Rachel is considered one of the World's foremost authorities on the modern interpretation of the Tarot. She was also a poet, an award-winning novelist, and a Tarot card and comic book artist. She published 12 books on the Tarot, including 78 Degrees of Wisdom (Thorsons, 1998), considered a modern classic and "the Bible of Tarot reading." It's a marriage of common sense, wide-ranging knowledge, and esoteric awareness have inspired many tens of thousands of readers worldwide to a deeper knowledge of the Tarot.

She was a member of the American Tarot Association, the International Tarot Society, and the Tarot Guild of Australia. With fellow Tarot author Mary Greer, she taught at the famed Omega Institute. She was conferred the title of "Tarot Grand Master" by the Tarot Certification Board, an independent body located in Las Vegas, Nevada.

As a fiction writer, Pollack was bestowed many honors and awards, among them the famed Arthur C. Clarke Award for Science Fiction (for Unquenchable Fire) and the World Fantasy Award (for Godmother Night). She was a recommended member of PEN International, and wrote for numerous publications.