Blog Day 7

Today, we read Brandon Sanderson. A lot of Sanderson. Specifically, the laws of magic, Sanderson’s guidelines to using magic or magical elements in literature. We learned about the hard/soft magic dichotomy and learned how to weave these systems into stories. Specifically, soft magic is a less concrete kind of magic, something that is less restrictive and able to do much more. Hard magic has set rules and regulations, with clear limits and rules. Most stories use a mix of both for worldbuilding. Magic systems are also not always magic, the example Sanderson gave was superhero systems. Superman isn’t a wizard, but his powers could easily be considered a magic system. Even science fiction has magic systems, commonly in the form of technology. Roadside Picnic in particular uses a sort of magic system to make the Zone treacherous, with the dead rising once more and invisible meat grinders twisting those unwary into piles of gore, each of these anomalies having some specific rules to them. Most settings feature both systems at once, for example, Warhammer. Warhammer has mages tapping into the Winds of Magic, the Winds being the stuff of pure Chaos, and as such, they risk suffering corruption by the Dark Gods in the setting each time they cast spells, possibly resulting in madness or mutation. The hard magic exists in the casting of spells by mortals, and the soft magic exists in the unfathomable power of Chaos lurking behind each of those spells.

Sanderson’s first law states that magic’s ability to solve problems in the setting should be directly proportional to how well the reader understands the magic system at play. This to avoid problems getting solved in unexpected ways that would snuff out the tension in a scene. The second law, the last law we covered today, had to do with limiting magic systems. The law stated that limitations are greater than powers. Magic systems, in story terms, are more defined by their limitations than their abilities. The example given was that Superman isn’t interesting when he’s fighting someone. Sure, the fight scene is likely entertaining, but there is no tension in story terms. Superman fighting someone with Kryptonite is far more interesting, as the stakes are raised significantly and tension is high. In addition, Superman can do just about anything, but his powers are further limited by his morals. It’s what he won’t do that makes him interesting as a character, not what he can do. His immense power gets a reader to start reading, his restrictions get a reader to keep reading.