Two weeks after a major book release, and here's a status update: I'm already back to work on Of Killers and Kings / Of Kings and Killers (books #3 of the Elder Empire series), Uncrowned is still selling unbelievably well, and I am finally over that cold I had on release day. Seriously, it was bad. A day or two after release, I was basically in bed all day, responding to comments and emails on my phone and sniffling. But now that I've returned to health, I'm going to share with you something I normally don't: my notes! During my Subnautica stream for the Uncrowned launch, a few of you expressed interest in how I develop magic systems. Well, I recently started developing a few for fun, so I thought I'd walk you through what I did! This particular system is my attempt at a general all-purpose magic system. I wanted to see what I could do with a magic system in which magic could theoretically do anything, like in Harry Potter. First, the system as I wrote it out, followed by an explanation: *** Name: All-Purpose Wizardry Abilities —Wizards can do anything that could be done naturally, skipping the time and energy cost involved. The more time and energy it would take to do manually, the more it costs. —A wizard can cast a spell to clean a room, and it will be cleaned as though he did it by hand. Teleport items across the room. Start fires instantly, strangle a target, lift objects without touching them, remove a tumor, stitch a wound shut, see distances far away, etc. Categories —I’m thinking each spell is highly individual, meaning you don’t have schools of magic or categories of spells, but should there be styles of magic? Does a spell that builds a house have certain rules that are different from a fireball spell? Usage —Wizards concentrate on mentally building the complex architecture of a spell, which takes a few seconds to a minute of intense visualization and concentration. Then they cast the spell, which takes effect directly, ignoring the method in between. —Wizards can then see or sense a price for that spell and choose to pay it if they wish. The price is in energy; not in physical effort or time, which are precisely what spellcasting saves, but in magic points/tokens/slots. —When the spell is defined and the price paid, the spell is cast and takes effect. Requirements —Concentration. You have to hold in place the arcane architecture of the spell. —Definition. You don’t have to define the spell as precisely as programming and defining every step, but you do have to define it to some degree, as in “Clean this room.” Intentions, not precise definitions, are what matter in magic; you therefore don’t have to lawyer the magic by defining your terms explicitly. —Price. You have to be able and willing to afford the price, then you have to pay it. —Action. I haven’t quite decided what, but there should be some external action associated with casting a spell; either a somatic gesture or a verbal component. Limitations —Wizards cannot do anything inherently supernatural like shoot ice beams or reverse time or raise the dead. Spells can only accomplish things that are physically possible. Healing wounds quickly is fine, starting fires, controlling weather, etc. —The more time and effort an action would theoretically take, the more energy the spell takes. “Theoretically” because distance, for instance, is calculated as the crow flies. Not about how many mountains or walls are in your way. Terminology Spell slots = Points? Spellcasters = Wizards Spells = Spells (Mostly standard terminology here.) Suggestions —Either the act of paying the price should be tangible or there should be some clear action associated with the spell. —The price/point/slot mechanic is the biggest gray area here. I think it’s important to have the resource be clear and distinct and spendable, not just a pool like mana or madra. —How do you earn points? Do they passively recover over time, or do you have to perform actions? Does everyone have the same number of points or recover them at the same rate? How do you increase your maximum MP? —Here’s a usage structure I like for the spell architecture: like Lincoln Logs or Legos where you’re building them a piece at a time and you have to mentally connect two targets. So for instance, to teleport a remote control over to you, you have to build a bridge between where the remote is and where you want it to be. To turn someone into a frog, you have to surround them in “bricks” and then build a frog (NOTE: not sure I like that element of it, because it contradicts the “intentions not detailed instructions” doctrine). *** As you can see, this is only a thought experiment, but it shows how I start and organize my thoughts about magic systems. Now that you have an example, I'm going to go over the sections quickly.
Abilities: What the magic can do. Strangely enough, I find that a lot of new writers working on their own magic systems fail to define what their magic can do, focusing only on what it can't do. It's important to establish what your magic can do, because that's what makes it cool. Categories: Schools of magic, elements, etc. How are magic-users or spells categorized? This is the weakest area in the example magic system, because by nature it's hard to separate this particular system into categories. However, in many systems categories are important, because they provide a logical structure that the reader can follow. For instance, if you see an earth sorcerer and a water sorcerer in a story, you can logically infer that at least wind and fire sorcerers also exist. Usage: How, practically speaking, is magic used? Asking this question can help you picture the process of casting spells or using magic more vividly, which can help you ground it in the world and think of rules or limitations you hadn't considered before. Requirements: What you need to be able to cast magic. Someone else can prevent your magic from being used by preventing your ability to fulfill one of the requirements. People often lump this in with Limitations, but I think that's a bad idea. Requirements are what you need to cast magic and Limitations are the things magic CAN'T do. They should both be present, but are entirely separate things. Limitations: What your magic cannot do. Sometimes this is lumped into Requirements because the cost of a spell is often in both categories. For instance, if a spell costs mana (or a technique costs madra) that is both a Limitation of the magic system (you can only do magic until you run out of fuel) and a Requirement (you need fuel to cast magic). However, if there are no ice spells in your system, that's a Limitation and not a Requirement. Terminology: This is usually a lot more complicated than in this example. What do you call magic itself? Magic-users? The use of magic? The source? Is there a term for certain magic that isn't used for others? I normally spend a long time developing terminology, but this example uses the standard terms: wizard, spells, casting, etc. Suggestions: This is where I include my own notes on what's missing from the system so far, ideas I have for the future, weaknesses that I'd need to shore up in the story, etc. I make these for fun sometimes, and I'm sure a lot of you do something similar. Raise your hand if you've ever sketched out a magic system in your notebook. Now never lower that hand. It's stuck there now, permanently above your head. I hope this gives you some sort of insight in the process I use to at least brainstorm and think out magic systems. People ask me for this sort of post from time to time, so I could do some more here and there if you find it interesting, so let me know! If you don't, then let me know that as well. No skin off my teeth. And let me know what you'd like to see me blog about next week! I have a few one-sentence ideas for future stories that I might one day get around to writing if I live long enough, I have other magic systems, and I'm certainly capable of talking about anything else. -Will
60 Comments
Ravi
10/10/2019 04:27:58 pm
Next Week, I'd like your entire MCU rankings. Make it so! Or a character outline, or something.
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JOhn
10/10/2019 04:29:56 pm
That was interesting. Definitely post more of your process that you use to write you books!
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John
10/10/2019 04:30:40 pm
Your
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Patriarch Core Split
10/10/2019 05:35:48 pm
Thanks Will! I've printed this out and am going to give it a shot developing a concept in my head. It's about an elemental magic system where "mystic" artists cultivate their spirits, growing their power so they can split their core and eventually reach the level of Million-Core-Monarch by assembling the Ultimate All-Element-Avatar-Core.
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Patriarch Core Split
10/10/2019 06:19:37 pm
Also, I'll need to find a narrator willing to change their name to Trevor Birdlee
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Trevor Birdlee
10/10/2019 06:31:56 pm
Hi
Gerg
10/17/2019 10:40:50 am
+1 upvote this comment
Sha Miara, Who Has Been Publicly Congratulated by Will Wight
10/10/2019 06:02:32 pm
I tried to fill it out for Subnautica! I feel like this could actually make a cool fantasy magic system if you knew how to twist a few things (which I don't).
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Sha Miara, Who Has Been Publicly Congratulated by Will Wight
10/16/2019 10:31:28 pm
As of 15 minutes before this post, I've finally blasted off the planet, awaiting my payment of 1 trillion credits before I can land and return to Alterra.
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An Actual Bison
10/16/2019 10:37:02 pm
Poor Sea Dragon Leviathan, getting bullied by the other dragons because it has tentacles instead of wings...
Redduck
10/10/2019 06:26:58 pm
I love stuff like this - the glimpse into someone else's thought process to see how they sketch out an idea, construct it and put it together.
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Beloved
10/10/2019 06:45:26 pm
First of all, I think this here is a good foundation for a solid magic system. But there is still a lot of work to be done, I really don't know when you will have time to work on it in between all the series you got going on at the moment. Though I really hope it won't make the releases of your books come later than you originally planned, Cradle fanboi myself.
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A Passing Neurosurgeon
10/10/2019 07:41:42 pm
I usually just lurk here, browsing this and the subreddit during the easier brain surgery procedures. Gotta type fast because I've got somebody with their skull popped off over in the other room. The 5% and 10% brain potential stuff is actually a myth. Humans do in fact use all their brain cells. The myth stems from the fact that only 10% of your brain cells actually do any thinking. The other 90% are dedicated to cleaning up and taking care of the messy and helpless little slobs.
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Timmy
10/14/2019 03:58:33 pm
> The reason I think this is although magic should be vague, it should also be relatable to us mortals.
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As that passing neurosurgeon said, this is almost certainly not something I'm going to develop into a series, it's just a fun thought exercise to stretch out my magic-makin' muscles.
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TsukikageRyu
10/10/2019 08:01:35 pm
Thanks for the informative post!
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I don't require that every magic system I make fits neatly into this form, I just find that it's a helpful tool to get me thinking about what parts are necessary in a system and make sure I have them. It gets me thinking about what it's actually like in the universe to use this power, and even gets me brainstorming potential weaknesses or loopholes that characters could exploit.
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DesperateFan
10/10/2019 08:38:57 pm
Hi Will!
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Hayden Desrosiers
10/14/2019 04:01:41 pm
I've actually done this exercise before. I took some entrepreneurship classes once and keeping a written log of all the things you do was one of the assignments. It's supposed to help you identify where you're wasting time and how to make your life more efficient.
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Yikes, idk how to do that. Let's see, if I were to describe today off the top of my head...I'm in a cabin that I rented for the purpose of writing this week. I woke up at 7:30 and was writing at 8:00, I wrote some of Killers until about 9:30 when I had breakfast.
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DesperateFan
10/17/2019 09:33:04 pm
Thanks Will! It sounds like you got a lot done today!
Nicholas Siracusa
10/10/2019 08:53:52 pm
Listened to the audiobook in a single day. When, and I cannot stress this enough, is book 8 coming out?
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Lashan
10/10/2019 10:38:57 pm
Sobbing me... he, he is writing other series not Cradle. I want to go into hibernation until next cradle release in 2020
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Man-flu victim too
10/10/2019 09:07:51 pm
I'm concerned you didn't take this so called "cold" serious enough.
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Bewildered
10/10/2019 09:57:17 pm
I have an idea in mind for an "All-Purpose Wizardry" type universe so do you mind if I point out a few other things I've thought of in the offchance it might contribute to your own (or others') creative endeavours?
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Valar
10/13/2019 05:55:31 pm
There are possibly numerous ways to disable a brain from functioning at the level you describe.
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So I'm in a little bit of a pickle about Lego.
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Valar
10/28/2019 03:22:26 pm
I think it's quite simply a case of Danish being different to English as far as every day usage goes.
George
10/11/2019 04:43:10 pm
QUESTION FOR WILL: So, not quite related to your post here Will, but I finished Uncrowned. Solid book and now hungry for more. BUT...... now what should I read? (And yes, I have read and own all your other books :) ) Any chance you want to toss a comment in here with maybe 5-10 books that you recommend? I dig your writing style and I find that recommended books tend to click better than random titles. If not specific books, authors are great as well! Thanks!
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Hmmm I'm never really sure how to recommend things to people I don't know. I don't recommend very many books to everyone without caveats, and the ones I would recommend to anyone typically everyone's already read.
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George
10/18/2019 09:54:36 am
I will check them out!
Fenrirwolflord
10/11/2019 05:28:57 pm
Honestly i have both created and tried creating or tweaked varies magic systems a fair bit. I do similar for world building or thematic ideas.
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Hand
10/11/2019 08:56:17 pm
I'm above you all. Bow down to the great hand. My core is full of fingernail madre and if any of you dare to challenge me be prepared to be scratched! Bow down to the might me!
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manty05
10/12/2019 07:46:31 am
This is not really a topic but, how are the EE audiobooks coming? Also do you already have a narator for the Shadows side of EE?
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Tom
10/12/2019 04:12:00 pm
Will posted previews awhile ago, so I think the audiobooks are finished recording, just waiting edits and launch. Will probably wants to do a big Elder Empire marketing push when he finishes OKAK, and he'll probably start releasing the audiobooks then.
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Michale
10/12/2019 07:04:33 pm
If you're up to writing more stuff about your writing process, perhaps you could take us through how you develop and flesh out characters? Maybe one for settings too at a latter date?
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khan
10/12/2019 11:27:02 pm
Interesting.. interesting indeed..
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Guess Who?
10/13/2019 12:36:56 pm
I would like a detailed “Avengers: Endgame” review for your next blog post.
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Sam
10/13/2019 02:55:17 pm
Didn't he already do this a few blog posts ago?
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Guess Who?
10/14/2019 01:23:13 pm
To Sam:
Matt
10/13/2019 12:54:11 pm
I'd be interested in hearing your process in developing the framework for a series.
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DesperateFan
10/14/2019 05:56:45 pm
Will used to use a lot of DnD tools, writing novels by fleshing out the world and monsters. He had a couple milestones he wanted to hit, gave his characters personalities, and did his best to direct them towards those goals. Nowadays he's got a firmer hand on the plot, though he's still occasionally subject to the whims of fancy that appear while he's writing, whispering in his ear and urging him to take the story in an unexpected direction.
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The big Will
10/13/2019 09:58:19 pm
I had Underoos when I was a kid. Now those are magical.
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The Creator of Ballomancy
10/14/2019 11:34:11 am
Behold, I have created a masterful magic system using your methodology, Will Wight. Now, I know you’re jealous of my creative genius, but I’m very kind and generous so I hereby sign the copyright to this beautiful creation to you, Will Wight. Congratulations Will, you’re now the proud owner of Ballomancy.
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The Creator of Ballomancy
10/15/2019 11:37:42 pm
Lumiticity Ballomancers: Balls can only be as large as the brightest glowing item a Ballomancer has eaten --> only as bright.
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Devin, but not the one who's an Alpha reader, just a random Devin
10/14/2019 05:45:44 pm
Estyr Six vs Akura Charity, Sage of the Silver Heart. Who wins?
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Wilbur Waitly
10/14/2019 06:16:18 pm
Personally, I'd like another Great Oreo Taste Test, or something similar. Something random and unrelated to writing.
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An Actual Bison
10/14/2019 06:39:55 pm
I think Will needs more business expense write offs considering how much Underlord and Uncrowned have sold. He should do a comparison of which type of Tesla is the best to buy with cash, and a comparison with other big sport scar brands.
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Dan
10/20/2019 11:17:11 am
All I have to say is I can’t wait till the end of the elder empire series it has been too long
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Kyle Shannon
10/22/2019 04:35:30 pm
Hi Will, I have been a fan since house of blades was self published on kindle selling for $2.00. I am so happy to see how far you've come. I have the first edition on a old kindle and was looking over the differences to the current edition. Your writing continues to improve and it's great to see a author so interactive with his readers. I look forward to reading your more recent ventures.
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