TL;DR
6/10. A useful, focused craft guide to one important and frequently mishandled element of fantasy: writing convincing magic. It offers practical, actionable advice on building consistent magic systems, giving magic the rules, limits, and costs that make it generate drama rather than dissolve it. A fair, helpful primer, held to the middle by being a short, narrowly focused, self-published guide limited in depth.
Writing About Magic by Rayne Hall is a focused craft guide for fantasy authors on one specific and crucial element: how to handle magic in fiction. Crammed with information, tips, and plot ideas, it addresses the practical questions of writing convincing magic, how to build a magic system, how to make spells and powers work within consistent rules, how to use magic to drive plot rather than solve problems too easily, and how to avoid the common pitfalls that make fictional magic feel arbitrary or unsatisfying. As a narrow, practical guide to a single important aspect of fantasy writing, it offers genuinely useful, actionable advice, earning a fair rating, with the limits of a brief, narrowly focused self-published guide.
The focus is the appeal: magic is central to most fantasy and frequently mishandled, so a guide devoted entirely to getting it right addresses a real and specific need.
Making magic work
The book’s value is its practical, focused attention to the craft of fictional magic. Hall addresses the real challenges, designing a magic system with internal consistency, establishing rules and limits so magic does not become a plot-solving cheat, using magic to create rather than dissolve conflict, and weaving it into story and worldbuilding convincingly, offering concrete tips and plot ideas rather than abstract theory. For a fantasy writer struggling to make their magic feel meaningful and consistent rather than arbitrary, this targeted, actionable guidance addresses exactly the kind of specific problem that a general fantasy-writing book often treats only in passing. Its narrow focus lets it go deeper on magic than a broader guide could, which is its real usefulness.
Keep reading
Magic systems with rules, limits, and real consequence — Hall’s practical approach to fictional magic, in the craft of fantasy world-building.
Avoiding the magic pitfalls
A particular strength is its attention to the common ways fictional magic goes wrong. Magic that can do anything resolves tension too easily and drains a story of stakes; magic with no consistent rules feels arbitrary and unsatisfying; magic disconnected from character and plot becomes mere decoration. Hall’s guidance helps a writer avoid these traps by treating magic as something that needs limits, costs, and consistency to generate rather than dissolve drama, which is the key insight that separates compelling magic from the kind that undermines a story. For a writer whose magic feels too convenient or too vague, this focus on the discipline that makes magic work dramatically is genuinely useful, practical craft.
Keep reading
The craft of writing fantasy that holds together — Hall’s magic-system discipline, in the wider work of writing convincing fantasy.
The honest caveats
The caveats are about depth and scope. It is a short, narrowly focused guide, useful on its single topic but limited in depth, more a practical primer on handling magic than an exhaustive treatment, and a writer wanting a thorough exploration of magic systems may find it a starting point rather than the final word. As a self-published guide, it is also one author’s practical approach rather than a definitive or widely vetted craft text, valuable but not authoritative. And by design it covers only magic, one element of fantasy writing, so it is a supplement to broader craft and worldbuilding resources rather than a complete fantasy-writing education. These are the normal limits of a brief, narrowly focused guide rather than flaws, and within its lane it delivers practical help.
Verdict
It is a useful, focused craft guide to one important and frequently mishandled element of fantasy: writing convincing magic. It earns a fair rating for its practical, actionable attention to building consistent magic systems, giving magic the rules, limits, and costs that make it generate drama rather than dissolve it, and avoiding the common pitfalls that make fictional magic feel arbitrary or too convenient. It is held to that level by being a short, narrowly focused, self-published guide, useful on its single topic but limited in depth, one author’s practical approach rather than a definitive text, and a supplement to broader fantasy craft rather than a complete education. For a fantasy writer whose magic feels vague or too easy, it offers targeted, practical help. A sound, narrowly focused magic guide.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Writing About Magic about?
Rayne Hall’s focused craft guide for fantasy authors on handling magic in fiction: how to build a magic system, make spells and powers work within consistent rules, use magic to drive plot rather than solve problems too easily, and avoid the pitfalls that make fictional magic feel arbitrary.
What is its main strength?
Its practical, focused attention to the craft of fictional magic. By concentrating entirely on magic, it goes deeper than a general fantasy guide, offering concrete tips and plot ideas for designing consistent systems and weaving magic convincingly into story and worldbuilding.
What magic pitfalls does it address?
The common ways fictional magic goes wrong: magic that can do anything and drains tension, magic with no consistent rules that feels arbitrary, and magic disconnected from character and plot. It treats magic as needing limits, costs, and consistency to generate rather than dissolve drama.
What are its limits?
It is a short, narrowly focused, self-published guide, useful on its single topic but limited in depth, more a practical primer than an exhaustive treatment, and one author’s approach rather than a definitive text. It covers only magic, so it supplements broader fantasy craft rather than replacing it.
Who should read it?
Fantasy writers whose magic feels too convenient, too vague, or arbitrary, who want targeted, practical help making magic consistent and dramatically meaningful. It is a focused supplement, best paired with broader craft and worldbuilding resources.