Linda Goodman brought joy and understanding to millions through her books, though she had a tumultuous personal life. Her New Age focus on love and light camouflaged her sometimes abrasive personality and her unusual responses to the traumatic events she experienced.
Goodman’s Aries assertiveness and writing talent led to her breakout book Sun Signs in 1968 when she was 43. The Sun conjunct her Ascendant showcased her creative work, and its close trine to Neptune in Leo in her 5th house facilitated self-expression. She had intuitive gifts and reflected the zeitgeist, which helped her earn massive amounts of money. But she could never limit her spending or control her behavior in relationships for very long.
Linda’s rising Sun is the strongest point in an often challenging horoscope. In Aries, it’s traditionally considered exalted, giving it even greater strength. She was a self-starter who felt incomplete when not immersed in a major project or personal crusade. Despite the painful experiences in her life, she maintained great vitality and exuberance. 
It’s no surprise that with such a strong Sun, Linda’s most popular works were literally all about Sun signs. Yet unlike planets in their dignity (their ruling signs), exaltations can potentially overpower or unbalance the rest of the chart.
Goodman capitalized on the talents promised in her chart, but sadly also fell victim to its liabilities. In her books, she openly admitted problems with both anger and impetuosity, two of Aries’ negative characteristics. She rationalized these, saying that Aries anger is short-lived, and that her impulsive actions would come to the best in the end.
After the deaths of three children and the break-ups of three marriages, we can understand why Goodman wanted to see the world with a rosy glow. The lovely flowing trine from Neptune gave her notable name recognition, but this “easy” aspect also allowed her to ignore the truth at times. She decided that her much younger boyfriend (now married) would return after their break-up, and that her daughter hadn’t in fact committed suicide but was kidnapped. It was easier to hope for the miraculous then to face the realities of her losses.
Neptune probably also led to some of the problems Linda experienced with the press. She strove to present herself as a guru of sorts, but due to her celebrity status and conspiratorial ideas, some prominent publications cast her as an unstable eccentric. She could attract attention, but particularly as she got older, she lived more in a world of her own creation.
Linda was known as an astrologer, but embraced many metaphysical topics popular in the 1970s and ‘80s: vegetarianism, numerology, reincarnation, the afterlife and self-actualization. Her emphasis on free will was so great that she ultimately believed that spiritual development could overcome our horoscopes completely; they’d have no effect whatsoever.
Goodman remained an inspiration to a vast sea of readers, and Aries-like, believed that her role in life was to introduce people to various occult and metaphysical topics. She was enormously successful in that pursuit.
Linda Goodman had craved both fame and fortune, and gloried in her ability to manifest both. But in keeping with Neptune’s strength in her horoscope, neither lasted. Instead, it was her ability to inspire decades of readers that remained.
Read more about my biography of Linda: Dazzled by the Light.
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