on magic and plot points

So. I actually sat down a couple days ago and worked out the magical system for "The Sum of Things," so I would know once and for all what is and isn't possible in that world, and so I could adjust various social systems to account for the effects of magic. I'd already known it was a fairly subtle sort of magic and not much useful in war (I declared that at the outset, because I wanted to write a story about people slashing at each other with swords, not people hurling fireballs or what have you) but now I have wonderful little knock-on effects like the high value of copper and the prominance of glassblowers in the Eastern Lands, and further differences between cities and the countryside. Plus, I have invented the magical equivalent of Edison's lightbulb, which amuses me greatly.

However, this left me with a slight problem: in the original conception of the story, I used a spell to move Talin to a certain place and make him meet certain people... but that sort of spell is now not permitted. It literally does not exist.

I beat my head against that for a while until I realized that I didn't need magic. I can do the same damn thing -- well, produce the same effects -- with completely non-magical means. And the new plot point works even better, because it gives Talin and Bren some actual characterization and motives instead of 'guy in grip of mild compulsion spell' and 'faithful sidekick.' Besides which, the more I think about it the less convinced I am that Talin would be particularly amenable to subtle suggestion spells. He's a quiet guy, but he's very determined to be in charge of his own life and to not let anybody else determine his choices anymore. Now I can have Bren trying to figure out a mystery of sorts, and Talin going along because A) Bren knows how to persuade him into things and B) he thinks going to Arre-Lus will be a useful bit of misdirection and will let him and Bren vanish quite handily into the thousands of people who live in the city.

Naturally his plans don't work out, but he has no real way of knowing that. (Or rather, he refuses to admit the possibility, because he is in denial, the poor silly boy.)

on magic and plot points

So. I actually sat down a couple days ago and worked out the magical system for "The Sum of Things," so I would know once and for all what is and isn't possible in that world, and so I could adjust various social systems to account for the effects of magic. I'd already known it was a fairly subtle sort of magic and not much useful in war (I declared that at the outset, because I wanted to write a story about people slashing at each other with swords, not people hurling fireballs or what have you) but now I have wonderful little knock-on effects like the high value of copper and the prominance of glassblowers in the Eastern Lands, and further differences between cities and the countryside. Plus, I have invented the magical equivalent of Edison's lightbulb, which amuses me greatly.

However, this left me with a slight problem: in the original conception of the story, I used a spell to move Talin to a certain place and make him meet certain people... but that sort of spell is now not permitted. It literally does not exist.

I beat my head against that for a while until I realized that I didn't need magic. I can do the same damn thing -- well, produce the same effects -- with completely non-magical means. And the new plot point works even better, because it gives Talin and Bren some actual characterization and motives instead of 'guy in grip of mild compulsion spell' and 'faithful sidekick.' Besides which, the more I think about it the less convinced I am that Talin would be particularly amenable to subtle suggestion spells. He's a quiet guy, but he's very determined to be in charge of his own life and to not let anybody else determine his choices anymore. Now I can have Bren trying to figure out a mystery of sorts, and Talin going along because A) Bren knows how to persuade him into things and B) he thinks going to Arre-Lus will be a useful bit of misdirection and will let him and Bren vanish quite handily into the thousands of people who live in the city.

Naturally his plans don't work out, but he has no real way of knowing that. (Or rather, he refuses to admit the possibility, because he is in denial, the poor silly boy.)