Composing Magic : How to Create Magical Spells, Rituals, Blessings, Chants, and Prayer

You've attended rituals that took your breath away. You've borrowed spells out of books. You've read splendid Pagan poetry in magazines. Now learn to compose all these types of magical writing yourself!

Composing Magic guides you through the exciting realm of magical and spiritual writing. You'll explore the process of writing, its tools and techniques, individual types of composition, and ways of sharing your work with other people.

The book shows you how to write:

• Basic and advanced forms of poetry
• Spells
• Chants and rounds
• Prayers
• Blessings
• Solitary and group rituals

Each type of writing includes its history and uses, which cover diverse traditions. Step-by-step instructions lead you through the creative process, such as how to:

• Brainstorm ideas for a topic
• Choose the right type of composition
• Write a rough draft
• Polish your work to perfection

Examples demonstrate finished compositions of each type, while exercises help you develop your skills by practicing what you've just read. You'll discover that magical writing has more impact when it comes from the heart. Anyone can develop the skills needed to create effective compositions, but the most successful writers reveal their souls.

Composing Magic will also show you ways of deepening your craft through performance and publication. Whether you practice solitary or in a group, this book will help you write with more power, more beauty, and less effort.

Elizabeth Barrette works in the Pagan and speculative fiction fields as a writer, editor, and scholar. She currently serves as the managing editor of PanGaia magazine and the dean of studies at the Grey School of Wizardry. In 2003, Barrette won the Poet Laureate Competition at Sol Magazine. In 2005, her poem "The Poltergeist of Polaris" earned a nomination for the Rhysling Award. She has written for The Beltane Papers, CIRCLE Magazine, Green Egg, SageWoman, and many of the Llewellyn annuals. Barrette lives in Charleston, Illinois, and enjoys giving presentations at events in the Midwest region.