The Key to Effective Spellcrafting
I was reading some notes on a sorcerer (Jason Miller) and one of the concepts he talked about really resonated with me. It’s something I’ve kind of done, but not deliberately, and I think doing it deliberately is always more effective. I haven’t read his books yet (they’re on my infinitely long reading list, but I’m going to be bumping them up now), so this is going to be an incomplete introduction just based on what I’ve read from him so far. I’m sure he goes way more into depth in his book, and I’ll update on this once I’ve read it.
The basic idea is pretty straightforward. We’ve all heard about different concepts of magic and how it applies, and one of my favourite ways to phrase it is “using magic is stacking the deck in your favour”, but you still need to play and you still need to have the cards (i.e. if something is outside of the realm of physics and possibility, you’re gonna have a bad time).
Miller describes it using a boulder metaphor: the task you want to accomplish is this boulder, varying in size and weight depending on the difficulty of the task. Getting the boulder to move is accomplishing your goal, and sometimes doing just one thing like pushing isn’t enough. So you can add a lever, dig a pit, etc to try and make it lighter and easier to push. Some boulders might be small enough that you don’t need any extra help, but others might need some help and one of the key things here is approaching the issue from different angles and using various tactics.
This is where macro vs micro spells come in. Most of the spells we tend to do are macro spells, meaning they cover the entirety of the goal or issue we’re addressing. I’m going to use the example of trying to get a new job, because I always test new things with money magic and I’ve just had the chance to test it. The macro spell would be an intent along the lines of “I will begin working at [company name] as a [position name] within the next two weeks” (or whatever time frame you would need, I never give it more than two weeks because if I have to wait more than that it’s kind of pointless).
The micro spells, and this should always be plural, would address very specific aspects of obtaining the job, or specific obstacles. For example, if you know that someone with more experience than you is also applying, you could do a spell with an intent along the lines of “my strengths make up for my inexperience”. If you are applying for a job where you don’t quite meet all the requirements, you could try something like “my personality is engaging and obscures my shortcomings”. The point here is to really cover your bases as much as possible, so that every obstacle is targeted in some way.
The great thing about this is: if your macro spell doesn’t work for whatever reason, your micro spells will likely more than make up for it. Likewise, if some of your micro spells don’t work, all the others combined with your macro spell should be sufficient. Between that and whatever mundane measures your taking, that boulder doesn’t stand a chance.
Here’s a full list of intents you could use using this example. For the micro spells I’ve listed the specific obstacle they are targeting, and their corresponding intent. Obviously this is just an example based on what I used for the job I wanted to get, so you would need to change these so they cater to your particular needs. I personally did these in order of importance based on the obstacles I was most concerned about vs things I was less concerned about, but this was mainly because I didn’t have much time and wasn’t sure if I would be able to do all of them before the interview. If you have the time and energy for all of them, the order shouldn’t matter (I haven’t tried it though so just be aware of that as a possible variable).
Macro:
“I will be working the position I want at this company within the next two weeks”
Micros:
- identification: “My name and identification will be accepted completely and compassionately” [if you are trans and have a different name on your application vs your official ID, this is for you] - scheduling: “They will believe me when I disparage any concerns regarding scheduling issues once school starts again” [the job I want has weird hours that would normally conflict with a student’s hours, but since I’m on a lighter load this doesn’t affect me… but sometimes people take jobs like this for the summer and say it won’t be an issue, just to bail once school starts so I wanted to address that as a possible mark against me] - strengths: “They will see my strengths, and they will be exactly what the hiring team is looking for” [pretty standard and can be used by anyone really] - eloquence: “I will express myself clearly and concisely, with eloquence” [if you’re like me and start to fumble your words when you’re nervous, this has got you covered - disclaimer: I did not have time to do this one, so it’s not tested] - best answers: “I will know the best answers to their questions”[again, pretty self-explanatory] - apprehend: “I will apprehend their questions mentally, before they are asked” [again pretty self-explanatory disclaimer - I did not have time to do this one, so it’s not tested]
At the time that I originally wrote this post (it’s been a few months now) I hadn’t completed the interview process yet, so now I can give a full update: I got a 5/5 successes for the micros, and also fulfilled the macro. I would have normally had to wait 4 weeks to start training, but I asked them if it was possible to start it sooner so I could complete it in time for school and they accepted (honestly was not expecting that to happen at all).
As always, if any part of this post is unclear or you have more questions about it please let me know!
