Category: Creating Cohesive Magic Systems

Death is final… right? I’ve met very few people who actually believe that, to be honest, and in fantasy stories with magic it’s not common to see worlds where there is no such thing as the afterlife.

The concept of balance is not a new one in fantasy. The need for dark and light to coexist (or for life and death, etc.) is a common theme you can find in many stories.

In fictional worlds with magical beings, it’s not uncommon for a something (usually stuck in a non-corporeal form) to try and inhabit something with corporeal form.

When magic exists, there are obviously going to be people or creatures in your world who will try and utilize that magic somehow. There are often two main ways this is dealt with: through wielding objects that have innate magical power, or the person themselves having some sort of innate magical ability.

The uncertainty of the future is a staple of life, and it is an excellent plot device. Many a fantasy character has been led astray by that fear, and how they respond to someone who claims to know what the future holds for them.

I got to pull from the Phrontistery for the A-Z Challenge again! This year’s word is ultion, which means revenge or vengeance. The use of magic is often tied into the emotions of the one practicing it, and for good reason.

Talismans, amulets, charms… there’s so many different uses for magical objects within a story! Really, anything that has been imbued with magic (a piece of clothing, a fork, a rock) is a magical object.

For me, as a writer, spells can be daunting. My brain likes to skip straight to spells are poetry and poetry writing is not something that meshes well with my brain. Here’s the thing, though: spells are all about words, but they don’t have to rhyme.

Sometimes, the magic just needs something more – whether it’s to help the actual act of storytelling, to spark your imagination as you create, or to give weight to the seriousness of the magic within the story.

Even in a world where everyone has the ability to do magic it may not be a good idea for everyone to actually do magic. This will intertwine with laws for magic use a bit, but qualifications are a little different. While laws may govern the use of magic, especially in public arenas, qualifications are more about who is capable of doing magic.