from the bar after hours are memorable for sure. One of my favorite memories is from our Bardic Circle last year. The Bardic Circle is our Saturday evening entertainment. It’s a talent show. I was blown away by how much talent resides in our community. We laughed, we cried, and we had so much fun. I cannot wait to do this again in January!
What are you looking forward to most at StaarCon 5?
We have over fifty presentations, and all of them will be amazing. For the first time, we have a Marketplace and Psychic Fair open to the public all three days. But the thing I look forward to most of all is seeing my online friends in person and reconnecting with the community in real time.
What impact do you hope StaarCon will have on the community at large?
StaarCon allows publishers to meet new authors and artists and create new books and decks. We also offer solid education for beginner or advanced diviners to grow their personal and professional practices. When we can share energy and information, we grow as individuals and as a community.
Outside of this event, what other cool stuff do you have planned for the future?
I am very excited about my YouTube channel, Christiana Gaudet Tarot, where I am Your Tarot Fairy Godmother. In 2025, look for some great new features there. You can also expect my long-anticipated third book and some other publications.
Is there anything else you’d like to mention?
One of the things that makes StaarCon unique is our 365-Day AfterGlow. Our online platform is Accelevents. Recordings of StaarCon 5 presentations remain online for ticketholders to enjoy for an entire year after the conference ends. The online marketplace remains open, and we regularly schedule workshops and gatherings in the lounges on Accelevents with StaarCon presenters all year. So StaarCon is three days in person or online and then 365 days online. This helps us fulfill our commitment to build community and bring quality education to the tarot, divination, and magical community.
But wait, there’s more…
Christiana isn’t just the host. She’s also a fantastic teacher. She’ll be presenting workshops as well, which I’m really looking forward to attending. If you’d like to learn more about them, click the above banner and take a quick look at the StaarCon website.
There are also tons of ways you can get to know Christiana better. Here are some of her social links…
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christianatarot/
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/christianatarot
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@christianagaudettarot
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@YourTarotFairyGodmother
And you can book an appointment with her at https://christianagaudet.com/
More about StaarCon 5
StaarCon 5 is a multi-track hybrid tarot, divination, and metaphysics conference that will take place on January 24, 25, and 26, 2025.
The conference will be held in person at Palm Beach County’s newest hotel, Delta by Marriott at Palm Beach International Airport, and online on the Accelevents Events Management Platform.
This upcoming StaarCon will be my first. I’m thrilled to not only attend, but also to be able to give a couple of workshops myself!
If you’re interested in learning more about the event, be sure to check it out on the Facebook group, StaarCon Community, as well.
I applaud your enduring spirit. Only the worthiest of adventures make it this far in the post. Step into the light, brave warrior, and let me see your face. Oof. Okay, maybe step back into the darkness a little. A little more. Just a little… okay, thank you. As a reward for your victory, allow me to tell you about some of the links on this page. A couple of them are Amazon affiliate links. If you use one of those to make a purchase, Amazon pays me a tiny commission.
Aerik Arkadian 
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