magic and other stuff

[daedalus_x]

Had a relatively productive day yesterday, which is nice, but hard to gauge when you're working on plotting and brainstorming.  A good day can consist of a lot of ideas flowing, or a single problem idea worked out.  In this case it was mostly the former.

Now I'm working on developing the magic system -- I'm reading a bunch of things by various folks

Comments

[derekl1963]

I've always thought it a weakness of the post D&D fantasy novel that magic had to be a 'system'. Harry Potter IMO got it closer to right - magic is a series of interrelated disciplines, not a 'system'.

[daedalus_x]

I think the trouble here is with "system" -- a weakness of some post D&D fantasies is magic that resembled the game, certainly. But I just call it a "system" as short-hand for how magic works. It can be the world can be high magic or low magic, and there are many different ways you can use to access magic, or what's used to form magic. But whether you have strict rules to your magic (as with hermetic magic) or vague precepts (David Eddings), you have to be consistent in your magic (for intellectual and story-telling honesty) and limiting (because a set of all powerful wizards who could do anything they wanted is usually not very good for a story.)
That's what I meant by "system"

[derekl1963]

(Nods) OK, that makes sense.

[daedalus_x]

I totally get what you mean though -- when I read a fantasy novel, I want it to be a *novel* -- not a D&D adventure. And magic is a huge part of that.

[derekl1963]

Well, that and the tendency to info-dump about the "system". Show me, don't tell me - and briefly unless it's a *MAJOR* plot point.