Suggestions For Clients
From Association of Independent Readers and Rootworkers
If you are wondering, "How can I find the BEST reader or rootworker for my case?" this page will function as a useful guide.
If you are inexperienced when it comes to interacting with psychic readers, diviners, seers, prophets, fortune tellers, root doctors, conjures, magicians, or sorcerers -- don't worry! We are here to serve your needs.
If you are a first-time caller to a telephone-based psychic or a first-time client to an internet-based spell-caster, this list of suggestions for clients will teach you how we operate, both as a group of readers and root doctors, and as individual psychic advisors and spiritual practitioners.
Considering the cost of psychic readings, hoodoo spell-casting, and conjure rootwork, you owe it to yourself to select a spiritual helper wisely. Before hiring a spiritual doctor, root worker, or hoodoo practitioner to perform magic spells on your behalf, you can also ask for information about the person you are interviewing by using our list of "Questions to Ask Your Reader, Rootworker, or Conjure Doctor".
We want to help you easily obtain the services you desire.
Just follow the simple steps outlined below, and you will greatly increase your chances of being satisfied by the members of AIRR.
The AIRR website is quite large and offers many pages of information about folk magic, spirituality, world religions, and, above all, African-American traditions of hoodoo, conjure, and rootwork.
Read Our Pages; Check Us Out
Click on the name of any member here and you will be taken to that person's biography page.
We tell you a lot about ourselves on our bio pages. You will see:
- A portrait photo
- At least six photos of actual work the member has done
- A brief autobiographical statement
- Three lists, which indicate:
- The types of divination and readings offered
- The kinds of client conditions we address with hoodoo rootwork
- The magical practices we offer and the religious traditions within which we work.
- Specified methods and times of contact availability
- A guide to rates charged for different types of work
- A set of client testimonials
- A link to the member's BOOKING PAGE where you can pre-pay for services or, if the member is available at the moment, click to be instantly connected through the Hoodoo Psychics telephone hot line
- A link to the member's private web domain where you can read more.
In addition, you can find out more about any of us by using our handy list of "Questions to Ask Your Reader, Rootworker, or Conjure Doctor".
Select a Worker Who Feels "Comfortable" to You
All of the members of this service are experienced, gifted, honest, and sincere -- and all of us abide by and uphold both the Code of Ethics of AIRR and the Code of Conduct of AIRR -- but not every reader or root doctor is "right" for every client. You have the right to choose who will serve you, and you may wish to consider the following methods of selection:
- If you seek the services of a reader or hoodoo practitioner with whom you can resonate personally, as a friend and wise guide in life, please look through the list of those available at AIRR. Read what they have to say about themselves, look at their pictures, consider whether you would like to know them, and also make sure that they offer the services you desire.
- If adherence to specific religious adherence, magical traditions, or cultural background is important to you, you can select a reader or root worker who shares your cultural, religious, magical, or spiritual beliefs.
- If you want to explore the wide world of multi-cultural magical, spiritual, and divinatory traditions, feel free to explore and reach out to a member who comes from a different background than yours. In addition to down home Southern-style conjure, our membership embraces a wide variety of cultural, and magical, and religious traditions, practices, and lineages.
- If you have been burned by fake psychics or phony spell-casters in the past and are worried that you will get ripped off, we advise you to select an AIRR worker who is comfortable working within the structure of a personal services performance contract. The contract is not a guarantee a successful outcome, but rather an agreement that may include such points as the number of consultations that will accompany the work, the length of time that the work will be ongoing, and options for extending the work if both parties believe it will prove valuable. Not all AIRR Associates use contracts, nor are they always necessary, but if having one will increase your comfort level, then you should select a rootworker who offers contractual services.
Select Your Worker by the Type of Service Offered
Reading our bio pages will help you understand what each member of AIRR does -- and does not -- offer to clients Here's how:
- If you seek the services of a reader or root doctor based on the kind of fortune telling you want done (for instance, a palm reading) or the kind of spell casting you seek (for instance a love spell), you can find the names of all AIRR members who offer specific services by going to the pages describing those services
- The names of all AIRR workers who perform each type of service are listed in a box at the upper right on the relevant page that describes each type of service. Click the member's name and you will be taken to the member's bio page. Click your "browser's "go back" button and you will return to the page about the type of service being offered and you can check out another member's bio page.
Select an Appropriate Reader or Worker for Your Case
If the AIRR member you selected does not offer the services you wish, please select another member of AIRR who does. For example --
- If a reader is not listed for Astrology, don't ask him for a horoscope; instead, look on the Astrology page and select from among those who are listed there.
- If a worker says, "I do not do death spells," don't ask her to do a death spell "just this once," because the answer is "No."
- If you want fixed and blessed vigil candles set on an altar for you, you may select a worker who advertises that service -- and at the same time you may also have spells cast by a worker who does not set vigil candles. It is a good idea to tell both workers that you are doing this, so that they can coordinate their efforts.
Check Out Our Posted Rates and Payment Methods
Many of the members of AIRR post rates on their pages. Using those published rate guidelines, you can determine in most cases if the rates posted for the reading or rootwork are acceptable to you.
Not all members of AIRR post rates on their pages; if someone who interests you does not post rates, please feel free to inquire by telephone or email, as indicated.
When it comes to payment, most of us accept electronic instant-transfer payments via Paypal; some also accept money orders, checks, and cash. Please use one of the payment methods your reader or root doctor accepts and do not ask to be a "special exception."
Understand Pre-Scheduled versus Instant Psychic Readings
Psychic readings are generally offered to the public in two forms:
- Pre-scheduled psychic readings and divinations
- Instant psychic readings
- Drop-in or walk-in readings conducted in person
- On-call telephone psychic lines
ALL AIRR MEMBERS OFFER PRE-SCHEDULED PSYCHIC READINGS
Generally speaking, pre-scheduled readings are booked for a specific amount of time, such as a ten-minute, half-hour or one-hour block. Because pre-booking allows your psychic reader to more easily manage his or her time, pre-scheduled psychic readings are often offered at a block-time rate which works out to a lower cost per minute than the instant services do.
To take advantage of these savings, and depending on the schedule of the AIRR psychic reader whose services you are engaging, your pre-scheduled psychic reading may need to be booked from one day to four weeks in advance. Further details are provided at each individual AIRR member's booking page.
SOME AIRR MEMBERS OFFER DROP-IN READINGS IN PERSON
Some Associates of AIRR (but not all) offer instant readings for drop-in or walk-in clients at their private reading parlours, churches, shops, or homes.
If drop-in or walk-in readings are available from your AIRR psychic reader, you will find further details about hours of availability and the reader's physical location at the individual AIRR member's booking page.
SOME AIRR MEMBERS OFFER INSTANT PSYCHIC READINGS BY PHONE
Some Associates of AIRR (but not all) are available for instant readings via the Hoodoo Psychics telephone psychic line. This is a co-operative commercial line which members of AIRR may or may not choose to join.
Likewise, some members of Hoodoo Psychics (but not all) are Associates of AIRR.
Both the members of AIRR and the members of the Hoodoo Psychics telephone psychic reading system are graduates of the Hoodoo Rootwork Correspondence Course taught by AIRR co-founder and former Board Member Catherine Yronwode.
Because instant readings are not pre-scheduled, and your psychic reader must stay by the telephone awaiting a call, an instant reading generally costs more per minute than a pre-scheduled reading from the same reader.
Further details about availability and prices for instant telephone readings are posted at each individual AIRR member's booking page. The AIRR web site is supported in part by contributions from Hoodoo Psychics, a telephone psychic line whose members are all members of AIRR.
Understand Stand-Alone and Bundled Services
Some members of AIRR provide readings as a stand-alone service and others bundle readings with rootwork services.
Some members of AIRR require that you purchase a reading before you may purchase rootwork services, others will give you both at a set fee or package deal.
Be sure you understand the terms offered by the AIRR member you have selected.
Take Advantage of Introductory and "Try Out" Readings
If you wish to "sample" the services of different readers at AIRR, this is perfectly acceptable. Some of us offer brief introductory readings, typically ten minutes long, but others do not.
All of the members of AIRR are colleagues, and none of us will be angry if you try out a few of us out before settling on one person to be your "regular" reader or rootworker.
Send Inquiries Only To Those Who Invite Them
Do not send emails describing your situation, asking for help, or requesting personal services to AIRR members who specifically state on their pages that a paid reading is required prior to engagement of their rootwork services. Please follow our procedures and pay for a reading first if that is a requirement for further services.
Do Not Spam the AIRR Membership List
Please do not spam multiple Associates of AIRR with requests for contact. Instead, select the one reader or rootworker who most appeals to you and who also performs the type of work you desire, and then purchase either a preliminary reading or a reading-and-rootwork package.
Abide By Our Appointment and Cancellation Policies
AIRR readers require that you pay in advance for divination services. We will schedule your appointment if we cannot take you the same day that you pay for the reading service. Check to learn if your reader has a posted cancellation or rescheduling policy; many AIRR readers require 24-hour notice for rescheduling and cancellations.
Be sure to contact your reader as specified on the date and time of your reading appointment, according to the method agreed upon, and be sure to take any time zone differences into account when calling.
You May Change Readers or Rootworkers; We Understand
The members of AIRR are not random telephone psychics employed part-time by an impersonal booking service. Rather, we are colleagues, and because of that, we will not be angry or upset if you select one of us as your "regular" reader or rootworker, but occasionally go to other AIRR members if we are unavailable, or because you want a "second opinion." We will even understand if you drop us and take up another AIRR member as your "regular" reader or rootworker.
You are free to select among us, however, we do recommend that you keep each AIRR practitioner you hire informed about work that has been, is being, or will be done by other practitioners and that you tell us if you are seeking a second opinion but wish to retain our services in the future, or are moving on to another worker.
It's Okay to "Split" Different Jobs Among AIRR Members
You may wish to "split" your jobs among more than one AIRR reader and / or rootworker, according to the situation being remediated, for example, choosing one case worker to handle your love spells and another to handle your career spells.
Some AIRR practitioners do not work with clients who split their work; most, however, will do so. Please inquire of your root doctor for more information.
If you do split your work according to the situation being addressed, we recommend that you tell both workers what you have planned in this regard. Giving each the name of the other(s) may enable them to coordinate their work and serve you more efficiently.
It's Not Wise to "Stack" One Job on Multiple Workers
Please avoid "stacking" your work. That is, do not hire two AIRR members to do the same hoodoo spell-casting job at the same time for the same purpose without letting them both know what you plan and getting both of their agreements in advance.
Stacking up work does not increase the power of the magical spells being cast on your behalf, nor does one spell "cancel out" the other, but -- like having two hair-colouring jobs, one on top of the other -- stacking up your spell-craft can have unexpected results that could have been avoided with pre-planning.
Please Do Not Go "Shopping for Readers"
We understand that in your search for the truth, you might not believe what the first reader tells you. Maybe it sounds too fantastic -- or maybe it sounds too mundane. Here are some real-life examples of the kinds of situations that send clients "shopping for readers" -- consulting three readers in less than one week -- and our suggestions for how to solve the problem.
- Problem: You may not "really believe" in divination and so you may want to "test it out" before you make up your mind about its value. "Shopping" for psychic readers may seem like a way to get confirmation that spiritual gifts are real (if most or all of the psychic readers agree about your situation) -- or it may seem like a way to prove to yourself that psychic readers cannot solve your problem (because they don't all agree 100% on what you are experiencing).
- Solution: If you don't "believe" in divination, don't bother to get even one reading -- much less three of them!
- Problem: You may suffer from self-doubt or over-thinking to the degree that you feel the need to continually "check and re-check" everything -- and getting psychic readings from multiple fortune tellers, using multiple methods of divination, may be a way you use to soothe your continual doubts.
- Solution: Ask your reader -- who is also an excellent rootworker -- to help you with prayers and hoodoo spells to overcome your crippling self-doubt and over-thinking.
- Problem: You may have thought that your boyfriend was just cheating on you, but suddenly you are given alarming information from a psychic who is telling you that the man's other lover is throwing roots on you. Hard to believe?
- Problem: You may have been absolutely convinced that you are under a curse, but to your dismay, the psychic reader you consult to find out the name of your enemy says that not only are you NOT cursed, but your years of believing yourself cursed are actually caused by a mental illness and you should seek medical help. Hard to believe?
- Problem: You may have paid for readings and, because you know that some AIRR Associates give free readings via a popular Blog Talk Radio show once a week, and others answer questions for free on a popular internet forum, you may call in to the radio show or post at the forum in the hope that you will get THREE MORE OPINIONS all at once, FREE, to compare to the readings and rootwork that you paid for.
- Solution: If you start arguing with us on-air about what your other reader(s) and rootworker(s) said, we'll immediately mute your call and move on to another caller. If you ask for a free assessment of your reader(s) at one of the forums we frequent, you may be get banned.
As professionals in our field, most of us have come to understand that a client who calls three or more spell-casters or three or more seers or diviners in a three day period, trying to get one reading after another in a short period of time, is someone who is "shopping" and not someone who is ready to do the work or to hire one of us to have the work done.
We believe that until a client settles down and looks at the information that has been given, and agrees to undertake the work that has been recommended, he or she will not be moving forward, but simply circling the situation.
Casting Spells Alongside Your Worker? What a Great Idea!
Many of the members of AIRR are glad to not only read for you and to cast spells or set lights on your behalf, they enjoy working with clients who want to learn a bit of conjure too. That is why so many of us offer sessions of rootwork advice or even magical coaching.
- Are you a newbie? If you have never done any spell-casting and want to hire a professional conjure doctor who will give you a role in the work and assign you to perform certain aspects of the job yourself -- such as spiritual bathing, setting lights, working with conjure supplies, or burying materials in your locale -- just speak up and tell us at the outset. This is called "backing up the work" and it is a highly traditional part of conjure practice. Typically your spiritual practitioner will encourage you to back up the work by prescribing spiritual supplies for you so that you will be bathing, cleansing, lighting candles, or praying in support of the root doctor's work on your behalf.
- Are you experienced? If you have already begun spell-casting on your own and want to hire a root doctor who will augment your conjure spells, feel perfectly free to explain your needs. Ask your practitioner about "tandem spell-casting," a form of backing up the work in which you take a more active role, for instance, by both you and the conjure doctor performing spiritual work such as lighting candles and saying prayers at the same time every day.
Working alongside your root doctor is highly traditional, and you should tell us about your interests and experiences in spell-casting at the outset. By knowing what you are already doing at home, or what we can expect you to do to back up the work, we can coordinate our spiritual efforts, avoid "stacking" up the jobs, and, hopefully, teach you some valuable and authentic Southern-style hoodoo spell-casting techniques. Who knows? Perhaps you might someday become a conjure doctor yourself!
Credits
This page is brought to you by the AIRR Tech Team:
- Author: catherine yronwode
- Images: catherine yronwode, Ms. Robin, Dr. E., Lukianos, Susan Diamond, Deacon Millett, Unknown Artists and Photographers, photo-edited by catherine yronwode
See Also
Client Outreach Services
These pages contain general information for the public about services that our members offer in addition to psychic reading, spell-casting, and candle services:
- Magical and Spiritual Coaches in AIRR
- Metaphysical Authors in AIRR
- Teachers and Workshop Presenters in AIRR
- Radio Podcasters in AIRR
- Video Webcasters in AIRR
- Occult Shopkeepers and Spiritual Suppliers in AIRR
- Church Pastors and Deacons in AIRR
- Hoodoo Heritage Festival Presenters in AIRR
- Streaming Video Classes with PDFs from AIRR
- The Churches of the AISC
- The Crystal Silence League
- The AIRR Pro Bono Fund
- The AIRR Ombudsman Team
- The AIRR Tech Team
- Internet Forum and Group Facilitators in AIRR
- AISC Board of Bishops
- The Church Fan Fund
Public Education About Client Services
These pages contain general information for the public about dealing with psychic readers, engaging the services of root doctors and spell-casters, and how to keep yourself safe from spiritual and magical scams and frauds:
- Tips For Clients: How to Select, Contact, and Work with a Psychic Reader or Hoodoo Root Doctor
