How to Start Building a Mystical Magic System

So you are writing a fantasy novel, and it needs mystical magic. Have you decided on the rules? Why does magic have to have rules? Just think about today’s technology. When you want to turn on your computer, you have to push the Power button. If you don’t, it won’t turn on. That is a rule of technology.

Magic works the same way. If you want a spell to work, it must be said in a precise way or it may backfire or fizzle out. If a character is scrying, they need something to scry into, i.e. water, fire, a mirror, etc. Rules of magic have to work consistently throughout your world.

I am a big fan of the Dragon Lance Series by fantasy authors Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. In one of the early books, Raistlin owns a magical time travel device – it always finds it way back to its owner. Many books and two wars later, Fizban, also know as the God Paladine, gives one of the devices to Tas to travel back in time and speak at Caramon’s funeral. Tas gets arrested and the device confiscated. While on his way to be incarcerated, he reaches into his pouch to find the device restored to his possession. Magic works when fantasy writers stick to the same rules even when applied to scenes and circumstances many books apart.

How to Start

First decide what type of magic system your fantasy world will have. Will it be simple or very complex? The more complex your system, the more rules will apply. Rules for one gadget or tool may not be the same for another. Although the time travel device always returned to its owner that does not mean all magical devices have to go back to the character who owns them. An enchanted stone could be stolen and never returned or a talisman could be lost and become the object of the quest in your book. For magic that works and makes sense to the reader, stay consistent throughout your book, trilogy, or series.

Simple and Complex Magic Systems

An example of a simple magic system is one that has a minimal amount of magic, such as scrying, a few spells, herbal remedies, and maybe a few curses, etc. Simple magical realms need the least amount of rules not only to figure out but also to remember as the story expands. More complex magic systems, such as in the Dragon Lance series or Harry Potter need more rules.

The following list of things to consider when creating magical systems for a fantasy world is not complete, but intended to generate a basic set of rules:

When your characters use magic, what kind of effects should be available and how easily?

Do you want magic users to dominate the world? Or can only certain types of persons perform magic on a limited scale.

Is your goal a simple or many-layered/complex system?

Where does the power to perform magic come from?

Who can use the power? (In the book I am currently writing everyone can mindspeak but not everyone can perform magic.)

Will you use the terms Wizards, Sorcerers, Witches, Sorceresses, Magicians, etc? If so, will there be a difference or unique twist to their abilities in your book?

Will your fantasy world have mythical creatures? Will they be able to perform magic or will that power be wielded only by humanoids?

How much power will they have or are there different levels? Can your fantasy character work to achieve a higher level?

Once you answer the above questions, you will be on your way to building your mystical magic system. I am sure these questions will spur thought provoking ideas and more questions to answer. Each answer brings you to another question, but don’t get bogged down with unnecessary details after you have what you need.

Let's Build a World - Part 1

When I started writing the fantasy novel I’m currently working on, I needed to know how to build a fantasy world and extensively researched the subject. I became enthralled with the research and the different things that started happening in my world because of this research. My characters became more dimensional and the world grew in aspects I had never thought of. I decided I should share the information with others. I developed a worldbuilding class called, “So You Want to Build a Fantasy World, Do You?” and facilitate it online at Writers’ Village University. At first, I solely encouraged writers of fantasy to take the class but then a friend who is writing a Science Fiction story took it and learned from the class. While taking the class, one of the members wrote a horror story with demons, angels, and gods, alternately helping and terrorizing his characters.

It helped them stay on track and keep the little parts of their stories together and consistent. Placement of major cities, states, countries, mountains, etc., need to remain constant throughout your story. Geography and maps keep your muse in the right place at the right time as you write. What will happen if in the first chapter, you tell your reader about the eastern mountain range but in chapter eight, your protagonist travels south and west to climb the heights chasing the antagonist? Your astronaut starts a journey within an antimatter-powered ship but later in the book you write about a fight and the nuclear reactor goes off line.

The future is uncertain. Many things are possible and developing them can be a magical experience. How will your characters cope? What will be in the brave new world you build as you write? Will you have flying taxis? Will people be able to travel through portals from one continent to another? How will the science work? In fantasy, how will the magic work? You need to make it all believable. Rules exist and the rules must be consistent throughout the novel.

Benefits of planning your world before you write:

1. Geography – Mapping out your world lets you know the location of your characters at any given moment. If this is done beforehand, you can glance at your map and keep your characters on track as they travel along with the flow of your words accompanying your muse.

2. History – Back-story explains where your characters came from and how they got to where they are today. We all have history, either our own past or that of our ancestors. If my great grandparents hadn’t traveled to the United States from Ireland, my life would be very different if I even existed.

3. Social Structure and Government – How and where your characters fit in the overall scheme of hierarchy. The life of a peasant stands in contrast to that of royalty, just as a blue collar worker differs from the scientist who develops an alternative fuel that changes the world. This subject includes clothing, customs, and modes of behavior from the different levels of society.

4. Religion – One God or many gods? Is the main deity a Goddess? Does everyone in your story have the same beliefs? If not, how do they differ? Again, you need to look at clothing, customs and mode of behavior as they relate to their beliefs to ensure that they stay the same as in #3.

5. Magic and technology must have two things: rules and cost.

Take Full Advantage of MS Word's Editing Capabilities

As a Senior Editor for ePress-Online and a freelance editor, I needed to find a way to communicate with authors in a way they would understand and be able to make informed decisions. The most efficient way I’ve found is using MS Word Track Changes. During this process I need to communicate with the authors just how this works. For that reason I put together this little tutorial on using that feature as I edit and what the author has to do when I am done.

Track changes while you edit

In all versions of Word: Double-click the TRK text in the status bar at the bottom of the screen. If TRK is black, Word is tracking changes.

1. Open the document you want to revise.

2. On the Reviewing toolbar, click Track Changes.

If you don’t see the Reviewing toolbar, pick Toolbars on your View menu, then pick Reviewing. This will open your Reviewing toolbar. Then pick Track Changes as shown above.

3. Make the changes you want by inserting, deleting, or moving text or graphics just as you would on your own work. MS Word uses default revision marks. Insert will be underlined and deletions will be crossed out.

4. To change the way revision marks look and work in Microsoft Word click Options (Tools menu), click the Track Changes tab, and then select one or more of the following options.

TRACK CHANGES WINDOW

To change the color and other formatting that Word uses to identify changes, select the formatting options you want and make your changes.

5. Be sure you have Track Changes turned on. After you are finished you will notice that there are vertical lines in the left hand margin. These lines denote changes made.

This is an excellent tool for both the author and the editor. It enables us to check that all changes are accepted or declined by the author. Minute changes, such as an inserted period or comma are hard to see. Vertical lines in the left margin alert the author to an un-addressed change.

Type a comment

1. Select the text or item you want to comment on, or click at the end of the text.2. On the Reviewing toolbar, click Insert Comment. (See above to turn on this toolbar.) A comment box will open.

3. Type your comments in this window. On the finished product highlighted text indicates comments have been made. When the cursor rests on the highlights, a small window pops up to display them. The author can then make an educated decision based on the editor’s comments.

Intro and some advice from the editor

Let me introduce myself. My name is Joan McNulty Pulver and I work for ePress-online, Inc. as a Senior Fantasy Editor. When I first started work, ePress-online was just taking off and receiving submissions. Margaret I. Carr, Editor in Chief and Publisher was looking for some key personnel on a volunteer basis from among the writers and facilitators at Writers’ Village University. Being a lifetime member of that online community, I asked her what positions she needed to fill. I never in my wildest dreams thought ePress-online would take over my life.

Imagine getting your first job in the publishing industry. You have some experience as a columnist and short story writer and you apply for the entry-level position of Acquisitions Coordinator. You receive an email from the Editor in Chief offering you the position and describing your duties.

“WOW!” you think. “This is truly my dream job. As first reader, I get to look at all these great manuscripts before anyone else even knows they exist. Then I send a response to the writers telling them that their manuscript is being sent to the readers for consideration. How great is that?”

My job consisted of reading all the mail that came into the office for queries and submissions. I checked these daily. I used a list of our submission guidelines, looking for compliancy and handled the different problems that may arise. The guidelines for ePress-online, as with most publishers, are fundamental and straightforward. They are clearly readable and understandable on our website.

Please make sure your manuscript is free of typos and misspellings and is as grammatically correct as possible. Be sure have a cover sheet with your name, the title of the book, your email address, an alternate email address, your postal mailing address and an estimated word count.We accept manuscripts for novels of 50,000 – 120,000 words. Submit electronically - make sure your file is saved in .rtf and send it as an attachment to Submissions@ePress-online.com. Please direct all comments and questions to Info@epress-online.com. (These email addresses have changed since then.)

My first day on the job I opened the Info (information and questions only) email address.

I had 2 emails. One was a submission in .doc format. The other was an advertisement. I deleted the ad as spam, and I e-mailed the author of the submission asking him to please read our complete guidelines, save his manuscript in .rtf format and resubmit to the correct address.

Then I opened the Submissions email box. I found a submission that was written by a person whose native language wasn’t English but who professed to have a good grasp of the English language. I opened the manuscript and was amazed at what I found. I wrote the author a rejection letter stating that there were too many spelling and grammatical errors to even consider.

So, what happened to all the great manuscripts I would get to read? We eventually started receiving promising manuscripts. The first one accepted after I started was Return to UKOO by Don Hurst. It is a humorous young adult fantasy. Donna Sundblad, who came on board the same time I did, asked if I would be willing to help her edit it. That was when I was promoted to Assistant Editor. Unfortunately, we did not have anyone to fill my other position so I took on both roles.

It's important to note that my boss is sympathetic to all would-be published authors. Some publishers just discard manuscripts that do not follow the guidelines. Not mine, though, which is good. She believes in responding to each author who submits, even if only to ask that the author to please check the submission guidelines and resubmit thecorrect format. For this reason, please endeavor to follow the guidelines of each publisher. They can differ greatly, but one thing is certain for all publishers, whether print or electronic: their guidelines are there for a reason, and they expect them to be followed.