How to Solve Plot Problems with Your Magic System

Using magic to solve problems in your story can be tricky. Do it well and everything snaps together and draws readers in. When done wrong, the solutions can be unsatisfying, robbing the story of tension and believability. In this video we dig into the nature of plot problems and how to solve them satisfactorily with the magic in your story.
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[@devilofether6185]

Frieren: at journey's end has an interesting soft irrational magic system that feels grounded in the world; never pulls anything out of its ass, and is essential for the plot without over-explaining anything. It is also a damn good show featuring an immortal elf who loves finding magic.

[@themagicengineer5314]

That sounds fascinating!

[@Juzzi9]

Good timing and very thorough and clear explanation! Just what i needed when i needed it! (Almost like this shouldve been foreshadowed ha..ha..). You deserve a lot more views. A sub well earned from here.

[@themagicengineer5314]

Thank you for watching, commenting and subscribing! And the numbers are slowly building. I cover some really niche content so it's a long-term building process :)

[@flatdude4667]

A great video and solid explanations. No matter how magical, how fantastical your characters are and their abilities; or how otherworldly their world is, believability comes from the setup/grounding of the story. A story without rules to it's characters or world's limitations (no matter how hard or soft the magic system) leaves the reader with a sense of being in limbo. When writing see each chapter as a three arch micro story, with a beginning (problem/situation), middle (action), and end, (resolve with an opening for a new problem/situation/continuation in the following chapter). A wave of hand solution to a life or death situation without prior setup/explanation/foreshadowing is lazy writing and will kill both your story and credibility as an author.

[@flatdude4667]

P.S. With your knowledge of books and magic systems, would you be willing to give me your thoughts on a few chapters of my YA fantasy novel which I'm coming to the end of? I've already had many beta reads throughout the years I've been writing it, allowing me to hone every word, sentence and chapter. But since it is a hard magic system told through the eyes of a fifteen-year-old boy, I would love your experienced eye give an honest opinion. I appreciate time is precious and if you can't I respect that. Many thanks for what you do.

[@themagicengineer5314]

@@flatdude4667 Set up a consultation and let's chat :)
crrowenson.com/coaching/

[@themagicengineer5314]

It can be done with minimal foreshadowing and so on, but it's a LOT harder to do well. Same thing with soft magic, which is easy to write but hard to write well

[@flatdude4667]

@@themagicengineer5314 I have set up a consultation with you on: 2:30pm - 3:00pm, Thursday, April 11, 2024, and I very much look forward to it. Will you require a chapter or two prior to our conversation, so you have a idea/feel for my novel?

[@themagicengineer5314]

@@flatdude4667 No need. We'll go over that during the consultation :)

[@cassandraarnold]

Awesome. Are the live streams on a schedule?

[@themagicengineer5314]

Roughly 1/month. There is one tomorrow, if you're interested - th-cam.com/video/CnlCd4Na9Hk/w-d-xo.html

[@adamshafeeq8685]

I'll be real with you, stuff like this is why i can't write magic. Too complicated for my small brain :P

[@themagicengineer5314]

PLEASE don't let that stop you from trying! Start with something simple that's mostly flavor and doesn't solve the major problem of the story and you should be fine. 😁

[@adamshafeeq8685]

@@themagicengineer5314 no worries, i don't actually bother to make magic systems because my story and world doesn't have it nor need it. But maybe I'll try if I'm that bored :)

[@adamshafeeq8685]

@@themagicengineer5314 don't worry, my world and stories don't have nor need magic. But maybe I'll try if I'm that bored

[@lucasfv1357]

Storytelling 101: Avoiding Readers' Dissapointment through Magic

[@themagicengineer5314]

lol. That's the hope, right?