Magic 101

When writing science fiction, future science should be based on the sciences we know or on extrapolations of science. Biology, chemistry, physics, engineering, computer science, genetics, you-name-it are all foundations for made-up future science.  I prefer "future science" to "pseudo-science" because good sf stories use "science" that feels plausible. Sure, we accept a few unlikely conventions--such as everyone speaks English, or that some device is capable of translating languages it has never encountered before.  That sort of technology is the result of "black box" science, which is really "magic" for sf. Even supposing we could develop a device that read brain waves in order to translate words, is it really likely we could invent a science capable of doing that for completely alien brains that have never been encountered? Would the device translate what a person said or what they were thinking? Regardless, we accept the English standard to make the story easier to tell. But if all the science becomes too "black box," then the science will be called "magic" and the story will be labeled as fantasy.

Fantasy isn't easier because you can have magic. In our world, "magic" has always had roots, since the dawn of time, in some unknown or unexplained science. A lodestone was magical, until we understood the properties of magnets. Just because fantasy can have real magic, doesn't mean the magic should defy explanation. Okay--if done well, that scenario could be interesting. But frankly, when magic feels real, it will always be a lot more interesting.

Sure, we read to escape. But we escape to those places that, while imaginary, feel so real that we wish they were real. We can picture them, hear the sounds of that world, smell and feel. Every aspect becomes almost tangible. For magic, that means we have expectations based on simple cause and effect.

What makes magic feel real? The same things that make all things real. It has to have properties and rules. It also helps if your magic can be categorized.

What makes magic fun? Seeing it in action. Try to avoid the "Magic 101" lecture--that's where one character must explain in detail how your magic system works in order for the reader to understand it. All lectures suffer from a common problem--they aren't as interesting as watching or doing. Consider most anything. Why do you suppose new reporters try to film event to show the audience rather than just report them? Are you more impressed with someone tells you the hurricane had winds up to 100 mph, or when you see footage of wind knocking over a construction crane? Here is yet another instance of where Show, Don't Tell is important.

Magic as a Science

A property, from a scientific standpoint, is a quality that always or consistently exists. Why from a scientific standpoint? Because magic should be a part of your world's natural science. That doesn't mean it has to be physics or some other natural science. It means that in addition to the natural effect of physics, geothermic science, plate tectonics and everything else going on physically in the world, this world also has magicks. (I used an alternate spelling to indicate the "science" of some magic system.)

Properties can take many forms. If casting a spell takes a physical toll, either by aging or simply tiring the spell caster, that would be a property. Making sure your spell caster always suffers the consequences creates verisimilitude. If a situation occurs where suffering the consequence is inconvenient to the story, then it must be inconvenient to the story and whatever would happen naturally must happen, even if it causes the death of a character you did not wish to kill, or changes the direction of the plot. If these things happen, changing the magic's property is a cheat and readers will know it. If the consequences are too bad to contend with, then figure out another solution that does not involve breaking your magic system's science.

Magic as an Applied Science

Besides being a magick, magic use in your world should involve concrete rules. If having properties makes your magic a science, think of the rules you create as the engineering (or applied science) for your magic system. Here you define what must be done in order for some magic to occur.

Just as you shouldn't break the laws of your magick, neither should you break its rules. That doesn't mean you can't ever break rules or laws . . .  but you should have a very good reason, one that the reader will not only buy, but will find thrilling. To break a rule or law because your character is otherwise up the creek is not a good reason--in general. As with all rules, the ability to break them is a skill. The ability to break them in ways the reader will find satisfactory is a master-level skill. I prefer not to break my own rules, but to make my characters be cleverer at solving their problem.

Your rules can be simple or complex. Simple is easiest to get across to the reader without requiring a "Magic 101" lecture from another character.

Categories of Magic

There are all sorts of magical categories. I won't even attempt to list them all. With a few, you'll get the idea. And there are numerous resources on this topic. No doubt, there exists terminology for each category, but I'm only going to list them by general descriptions, in no particular order. As well, many categories can be combined or blended together. Or you may have more than one category of magic on your world. But each might be its own distinct science, just as plate tectonics is a different science from meteorology.

Spoken -- Magic invoked by reciting a spell.
Gestures -- Magic that requires particular arm movements, or what-have-you.
Potions -- Magic that must be infused in a potion.
Gizmos -- Magic that works via a device, whether the device itself is magic or creates magic.
Amulets/Charms -- A subset of gizmos, but so popular that I gave it its own listing.
Innate -- Magic that comes from something within the spell caster.
Faith/God-Powers -- Magic that stems from a religious system or power coming from the gods.
Nature -- Magic found in gemstones, plants, etc.
Familiars -- Magic requiring use of a familiar, like a witch's black cat.
Divination -- Foretelling the future by whatever means.
Psychic -- Magic emanating from the mind.

Certainly, this is a very incomplete list. But it's a start to help you generate ideas. See what methods of magic can be found in myths and legends.