Virgo Vision has its drawbacks but it certainly makes for fabulous writers. Check out this list of famous Virgo writers and it’s not even exhaustive. It’s true what they say about Virgos. Not that they’re half school sock monitor and half sacred whore – though I did say that. And not how they elatedly correct your pronunciation in the middle of even the most profound dialogue. Noticing nuance? Being fuqing thing about hemlines and split ends? Guilt-Tripping? No.
Virgos throng the list of renowned writers & scribes. Is it their attention to detail, finely honed observation skills, words witch vibe, cosmically upped cognition, or pattern recognition?
There are SO many of these Virgos but some examples include Jean Rhys, Jorge Luis Borges, Hanya Yanagihara, A.S. Byatt, Ben Bradlee, Janet Frame, Jennifer Egan, William Golding, Cheryl Strayed, Edgar Rice Burroughs, James Lipton, Tolstoy, D.H. Lawrence, Mary Shelley, James Fenimore Cooper, Tanith Lee, George R.R. Martin, Roald Dahl, Robertson Davies, Stephen King, H.G. Wells, Rebecca Skloot, Leonard Cohen, Marian Keyes, Edith Sitwell, Jessica Mitford, John Green, Samuel Johnson, H.L. Mencken, Upton Sinclair, O Henry, Agatha Christie, Barbara Ehrenreich.
Thoughts? What famous Virgo writers have I missed?
Image: Hanya Yanagihara by Natalie Keyssar
hmmm, I’m a writer and editor with only Pluto in Virgo but with Mars, Neptune, Sun, and NN conjunct Mercury in my Libra-Scorpio 6th house (also Jupiter in some house systems). Definitely a connector of ideas and people, and I see trends early on. Maybe I can claim honorary Virgo Vision?
Hi Venus, sound amazing. Pluto is no lightweight – would love to hear how his transit through Cap went, trining natal placement?? 😊 Also, are the late Libra- early Scorp degrees in the legendary “Via Combusta”? If so, it sounds like Plutonic Magic Vision to me!😉🌟
Hanya Yanagihara!!!
Amy Winehouse…wake up alone. Look at rhe lyrics thank me later
Funny …. every time I see a Really Good Looking Person, I automatically think Leo. Usually they are.
Never thought to consider where a Really Well Written Paragraph may have been the creation of a Virgo.
Pity I don’t read much anymore. I used to love it and would immerse myself in books for hours. I always enjoyed beautiful and interesting words, in well constructed paragraphs.
~many natal mercury aspects~
Virgo is my 3rd house with Pluto in there.
I do get asked by friends and associates to edit their work at times. I’m very good at turning 500 words of fluff into 50 words that actually mean something ! My most common criticism of people’s drafts… Why use 10 words to describe something when 1 will do very nicely ?
Me too, but with Mars.
Like Mercury in Aries Mystic, I am a fan of the haiku.
the ruler of your ascendant is in which sign?
Well that all depends who your audience is right?
If it’s business writing, pr or anything designed to grab attention then yes.
But if it’s reading for pleasure … there’s nothing more glorious than an adjective filled literary scene, painting the picture in one’s mind with luscious language. Words are there to be used sometimes … 🙂
D. H. LAWRENCE!!! I LOVE HIM!
THIS!!!
http://individual.utoronto.ca/amlit/why_the_novel_matters.htm
But also if you get a chance, there is a book of the letters of DH Lawrence, and it’s like sitting around a dinner table with him drinking wine. You really get to feel him as a person, his energy direct – and it’s just so thrilling and hilarious and witty and intelligent and so human at the same time.
https://www.amazon.com/Selected-Letters-D-Lawrence-Cambridge/dp/0521777992
Ooh nice!!!
I’m a Virgo SN and IC. Father and sister are Virgo Sun, mother is Moon conjunct Saturn in Virgo. Current beau has 5 planets in Virgo. They’re kind of a version of Mae West’s quote, that even they’re bad, they are better!
Better that virgos apply their mercurial wit, OCD tendencies for finding perfect word and syntax, and withering powers of observation to the page, than to their subjects directly, where burns have been known to occur.
although interpersonal directness would be callow, to the average virgo.
So true- I always think of Jeeves–
Stephen fry is a Virgo!!
fwiw i think my highly strung uranian supervisor might be a virgo. strongly suspect he is sun uranus conjunct. would make vast amounts of sense..
Yeah? How’d your mtg go?
Pi I am a Virgo rising with Sun and Uranus conjunct within a degree in Libra. Highly strung neurotic. If you would like any advice on how to deal with his particular brand of fuqwittery I’m your go-to asshole here. Just offering it up. 🙂
But I mean I’m all ears anyway ; )
Surprisingly well, I think I re-read quintiles thing about mars-boosted ego confidence and it sank in..Also the MM missives about backbone reinforcement via Saturn..
Ampersand thank you lol…
HSU is far from fuqwit – no conflict or anything – but I always need to go in with my brain ON, higj standards are high, he is king of swords energy and being a bit fragile this year I find the smell of ozone in the air I.e. electricals maxing out a bit overpowering sometimes hahaha
So true.
Poetic.
Yes oh yes
I have a disproportionate # of Virgos in my family. Two-thirds of them, I’d say. It’s unnatural.
Last week on the Uranian Full Moon, my Virgo father came over while my internet guy was on my roof. Dad drank several beers (more than I’ve seen him drink in years), then kicked the internet guy off of my property. Loudly. He did me a favor, but damn.
And today, it’s round 2 with Dad & the internet guy. Mars-Saturn conjunct? Goddess help us all.
Hilarious! It sounds like my Virgo father. I can’t have people doing any kind of service at home when he’s visiting. Once, I came back from work, he had exchanged words with the gardener (I had a roofdeck, not a proper garden, mind you). Apparently, the way the woman decided to display the herbs was getting on his nerves. Supposedly, she was not obeying any alphabetical order.
That. Is. My. Dad. lol!
We should start a support group.
Why the predominance of Virgo writers? No detail is too small (comma or semi-colon?). There is always another way of writing the sentence (The sentence could be written many different ways). It’s not so much that they (we?) like to hear themselves talk, as they like to hear themselves think. And writing is something you can do by yourself and be quite happy doing it. Which, of course, does not preclude complaining about it – and guilting yourself for not doing more. Virgos are the great spectators of life; naturally they are its recorders. Lastly, no one else can interfere.
Inspiring Pf for this newbie uni student who must proof and proof again my first essay right now to get it off so i can enjoy 3 days with my son. Not a jot of virgo in me but admire them so.
I’ve got grammarly on my computer now – its boss.
i shall channel the V vibe today.
A wonderful distillation of Virgos and writing. Do you think there’s also something of trying to make sense of people’s flaws? Speaking as someone with several planets in Virgo, and several more in the 6th house, I find writing the perfect place to take people apart and examine them without their ever having to know.
I *only* have psyche in Virgo, but I feel it deep. Love Virgos, husband is one. I also have very close Virgo rising friends – not sure what it is but they are wonderful.
Progressed Sun in Virgo? 🙂
Yes, I do believe you’re right!
After reading more comments, I have to ask if anyone has a messy Virgo that is a horrible speller? Just me? This is going to sound ridic because of my name but the only thing I can think of that he’s particular about is incense and light bulbs. We have all different kinds of lights and very carefully thought out brands and specifications. He also despises running out of light bulbs and he’s always buying back-up boxes of extra light bulbs.
yes truth.
I’ve worked for a number of small publishers, and there are a ton of Virgos in editing. Trimming down extraneous words and suggesting just the righ ones–right up their collective alley.
Copy editor here (Virgo sun/rising plus a couple of planets) — it’s true. Same for proofreading. We actually LIKE that stuff.
Sun in Virgo here and I just said yesterday at work “I am a perfectionist”…. it is awful. I cannot stand seeing mistakes I made. I place myself into unworthy category. I am trying to let it go because it is also hard on others. I feel like I am looked at by others as a hindrance, like “keep her away”…. I do like being proficient and reactive but how others see me is very hard to take.
Libra rising here also. Talk about split personality my birthday is on the cusp of Virgo and Libra (9/21)….
No wonder people are confused (as well as me). Telling people to straighten up and be perfect or I won’t like you (Virgo) to I am so sorry that you make mistakes, it’s okay I still love you (Libra)….. Oy!!
That’s just me….
and…. as a Sun in Virgo, I can’t stand writing. Maybe my Libra tones bring it down to just feeling and verbally communicating. I do that SO well but a Virgo push to make some really mad at me.
And our one and only Sir Nick Cave. Sun Conjunct Mars, then Moon conjunct Pluto ! & Mercury thrown in – all Virgo….
Listening to Fiona Apple today, she is Sun conjunct Moon with Mercury thrown in. Raw.
Virgos (and Aquarians) were like beetroot, olives and coffee in my youth. Not to my taste at the time, however later in life – post Saturn return, love ’em, love ’em, love ’em. To walk /drive/visit places beside them, their minds,great minds, stories, quirks, rituals, honesty and observations.
Omg, I just totally revived my playlist with Fiona Apple the other day. I love her 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFOzayDpWoI
Sorry bout the (nothing in Virgo chart)spelling of Dachshund ! Not sure if i’ll ever get the hand of checking how stuff is spelt before i type it . x
No judgement just BIG LOVE to you Fleeecy
Thanks for the clip xxx
Thank you too, the Piscean happily sang along. xx
I met so many Low vibrating ones as a youth. But as an adult we j’dore one another – I fucks with them.
May I add my fav director Pedro Almodovar who writes his films?
Mystic, I write in honor of my formidable dad and mother, married in 1944. They maintained a riotous and brilliant correspondence when apart in the early 1959s. It’s the best legacy of their marriage. Unbridled documentation of family history, loves and hates.
He was a reporter. “A journalist is a reporter without a story,” he once said. She wrote too for local papers- more society stuff.
In those days a byline was acknowledgement of extraordinary work- life and limb risked. The reporter was a neutral but keen observer.
He, Virgo Sun, Saggo Moon ( like my eldest son)
she, Gem Sun -Leo Moon. Breathless passages on missing each other. Of dinner parties. Ann’s the horror of grokking the gathered bigots and feigning sudden and dire illness.
Letters were more common than phone calls- and snail mail was eagerly awaited. Telegrams brought tidings of great woe or joy.
My father’s letters mailed by 1AM in NYC were delivered in a day and half to Indiana.
These letters were written in reflection and a haze of smoke after a day of living. My mother had cooked, washed, cleaned, often entertained. My father had chased down job leads and pounded out piece work But they cherished that reflective time as they pounded on manual typewriters. I bless the carbon paper which preserved these musings!
In case of fire: the cats and these letters and humans are must saves.
Their books: Gore Vidal, Dorothy Parker, James Thurber, Nora Epron, Nero Wolfe- to name a few favs. My sons read the Ray Bradbury in high school- the same volumes given to me as I came of age 13- right before my father died.
Virgo writing- My stern Irish grandfather was charming and warm in his letters to my sister. He inquires after her cat, my parents, and offers his never ending loyalty and aide. And my Virgo uncle, a Navy WWII vet wrote achingly of a soldier’s lot. So repressed in conversation, but his soul seared paper.
My Pluto is in Virgo in the 10th and my letters are (modestly) cherished and praised. I’ve gleaned many family secrets and dynamics.
The stories endure. If you can tolerate it, it’s worth jotting down the family legends. The hidden traumas and heroics. They inform the parenting and back stories for several generations.
That lit up my imagination Kell. I’d say their skills were passed down 🙂
Agreed! Beautifully written. X
Aww, thank you Centaurus and Ali!!! (Blushing with pleasure!)
love this story, beautifully written
Thank you!!!
lovely – thanks for sharing!!
Thank you, quintile!
OMG , Gore Vidal, my favourite Libran ! I discovered him in my late teens and hung on his every word till his passing.
40 years later I’m still sure that he is the most intelligent and eloquent man I have ever witnessed. I still mourn that mans mind. Will America ever again produce a mind like his ?
My additional crush on him is his Bouvier-Kennedy connection-
He ripped away every veil of pretense and in his day examined straight white male privilege in elegant, searing prose. Swooning!!
My mother’s favorite Vidal book was “Palimpsest”, which I am just now old enough to appreciate.
Hi Lili, if you are still onsite, your post moved me so much – thanks. Blessings and Letters.xx
Yaaas!!!
http://www.astrotheme.com/astrology/Pedro_Almodóvar
Actually it would seem that he’s a Libran- will happily claim him! Saturn in Virgo-
Why did I think he was born September 6th???
Women, colors – it all makes sense!
I find that early degree Librans can be persnickety like Virgos-
<3 Almodovar
And Kell – beautiful post 😀
Thank you Rose! About time to pull up “Tie Me Up Tie Me Down” on Netflix!
This post has perfect timing Mystic – I am a virgo sun with Saturn and Mars conjunct my natal Uranus and squaring natal Mercury right now.
I was hoping to use the Saturn Neptune square hitting my Mercury to get some kind of writing magic on 🙂 but the Virgo perfectionist is also coming into play and I’m trying to shut my inner critic up and just do it for the pure joy of it (otherwise I’ll probably never do it). Also maybe if I get obsessive with writing, I’ll be less obsessive about the details of my life – one can live in hope!
That list of Virgo writers is truly inspiring and makes me hungry to read more stories 🙂 thank youxx
have you done the “writer’s way” course by Julia Cameron? I did it a few years ago and wished I had done it much much earlier – excellent methodology and methods for dealing with the inner critic etc. Also, I find its helpful to do unfettered, messy sort of writing too – not just aim for fully polished – sort of a hands-on studio practice. good luck x (sun, merc, venus and pluto in Virgo here).
Hey Rose,
Ditto on the kudos for Julia Cameron on The Writer’s Way. You can DIY but a course was the thing that kicked it up to the stratosphere for me.
I started by writing practically for free. Some people disagree about that but I feel like, woohoo, someone was paying me to learn! It was good exposure and I was expected to produce 6 pieces a day! It taught me to not be precious about it. A regular routine helps make a habit that you do on good days and bad. I write super early in the morning when my perfectionist is still sleeping, a habit I developed with that first gig when I had to write my pieces before my day job. Also, and this may be just my particular Virgo thing, but writing to be of service to someone else, to give voice to their story, feels particularly motivating for me.
Thanks for the advice quintile and bea 🙂 I read the book about ten years ago when I’d graduated and I love the morning pages – admittedly I was quite impatient with my life back then so I think I’m going to go dig it out and immerse myself in it again!
I also recently read Elizabeth Gilbert’s “Big Magic” and found that wonderfully inspiring with its playful view of creating – she writes about how she never wanted to put too much pressure on her writing and that with any creative act- success is never guaranteed so you do it initially for the pure love of it and then maybe just maybe the magic happens -which reminds me of your advice bea! Here’s to falling back in love with writing!