“There are no peoples, however primitive, without religion and magic.”
Bronislaw Malinowski
This is the third post about the magic systems in my fantasy series The Maqlû. It’s also the one I’ve been dreading writing since I first started blogging – because I still haven’t entirely figured out how gods and supernatural beings fit in – except that they do. It’s also a topic that is very controversial, as it deals with people’s belief systems.
In the first two posts on magic, I discussed the most common types of magic systems used in my books – Elemental Magic and advanced alien-technology (namely the Maqlû and the other magical objects).
As I’ve been writing this series, I keep coming up against the same dilemma – that some issues can’t be explained by magic, technology, luck, or personal initiative. The ankh, his friends, Chrysophylax, and the Atlantians all have roles, but something else always seems to be helping him out. Which is why I’ve come to believe that God, the Great Spirit, or whatever deity you believe in, plays a role in Alex’s quest to find and destroy the Maqlû.
Now, you might think that authors have their backstories all figured out when they write their books – but I’m still figuring out things, trying to close loopholes in my story. For instance, just last week, my younger son helped me figure out where the ankh gets its powers – ley lines.
Part of my belief that supernatural being(s) are helping/manipulating Alex comes from the fact that I believe that the universe is so unimaginably large, complex, and amazing, that God doesn’t play a detailed role in each of our daily lives. I believe that he/she/they are focused on the big picture. And in the case of my story, multiple worlds are at risk from the misuse of the Maqlû. Surely a supreme being would care and make things happen subtly, or not so subtly so that Alex can succeed – if he stays on the right path.
And that’s about the best I can explain my belief that a deity is part of my magic system.
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