April starts slowly but will pick up speed as you go along, but even so, you will need patience. Mercury, your ruling planet, will go retrograde from April 9 to May 3, but won’t ramp up to former strength – the level Mercury was at before its retrograde – until next month, May 20. Mercury is the planet that governs Gemini, so you need to pay attention to Mercury’s activities. I will get to the matter of these retrogrades in a minute, but suffice to say now that April is a month to listen and review, not to announce new ventures, launch new ventures, or start a key relationship. The three planets that orbit closest to earth – Mercury, Mars, and Venus – are the ones we feel most directly when they retrograde. This month, both Venus and Mercury will retrograde.

Venus, the planet of love, beauty, and profit, will be retrograde until April 15. When Venus is retrograde it is not wise to make dramatic shifts to your appearance. You should delay any plans for plastic surgery or to have experimental dermatological treatments. Venus is mostly associated with your face, but also includes anything that embellishes, beautifies, or is sensuous, such as jewelry, flowers, perfume, wine, art, or imported chocolates, so you may want to hold off buying expensive things like fine jewelry, artwork, or cases of wine, as some examples. Venus retrograde is not the time for a lavish party or charity benefit.

Mercury retrograde, as you may know, rules communication, contractual matters, negotiations, and commerce. Mercury also rules all moving parts to machines, as well as all electronics. Avoid buying electronic items such as a computer, smart phone, or new flat screen TV, as a few examples at least until after May 3, but it would be better to wait until after May 20. When Mercury retrogrades, life begins to shift and the wind changes direction. Your priorities will shift when conditions change, so it’s wise to watch and wait. If you would like to read my essay, “All You Need to Know about Mercury Retrograde,” it is found on my homepage of AstrologyZone.com, on the lower left side. If you have my premium app, you can find it on the menu under Life + Love, and then inside that section under Susan’s Essays.

According to research statistics, we know that some readers are checking their monthly forecasts on their smart phone browsers, but there is a better, easier way to view my monthly forecasts. Download my free app called “Susan Miller’s Astrology Zone Daily Horoscope” on Apple App Store or Google Play – find it by simply searching Susan Miller. You will recognize my app icon by seeing the deep blue square with white letters: AZ. You will get my entire monthly reports for each of the signs plus a free daily horoscope for each of the signs, too.

If once inside my free app, you decide to you buy a subscription to my premium version for $4.99 for one month, you will get all my essays and articles, the monthly horoscope too, and long, detailed daily horoscopes. Each Sunday, in place of just a daily horoscope, I show you the week ahead and how to best use the week for maximum productivity and enjoyment. Whether you opt for my free or premium paid app, you will find reading my monthly forecasts a lot easier on your eyes. My app was a finalist this past January in the Mobile Excellence Awards for two categories: best user experience, and best content. It was thrilling to attend the award ceremony in Los Angeles.

Going back to my report for April, dear Gemini, let’s now talk about the fact that Mars will be in Taurus, a holdover from last month. Taurus is the sign on the cusp of your twelfth house, a house of seclusion and work done behind closed doors. While Mars is in this house ruling privacy, it appears the work you are doing now is not ready to be unveiled. You have more tweaking to do, and possible revisions to make. Or, it may be that you and your team are working on an exciting new product or service launch, but for now it absolutely must remain secret, for you would not want competitors to get wind of this.

That will change when all you are doing can come out in the open when Mars moves to Gemini from April 21 to June 4. This will be the first time Mars has been in Gemini in two years and it will give you a big competitive advantage, for Mars will put you center stage. It will be easier than usual for you to get into the offices of high level people who can help you, so start making those calls. You have waited a long time for this, so use it to your full advantage. This bears repeating: Delay revealing any of your most important ventures until Mars enters Gemini, May 20 to June 4.

Your best moment will come next month at the new moon in Gemini, May 25 and the days that follow. I am giving you perfect timing, but of course, we live in an imperfect world. If you cannot wait past May 3, then act in early May, but things will go infinitely better in late May. The day you choose to reveal your project launch or start a new relationship is its start – the birth. In astrology that matters.

Now let’s look at the full moon in Libra, 22 degrees, on April 10. This one is a puzzle to figure out because it is rife with contradictions. On one hand, this is a beautiful new moon, entering on the arm of the great benefic Jupiter, culminating in your fifth house of true love. If you are dating, something involving your sweetheart is about to come to fullness. If you have a child, alternatively you may be focused on your child or a pregnancy.

However, Uranus, the planet of disruption, will directly oppose the moon at 180 degrees, which is a very jarring aspect. You may hear news about the person you are dating that upsets you and news may be brought to you by a friend or casual contact, most likely a male. (Uranus is conjunct the Sun in its opposition to the moon and in astrology, the Sun is associated with males.)

    Mars moves to Gemini from April 21 to June 4, and this will be the first time Mars has been in Gemini in two years. Mars will give you a big competitive advantage by putting you center stage. You’ll display courage, energy, optimism, and drive, all qualities that will allow you to succeed.

Creative projects also come under the domain of the fifth house, and so, alternatively, if you are seeing an important creative project to its final stage, you may have problems at the last minute and need to negotiate with the client or your team if things start to shift unexpectedly or unravel.

Uranus is called the Great Awakener by astrologers, and it is a planet known to deliver truth suddenly, as if by thunder bolt. If Uranus were to oppose the moon alone, and good fortune Jupiter were not aligned with the moon, it would be a very tough experience. However, Jupiter, planet of happiness and miracles, IS involved in a prominent way, and we cannot discount that fact. Jupiter will likely protect this situation and guard your heart, even though the event will initially bring emotional tension or even turmoil. No matter, you can turn this episode to a beneficial ending. Although Uranus, planet of surprise and disruption, will act up, the fact that Uranus is in Aries suggests it is most certainly in a miraculously supportive angle to your Sun.

If you were born on June 14, or within five days of this date, you will feel this full moon in Libra the most and you will be in line for a stroke of luck. The same is true if you have Gemini rising at 22 degrees, or the natal moon or natal planet at 17 degrees in Gemini or Aquarius (allow plus or minus five degrees).

If you have Libra prominent in your natal chart, with a natal moon, rising sign, or natal planet in Libra plus or minus five degrees of 22 degrees, this full moon could prove to be tricky, so keep your schedule light so that you can move in any direction.

The new moon of April 25 in Taurus, 6 degrees, will, thankfully, not be as dramatic as the full moon earlier. If you need to take time away to work on a manuscript, screenplay, research project, advertising campaign, or other project that requires great concentration in solitude, without people to distract you, go in the days that follow this new moon. You may want to travel to a cabin in the woods to get the project done. (Taurus rules verdant settings, the reason I mention a country setting, and you third house of travel is being brought into the picture by the Sun.)

There is layer upon layer of aspects pointing to an artistic breakthrough in the last week of April. Neptune will send a silvery beam to this new moon, strongly stimulating your creativity. Mercury, your ruler, will be conjunct Uranus, also called the planet of genius. At the same time, April 26, ideas will come to you in a fast and furious way, and they will be elegant and moving in their substance. Treat yourself to the right environment to generate those ideas. If the idea of getting away to work on generating ideas in a country setting appeals to you, by all means, go!

The twelfth house, where this new moon falls, also rules health, with special emphasis on your subconscious mind. If you have considered finding a therapist to talk with about something that has troubled you or blocked you, this new moon would be the time to seek help. First ask friends for names of potential doctors – you may need to interview several to find the one that seems right for you. Venus rules this part of your chart, so wait for Venus to get strong in May before you make your first formal visit (May 18 or later).

At month’s end your intuition will be very strong – stronger than you’ve seen in ages. You will clearly see others’ motivations, and the vision you will be given will help you make good decisions, so rely on what your intuition tells you to do, even if you don’t yet have the facts to back up your choice. Later you will have those facts, but they might not come fast enough. That’s why you are being given such sharpened instinct now.

In April, you will likely be thinking about your dreams for the future and be anxious to materialize them. This month is not the time to make an important initiation, but it is a good time to plan. Question all your assumptions, and through examination of them and gathering facts, you can set a solid path. You will encounter obstacles, and you will have to come up with ingenious answers to roadblocks you encounter before you can move forward. It would be tempting to wave off obstacles, but that would not be the right move. You have the kind of planetary energy that hints at big success, so stick to your program, and as you approach difficult questions, take each day one at a time.

This is the right time of 2017 to prioritize the goals and to decide what is most important to you. As you have matured, you may have changed your perspective about what really matters to you. April will be an ideal time to reflect, catch up, and to delete or add priorities. Retrograde planets will open your schedule, so your life won’t be as frenetic as it might be usually – you will be able to breathe. Your eleventh house of hopes and wishes was activated at the last new moon, March 27, so you may come up a clearer view of how you’d like your life to proceed.

Concurrent to this meditation will be the full moon, April 10, again energizing your social life – especially in terms of romance – but a relationship with a friend or a sweetheart may have become complicated. Jupiter will arrive arm-in-arm with the full moon, a beautiful aspect, but will be directly opposed by Uranus at 180 degrees, causing sudden, possibly nerve-jangling, news at this full moon. It’s an emotional time, so keep your schedule clear so you can address whatever comes up without feeling conflicted.

Venus will continue to retrograde in Aries and Pisces, a holdover from March 5, and will go direct April 15. Venus’ turn direct will help to stabilize and boost your love life, as Venus rules your fifth house of fun, love, and leisure. Relationship improvements will be slow – Venus will take until May 18 to ramp up to former strength – but on the plus side, the progress will be steady and noticeable.

At this full moon, April 10, you may be thinking about the sweetheart you are dating, a child, or a pregnancy, or about a friend. Or, you may be centered on a party or other activity you had been looking forward to attending. It looks like many friends would be there to see you, too. Although you may initially experience some reverse news at this full moon, it can in the end bring a happy culmination because active Mars will be in lovely angle to transformative Pluto. Mars and Pluto are both traveling in realistic earth signs, and at elegant angles, so to get the best from these planets, you need to be practical and clear eyed too, even if the full moon makes you initially feel very emotional and sentimental. Try to view much of this month as a novel where you are the protagonist. What will our hero do next?

Mercury will start to retrograde April 9 to finish May 3 in Pisces. Both Venus and Mercury orbit close to earth, so you feel the effects of both planets more when retrograde than you would if an outer planet were retrograde. Mercury is your ruling planet, so again, you will feel the slowdowns this planet can bring when out of phase. Find ways to benefit from the delays the occasional frustrations that come with Mercury retrograde.

When warrior Mars enters Gemini on April 21, the energy will change and brighten considerably. For the first time in a long time, you will be in full control. VIPs will pay attention to you, support you, and be impressed by the vibrant drive and passion you have for your goals. You will have to accommodate Mercury retrograde however, so you may have to reschedule social events when obligations to work and family suddenly come in the way. At work, the same trend will be at play – delays will proliferate. No matter, Mars will be in Gemini until June 4, and because Mercury will go direct on May 3, and Venus will be gaining strength next month, May will be your month to let rip and go for the gold.

The new moon April 26 will be in Taurus, lighting your house of meditation, reflection, and confidential talks. This new moon is excellent, so if you work in a subdued way, in private, and behind closed doors, you will be a wunderkind of productivity. If you have a book to write, an advertising campaign to create, a grant application to send in, or any other item on your list that requires your full attention, you’ll be amazed at how quickly you can polish off that major task, and with quality results. Friends will want to know your secret to such high productivity in April – the answer is that you have an angel in that new moon April 26. By screening out distractions, your concentration will be high.

This same new moon will also give you night vision, giving you the ability to see the unseen, and to heighten your awareness and intuition about events around you. When the facts are not there, others often become anxious, but not you now – you’ll see through the mist this month with exceptional clarity.