In general when asking the cards a question it is best to ask open-ended questions instead of close-ended questions. For example asking “What would it be like if ….” rather than “Should I quit my job?” This leaves control over your life in your hands. The cards can offer you guidance, but it is up to you to decide how to live your life.

In preparing the deck for your spread, think about your question as you mix the cards. If you have a complex question, trying to focus on one aspect of the decision may be helpful.

This Five-Card Spread is one that I often do for people.

Three-Card Spreads are quick and versatile.

Photos of Sister Betty in our creation. Sunday 11 December 2011, 3-9pm @ Beatbox – 314 11th St., San Francisco.

What was the initial inspiration for the 2 books, and how much have they changed since the initial idea?
I was looking for a way to combine my various interests that enabled me to also work with other creative people.

Relations That Suck turned into a much larger project than I had initially anticipated. Norma and Angela (the photographers) were both really excited about the project and brought their own perspectives to it. This made the project much more rich and complex. We needed more props, special lights, and specific locations for the shoots. I’ve really enjoyed working with them and think we’ve made some beautiful photos together.

La Femme Fatale came about because readers wanted to know more about Eva. I wanted the book medium to complement Eva’s story, so choose the format of illustrated cards. The main change was regarding the text. We (Heather, my co-writer, and I) outlined what content each card should contain, either in image or text form. Then we wrote the text and created the illustrations. As we laid them out together on the cards we realized that the space for the text was more limited than we had initially thought. We had to pare the text down to what as essential to convey the main action in that card. Everything else we put into the Companion.

Click for more information on the process for both books.

Both Relations That Suck and La Femme Fatale are non-traditional forms for books: what inspired the creation of a story told through photos and a tarot deck?
I wanted to create books that told a story and were also beautiful objects.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but you designed all of the pieces worn by the models in Relations, and all of the artwork on the cards in Femme – can you tell us a bit about the process in both cases?
Relations That Suck: I started by thinking of what Eva’s aesthetic preferences were – figuring out what someone with her personality and sensibilities would like as well as looking at her life path and what styles of dress she would have experienced. I put all these elements together in various combinations to create her wardrobe.

La Femme Fatale: I wanted the images that conveyed the story to reflect the time period of the story they illustrated. In Relations That Suck, the photos are shot in the style of contemporary fashion photography because that portion of the story takes place in the 21st century. For the cards, photography didn’t make sense. Eva’s story began in the 14th century and photography wasn’t invented until the 1850′s. I decided to use a simple illustration style with blocks of color instead of shading and blending. This style transcends time and space by referencing many similar styles of illustration for many different times and places such as silk-screen poster art from the 1960′s and 1970′s, medieval stained glass and mosaic, Egyptian tomb paintings, and wood block prints used in many cultures.

Click for more information on the card illustrations: Part One and Part Two

For Relations, did you design the pieces to fit the story or did the story evolve out of the pieces you were designing?
The pieces were designed to reflect different aspects of Eva’s personality and history. I choose outfits for the shoots based on the story. For example when Eva was depressed about almost killing someone, she tried to lose herself in her lace-making. Thus she was depicted wearing a lace-like dress that blended in with the doilies that surrounded her. Later in the story when she actually killed the man, Eva was dressed more like a warrior, wearing a bustier and leg accessories that resembled armor.

Are there plans to do any more books or art forms related to Eva’s story? Or plans to begin a new story?
For the next step in the evolution of Eva’s story I am interested in fostering more perspectives and interpretations of Eva. I am using the creation of Eva’s mythology as an example of how people can approach religions more creatively and constructively. I see religions as shared belief systems that provide guidance for living and tools to keep one’s values and actions aligned. Because religions are shared dreams it has always been important to me to work with people whose beliefs are complimentary with Eva’s and can contribute to her story’s development and evolution. Now I’m interested to see what Eva’s story inspires readers to do – what things they will create to personalize Eva’s story to be helpful in their lives. I am not sure exactly what process this will take.

Click for more information on Creating a DIY Religion.

You also have a website devoted to sustainable clothing designs and studied urban planning – how have these two passions/elements influenced your work?
Sustainability, clothing design, urban planning, and story-telling all reflect my perspective of the world, one of appreciation and celebration, awareness, compassion, and collaboration. The awareness of sustainability starts with a general awareness of oneself and how all things are connected. The structures in our lives can facilitate personal growth and awareness. The practice of urban planning is about creating and modifying systems and structures to facilitate living. Eva’s story is one of personal exploration and a struggle for self-determination. Her journey leads her to find compassion – compassion for others, the world, and eventually for herself. The format of the cards provides a structure for the reader to reflect and meditate within to help advance their personal journey.

Where do you see yourself 5 years from now?
I hope to be working on fun and interesting projects with other talented, creative people. One thing I am currently working on, that I hope will be up and running in five years, is a co-working space for creative people in San Francisco (aiming to open sometime next year).

APE presents the very best in alternative and small press comics, with an Exhibit Hall packed with cutting-edge creators. This year’s Exhibit Hall features over 400 exhibitors, including some of the biggest indy comics publishers (SLG, IDW, Fantagraphics, Drawn and Quarterly, Top Shelf, Last Gasp, BOOM! Studios, and many more), plus artists and DIY creators showcasing their comics, books, zines, original art, hand-made items, and much more.

Produced by Comic-Con International, a nonprofit educational corporation dedicated to creating awareness of and appreciation for comics and related popular art forms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture.

More about APE click here.

I am a creative person with many interests and what I like most is to explore the intersections of things. My most recent book projects are a good example of this.

Relations That Suck

Before Relations that Suck I was making artwork and custom wedding dresses. I saw my clothing design business as separate from my art-making. I was providing a service, helping a client figure out her dream dress and making it for her. I also did costume work for theater which involved a little more artistic flexibility. However I wanted a more direct way to incorporate my clothing design with my artwork.

In early 2007 a photographer friend approached me wanting to create some conceptual fashion photographs. During a brainstorm we came up with the idea that I’d write a short story and we’d make photographs to accompany it. At that time I had just stopped writing a book about the style of San Francisco because that was an activity that was taking my fashion design farther away from my art-making. The short story idea seemed to fit better for me.

I wanted to write a story about relationships – relationships with others as well as with oneself. I started with a vampire who had a dramatic inner conflict and then came up with a character for her to befriend. I spent six months writing a version of the story that was finished enough to start story-boarding and dress and prop production.

I wanted to create sets that were art installations and was interested in including other artists. A curator friend referred me to Stephani Martinez, the artist who made the plaster doilies in the book. We both explored similar concepts and had similar aesthetics – it was a perfect fit.

By the end of 2007 I had one model, Stephani’s doilies, most of the dresses, and a half finished sarcophagus ready for a test shoot. We used a real spider and quickly realized that wasn’t going to work. The spider wouldn’t stay in position and the scale difference between the human model and the spider was too great.

After the test shoot I finished up the sarcophagus, made a steel spider, scouted venues for the shoots, and continued assembling the rest of the team. By that time the scope of the project had grown considerably and we were looking for additional photographers. I interviewed a number of photographers and selected two women Angela DeCenzo and Norma Cordova. When I told them of my decision we were all pleasantly surprised to find out that Angela and Norma were friends and excited to work on a project together. (Since then Norma and Angela have gone into business together.) I tried out a few hair and make-up artists before settling on Christal Saville who did both hair and make-up for the majority of the shoots. The models were all people I had worked with before.

Early 2008 we set the shoot schedule. The photo shoots spanned eight months. For every photo that was in the book a few hundred photos were taken. We spent another couple months in post production: selecting photos, re-touching, laying out the book, and final text editing. At the close of 2008 we sent the book off to the printers.

La Femme Fatale

One persistent question I got from readers was “How did Eva become the way that she is?” I wrote a brief history of Eva in the Relations That Suck Study Guide (which came out after the publication of Relations That Suck), but that wasn’t enough. People wanted another book. Writing an epic novel about a vampire didn’t interest me so I sought out a writing partner. Heather Papp, a writer I had known for years, seemed like a great fit. We shared interests in many of the themes Eva’s story deals with.

Heather suggested that we focus on significant episodes in Eva’s life. From there it was a quick leap to the deck of cards idea. Much of my artwork was interactive and required the viewer to participate. One of the main themes of Eva’s story was spiritual exploration and tarot was a tool often used for this. The aesthetics of illuminated manuscripts fit well visually as well as thematically. Once the card format was decided on the next question was “How many cards?” I outlined Eva’s life, major phases, and themes and then came up with a system to organize everything.

In the summer of 2009 Heather and I started actively working together. We fleshed out the rough card outline by adding major themes and activities/events per card and identifying a specific anecdote that would encompass all that. By the fall we had a pretty detailed card plan. Next we started working on our respective sections – Heather focused on the writing and I made the illustrations. As the work progressed it became clear that the La Femme Fatale Companion would play an integral part. It was difficult to fit everything on each card so we left out descriptions of context and saved them for the Companion. The card text, card illustrations, and companion went through many rounds of edits involving a number of editors. We finally finished by the end of 2010.

To see the process for making the card illustrations:

Part One

Part Two

On a night with exceptionally bad traffic, following a week of motion-sickness inducing swings of the market, during a term of prolonged economic uncertainty, when the news broadcasts contention and disagreement nightly, 50 or so people got together to celebrate that which is beautiful and profound in life. With the Raven Queen as their guide, they transcended time to remember their soul’s purpose. They communed with each other and made themselves vulnerable to connect with their humanity.

It is easy to be consumed by worry and mired in details. Marilyn Yu, as the Raven Queen and through her heroine Eva, reminds us that the practice of compassion, for ourselves and for others, is an intentional act that needs to be cultivated. Marilyn’s work affirms that our thoughts create our world and that we can create a grand one together if we allow ourselves the opportunity.

Anamnesis was a magical night. Marilyn and collaborators invited guests to a mystical experience of Eva’s world, an experiential art installation with beautiful objects, videos, live music, ritual, and intimate story-telling. The Raven Queen read cards and led guests on journeys to the Vatican and to their spiritual mother.

Videos by Matthew Abaya and
Live music by Laguna Sunrise

The Raven Queen, our guide between life on earth and the spirit realm.

Time to watch some short videos.

La Femme Fatale short video by Matt Abaya and Marilyn Yu.

Drawing for the first card reading.

John Whalen, a painter from La Mesa, CA won the first reading.

The Raven Queen reading John’s cards.

Laguna Sunrise:

Neil Whitebull – Vocals, Conjurings
Eddie Way – Guitar, Vocals
Ryan Molyneaux – Guitar, Bass Guitar
Tim Wilkerson – Percussion, Electronics

The second card reading goes to Maria.

The Raven Queen with Serena Toxicat.

with Angelo Ibanez

Matt shows his fangs.

Relations that Suck and La Femme Fatale are two stories about the same girl – a vampire named Eva. La Femme Fatale tells her story, taking us back to the time of the French Revolution and her move to the New World. It takes us through her early time as a vampire and her struggle to both conceal and accept what she is. The most unique part of La Femme Fatale, however, is its format. Referred to as “genre-busting” Marilyn Yu has taken our traditional concept of the book and turned it into…a deck of cards. Though large (they’re about trade paperback size) the cards remind you of a tarot deck. Containing a story, waiting to be read.

From Eva’s personal narrative in La Femme Fatale, the story continues in Relations that Suck. Relations that Suck starts much later on, once Eva has figured out a way to live inconspicuously as a vampire. She befriends a local spider named Dries. It explores their complicated relationship and both the positive and negative effects that relationship can have on one another. Like La Femme Fatale, this book isn’t presented in the traditional way. The narrative is accompanied by a series of beautiful photographs that represent the evolution of Eva and Dries.

Both of these stories are presented in an incredible fashion. The photographs in Relations that Suck are breathtaking and you need to take your time to fully take in each one. The story wouldn’t have been nearly as interesting without them. Likewise, the artwork in La Femme Fatale is equally breathtaking. Each card was clearly give a great deal of time and attention and the art has an incredible detail, fitting in with whatever time period is taking place at different points in the story.

The stories themselves are well written but I don’t think would stand out quite as well without their artwork. The two go together, they are perfect compliments. There are many stories out there right now about vampires. These two stories do not differ all to much from whats already out there, but what makes them worth picking up is the multi-level experience you will get from them. You’re not just reading a story. You’re also looking at an art show, reading the tarot cards and getting pulled in by Eva’s dark and beautiful eyes. I really enjoyed reading these books and they are a great read for people looking for a break from the conventional novel.

About the Author

Marilyn Yu, voted Best APA Designer in the Bay Area by Asian Week readers, is a clothing designer, artist, and author based in San Francisco. With a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Masters in City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley, Yu is constantly trying to merge her various interests in the work she does. For over a decade, Yu has interwoven media, ideas, and people in her creations.

First I’ll start with my very, brief definition of religion. I see religions as shared belief systems that provide guidance for living and tools to keep one’s values and actions aligned. Historically religions evolved as all other parts of life evolved – whether due to people migrating to new places, learning new things, incorporating new technology, etc. Our current dominant religions seem to have stopped evolving. Many no longer constructively direct our cultural evolution. Some, I would even go so far as to say, are quite divisive and destructive. I would like to promote constructive cultural evolution, so I want to encourage people to apply their critical thinking and creativity to religion. I have found that most people understand things better if they have an example. So I am creating a religion as an example, hoping that it will inspire and empower others to rethink tradition and adapt religion to our times.

We live in a time when advances in technology are opening up traditional boundaries and we need our belief systems to help us learn to live cooperatively. The character I’ve created is named Eva. She is an update of the femme fatale archetype. Her story is one of personal exploration and a struggle for self-determination. Her journey leads her to find compassion – compassion for those around her, the world, and eventually for herself. The idea for Eva’s character started with me, but there are many people involved in creating her mythology. This is important because religions are shared dreams, so in order to create one, it needs to be relevant to more people than just me.

Eva is Coptic and born in Cairo in the early 14th century. Her life changes drastically when Eva gets the plague. In an effort to save her, her parents allow Eva to be turned into a vampire. For her protection, Eva is sent to a live in a convent in the desert. Here Eva learns a new way of life and finds a new family. Eventually both her biological and surrogate families die and Eva is cast out of the convent. From here Eva’s path takes her to Europe and the Americas. Her way is fraught with pestilence, betrayal, violence, and greed mixed with tenderness, friendship, and appreciation. Through a life that spans many lifetimes, Eva learns acceptance and compassion. She transforms fear and awe into serenity and love.

Now, creating a religion can be a bit involved and may not be for everyone, but everyone can at least customize one. I have a few ideas to get you started:

1. Reflect on what you value and believe in. How did you come to those things? How have your values and beliefs evolved over time?
2. Examine how your values and beliefs are manifest in your life. How do they inform what you do?
3. Identify the tools or practices you use to keep your values and actions aligned.
4. Analyze your tools and practices. What works and what doesn’t. How can you make them more effective?
5. Keep an open mind. Life is a work in progress and provides us with constant feedback. Remember to take the feedback just as feedback and move forward.

Discover a fable about the friendship and destiny of two timeless characters: Eva, a creative vampire who likes people, and Dries, a traveling spider who disdains web-spinning. “Relations that Suck” is a piece of art in book form that bridges the worlds of fine art, fashion, and writing. It portrays the tragedies of denial and guilt in thirty-five dramatic photographs accompanied by a poetically heartbreaking narrative.

The author, Marilyn Yu, is described as, “a creative guru who has interwoven media, ideas and people into her creations for over a decade.” This description of her is clearly demonstrated in both the format and the tale of “La Femme Fatale.” Created in a card format similar to the tarot, Eva Prim’s life story is told both in writing and in pictures making it something incredibly unique that is sure to be treasured by its owner. For me, when I opened the beautiful box containing the beautifully designed cards, I felt like I was opening a treasure chest.

I totally enjoyed the way that this story is formatted because while most books that would tell a tale spanning 700 years would get bogged down by text, the author/artist is able to convey the journey of Eva Prim through both illustrations and some text. Also by leaving some of the cards just beautifully decorated with no words, readers can use them for reflection and divination into their own subconscious minds to learn more about themselves.
I think that “La Femme Fatale” would be the perfect gift for a woman who has everything, because I can guarantee you that she has nothing like this, and she would be sure to treasure the beauty of how the story is both composed and portrayed. The companion guide that accompanies the book would also help guide her to make full use of the cards. The guide helps to explain the cards and offers questions that will assist the reader as a tool to gain a deeper understanding of herself.

Paige Lovitt, Reader Views, June 2011