#magicalwriting

[suninks-moved]

For the costume tag. Ace and Jacky please (This is @magicalwriting)

lol @magicalwriting the way this works is you send a costume and I tell you which character is most likely to wear that outfit!

but I think Ace would want to wear something cool looking, maybe a vampire because he’s dramatic like that. Jacky would love something fancy and a little extra, maybe steampunk! she’d make it herself using spare car parts or something. thanks for the ask!

[sageblogsthings]

(This is @magicalwriting main) Happy very late wbw! I wanted to ask how the magic system in Anora worked. Obviously you don’t need to lay down everything, but the powers/abilities that each protagonist has would be great! Thanks!

thanks for the ask, and no worries about it being late i will ramble about worldbuilding any day of the week! this ask really helped me develop my ideas as well so thank you! it got a bit long tho so no worries if you don’t read the whole thing i just wanted to get everything out of my head and in writing haha

when i first started building Arnora’s magic system, i asked myself what the magic system would be based on. i feel like a very common base in fantasy is the elements (earth, air, fire, water, etc) and while i love that system (and will likely use something similar for my Onyx & Opal wip) i wanted to try something different. so the foundation of the magic system in Arnora is time!

the way time works in Arnora is a bit different than the linear concept we have in our world. There are three Pillars of Existence: The Past, The Present, and The Future (these are rough human translations cuz i’m still coming up with Arnoran words for them lol). but these Pillars all support our understanding of Time at any given moment, so what we would just perceive as the present an Arnoran would perceive as a culmination of the past, present, and future in one instant. it’s kinda abstract and i’m definitely still trying to figure out how to explain it well haha

in terms of magic, this means that all forms of magic ultimately stem from time magic. for example, necromancy is a form of magic that manifests The Past, and brings that manifestation into the Pillar of The Present. so whenever someone uses magic they are drawing on one of the pillars of existence, and this pillar could kind of be seen as their patron deity in a sense.

also, not everyone in Arnora practices magic but everyone has a connection to it since the magic system is based on time and the very fabric of reality. there are those who reject this system and try to perform magic outside of time itself, and these people are called nihilimancers. there are not a lot of professions that are frowned upon in Arnora but nihilimancy is regarded as the closest thing to evil magic there is. necromancy and blood magic are not considered bad in Arnora because their conceptualization of the soul and death is very different from ours.

i’m still working out all of the characters’ powers and abilities and these might change but here’s what i have so far. in parenthesis i put which pillar is associated with each skill line! i’m gonna put a ‘keep reading’ here too so people on mobile don’t hate me lol

Vanna: green and white magic (Future)

this includes healing/cleansing spells and nature-based spells. these are under the Pillar of the Future because performing these spells requires the caster to be able to envision what could be, and bring purity to an area darkened by the Past.

Xalia: conjuration and destruction magic (Past)

if you’ve read Xalia’s chapter you might remember the part where she turns her daggers into wings: this is a form of conjuration magic. she can also cast destruction spells manifest in a lot of ways but her favorite is purple flames! this falls under the Pillar of the Past because it requires envisioning something you’ve seen or experienced before and bringing that thing to pass.  

Silaesan: he’s weird since he’s a Time Magister so he is literally the embodiment of all three pillars

the main job of Time Magisters is to envision all of the Pillars and make sure that they do not collapse and disrupt the Timeline. this involves a lot of skills from each Pillar. divination would be a skill under the Future but reading the stars would be under the Past, and interpreting the current state of the timeline would fall under the Present.

Tilaraen: destruction magic (Past) they have some other really cool magic stuff goin on buuut it would be a massive spoiler if i told u so just wait n see lol

i can’t really say much about Tilaraen without giving major plot spoilers but just know that i’m super excited to write about their backstory more! their chapters will be a really good way to understand the structure of the magic system and how it could go wrong . . . and that’s all imma say bout that

Dorian: illusions and enchantments (Present)

Dorian is nothing if not a pickpocket and a thief, and his magic reflects this. he often uses illusions to pull off heists, and uses enchantments to give him a somewhat unfair advantage in combat. he is also very skilled with poison making! this is a manifestation of the Present because illusion requires manipulating what the viewer currently perceives, and enchantments involve imbuing temporary power into an object during a moment of need.

Mikah: evocation and abjuration (Past)

Mikah is my sweet cinnamon roll baby and i just want to protect him so ofc he gets these skill lines lol. evocation is more about doing damage in combat, whereas abjuration focuses on blocking and banishing. this falls under the Past because it involves learning from your mistakes in life and in combat to become stronger in the future.

Ari: artificer/transmutation (Future)

if you’ve read Ari’s chapter you will also see his magic skills in action! he is an artificer, which falls under the school of transmutation. this is similar to illusion in that it changes the appearance of things but with transmutation you are changing the appearance and actual nature of something. this falls under the Future because you must envision what you want that thing to become to successfully perform a transmutation spell.

Verena: necromancy and blood magic (Past)

like i said before, these forms of magic are not frowned upon in Arnora. because they fall under the pillar of the Past, they are more viewed as a form of learning from history. if someone has an issue with necromancy it is not so much with the practice itself but usually the implementation of it. i can’t say too much more on Verena’s magic without giving spoilers but security, safety, and power are incredibly important to her, and she felt that necromancy and blood magic were best able to give her that.

whew that was long! bless you if you read all of that haha. this is the first time i’ve actually written all that down, it was kinda just floating in my head before, so thank you for the ask and giving me the chance to get all of that onto the page! :)

also fun tidbit but now that i’ve explained the pillars a little hopefully the name of Tov’s tavern (The Crooked Pillar) makes a bit more sense!

[andreablythe]

Finally got my copy of The Magical Writing Grimoire by @lisamariebasile and I’m excited at the chance to explore the nexus of writing and magic. . . . . #writingcommunity #magicalwritinggrimoire #grimoire #magicalwriting #lisamariebasile #witchybooks #witchythings #writing #writersofinstagram #booklove #writingguide https://www.instagram.com/p/CCuUJkph6-r/?igshid=uw8grxfaqfjo