15 Writing Prompts for Manifesting with Mercury Retrograde

I love taking a good writing prompt and seeing where it will lead. When Mercury is retrograde, though, it might make our big dreams look fuzzy.

While many people like to blame Mercury retrograde for breaking their tech and messing with air travel, there’s actually a huge opportunity if you look for it.

Mercury Retrograde is when Mercury seems to travel backward for a few weeks. Now, planets don’t really move backward — they only appear that way from our eyes on Earth.

To us, it looks like it’s slowing down. This is only an illusion since the Earth circles the Sun at a different speed than other planets.

Mercury is the planet that rules communication, and its retrograde can make some of us feel like we’re thick in the mist, making manifesting in our business feel sluggish and dull.

Mercury rules how we observe and interpret details from our environment and how we express them to others. It affects things like articulating, mediating, buying and selling, listening, contracts, and travels. So when Mercury appears to stall out, these areas can also look lazy from the outside.

Some astrologers recommend avoiding signing contracts, making big decisions, or launching a new business venture because changes are more likely if Mercury is retrograde. Sometimes, though, we just can’t avoid it. If I’m scheduling a trip, signing a big contract, or starting something new around this time, I give myself extra time to review it with an extra close eye.

And when it comes to starting new businesses or ideas, if you create something during mercury retrograde, know it might change. This is a good thing. As we know, everything changes, so as long as we’re going with the flow, trust that any shifts your project undergoes are necessary to help serve you and your most aligned purpose.

Mercury Retrograde happens up to four times each year, and it’s absolutely not something to fear.

I enjoy Mercury Retrograde season now because it gives me an opportunity to revisit my goals.

I use it to revisit all my writing, including old blog posts, book chapters, and anything I’ve published in the past. It might call for fresh inspiration, tweaks, or even a total overhaul.

For writers and creative business owners, Mercury Retrograde is an opportunity to REview, REvise, and REevaluate their big dreams.

Remaining 2024 Mercury Retrograde dates and corresponding signs:

• August 4 to 28 in Virgo and Leo

• November 25 to December 15 in Sagittarius

Here are 15 powerful writing prompts for your Mercury Retrograde reflection and looking ahead to what you’ll manifest next.

Take a look at this list and choose a few to free-write on, or take these prompts to your morning pages practice.

1. What were your most magical moments of the past few months? Take a peek through your journal, planner, or calendar to see what stands out.

2. What were your dreams this time last year?

3. What areas have you grown the most in over the past year? Celebrate your progress.

4. Where did you find inspiration in the past few weeks?

5. What risks have you taken in the past few months?

6. What fears might still be holding you back?

7. Choose 1–3 big life goals.

8. Choose 1–3 big business goals.

9. Detail how you’ll feel when you reach each goal.

10. What do you see, hear, taste, and even smell while you’re going after each of your big goals?

11. What reasons (or excuses) do you have for not reaching those goals yet?

12. Brainstorm a list of actions you’ll take to start making progress toward one goal.

13. Imagine you get to go back in time — what message do you have for your younger self? What about the version of you who’s just starting your business?

14. What does your big business goal need from you? More concentration, devotion, focus, commitment?

15. Where were you feeling fired up, mad, or passionate over the past few months?

Take your responses to your writing prompts and tuck them away for a few days or a few weeks. Revisit them when Mercury goes direct and see where you have some new clarity.

Intuitive Writing Tip: Be sure you’re not procrastinating with writing prompts. Writing prompts are launching points for writing more.

Want to keep digging deeper? Play with some of these next:

• 52 Writing Tasks To Tackle During Mercury Retrograde

• Inspiring Astrology Writing Prompts for Creative Businesses

• 15 simple and powerful writing prompts to help clear the gunk from your head

• Writing Prompts to Reflect on the Year (plus my personal lessons)

Need a little boost to get past writing resistance? Listen to this free workshop and get 20+ practical ways to stop procrastinating on the page.