This book was so helpful to me as an aspiring author. It inspired me to work more on my own magic system for the book I'm currently writing. The books I read are also shown in a whole other light. I notice the small interesting details authors thought of while creating their magic system.

Charlie Holmberg is also a wonderful teacher. She explained everything so fluidly; it was easy to grasp. She even included worksheets in the book that I will most definitely put to good use while working on my stories.

Lastly, it's a good way to add books to your TBR ;)

In *Charlie N. Holmberg’s Book of Magic*, the beloved fantasy author invites readers behind the curtain of her enchanted worlds, offering both aspiring writers and devoted fans a beautifully constructed guide to the craft, architecture, and heart of magic in fiction. Blending personal insight with narrative technique, this volume reads as both an instructive companion and a love letter to the alchemy of imaginative creation.

Far from a dry how-to manual, the book pulses with Holmberg’s characteristic warmth, wit, and literary precision. Each chapter explores a key facet of fictional magic systems—be it structure, source, limitation, symbolism, or thematic resonance—anchored by references to Holmberg’s own novels as well as broader traditions in fantasy literature. Her voice is approachable yet assured, ideal for guiding both fledgling writers and long-established dreamers through the complexities of designing believable, resonant magical frameworks.

Holmberg excels in balancing technical clarity with poetic sensibility. She demystifies the process of worldbuilding while simultaneously preserving its wonder, encouraging authors to build magic systems that serve not only plot mechanics but emotional depth and symbolic meaning. Particularly compelling is her exploration of “rules versus mystery,” a thematic tension that underscores some of the genre’s most enduring works.

For readers, this book offers more than guidance—it offers companionship. Holmberg’s reflections on inspiration, creative doubt, and the joy of invention are woven seamlessly into the instructional content, reminding us that writing magic is as much an act of heart as it is of logic.

**Final Verdict**:
*Charlie N. Holmberg’s Book of Magic* is a luminous and wise exploration of the art of magical storytelling. Whether you are crafting your own fictional universe or simply yearning to understand what makes the spellwork sing, this book provides insight, encouragement, and creative fire. It is, in every sense, a grimoire for the modern fantasy writer.

**Rating**: ★★★★★

*Disclaimer: I read an advance copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

I gave this book 5 stars because it totally changed my mindset on writing Fantasy! I always thought it would be too hard or too complicated for me to be able to write. But the way the author breaks down the magic of fantasy in to bite size pieces gives me confidence to try my hand at adding a some whimsy to my stories. It's also the perfect length so that it doesn't overwhelm the person reading. I'm beyond appreciative for the worksheets, section for notes, and appendix. You can tell this author wants people to succeed which is amazing. I will be using this as a reference book over and over again.

As someone attempting to write a fantasy novel this was an excellent resource!! Holmberg share’s Brandon Sanderson’s three laws of magic but expands on them as well. She provides examples of MANY kinds of magic systems and breaks things into easy to understand categories, with lots of questions to guide your thinking. The book comes with sections to take notes and worksheets to compile your magic systems plans and ideas, as well as appendixes with tons of examples to spur you on. I’m way past the pub date, but I did receive an eARC of this book and I am very grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for that! 🙏🏻

Great information for magic systems. Would be super helpful to anyone wanting to know about how magic systems work and how to creat one.

*thank you to NetGalley and Oliver Heber Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for my review*

This book, like everything Charlie Holmberg touches, is golden. Her systematic way of approaching world-building and magic systems is so pragmatic and accessible. Let’s be honest, I’m way too scatterbrained to keep track of world-building details without a system, so if you’re anything like me, this is a great resource!

Holmberg’s way of maintaining originality was probably the thing that stood out to me the most—because we are all tired of finding the same old same old in the newest talked-up fantasy. And we don’t want anyone to feel that way about our own writing for sure.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, quick, and actionable book, and I think it’s worth a read for any fantasy writer!

I have read a lot of Charlie N. Holmberg's work, and she always crafts a story that is beautiful, fun, and simply magical. Reading through this guide for how to craft a magic system in a book was inspiring. I have always had the thought in the back of my head that maybe someday I want to write a book. I feel like this puts me one step closer. This is a great resource for someone just starting out and has so many ideas to build off of to help flesh out your story and your world. I can't wait to get started and see where my ideas end up!

This was a useful little book about how to write a magic system. I appreciate that it emphasizes how deeply magic can be ingrained in a society, especially if it's more common, and that the more important to your plot the magic is, the more you need to know about it. She uses a lot of good examples of other writers and I got quite a few book recommendations out of this. At the end, there's an appendix full of inspiration. Short and effective.

From the moment I first read Charlie N. Holmberg’s first novel, The Paper Magician, I knew she was something special. And over the years she’s continue to delight and amaze me. As everyone who has ever read her books knows, each of her series are full of not only incredible character and wonderful stories but she just has a way of coming up with spectacularly inventive magic systems. And if you’re anything like me you’ve likely wondered how she does it. Well in her newest book, Book of Magic, Charlie pulls back the curtain and attempts to teach how it is she does what she does. In this book, which is partially set up as a workbook, Charlie does a deep dive on how writers can go about creating their own unique magic systems, examining the various types of magic, discussing how to set up rules, limitations, and the various ways magic can play a role in the society of our made up worlds. This is without question one of the most thorough and easy to understand books the subject of crafting a magic system. It’s short and to the point and while it can be read in a single sitting, this is a book a fantasy writer is likely to come back to again and again and one they’ll definitely want as part of their library of craft books. Reading this book just makes me appreciate Holmberg’s work even more. I’d like to thank Oliver Heber Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Charlie N. Holmberg's Book of Magic.

https://www.amazon.com/review/RWULKIL2Y8UKO/ref=pe_123899240_1043597390_SRTC0204BT_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

A crafting book for the fantasy writer inside everyone!

As a fellow fantasy writer, and lover of all things magical, this book broke down what makes a fantastic magic system great and all the questions you, as the author, need to ask when creating a magical world from scratch! Multiple chapters made me think back to my own magic systems and think of ways to improve/differentiate them from other magical worlds as well as questions that helped me flesh out my world further! So, if you are just beginning to write, have already started, or are working on a current work in progress, this book is recommended!!

I love this little book! Only 51 pages on ebook but it sure packs a punch. Charlie N. Holmberg, bestselling fantasy author of The Paper Magician and many other books, skillfully guides writers through magic and magic systems. She breaks down types of magic and magic systems, their rules and laws, and their use in a wide variety of books (and some movies and TV shows). She offers tips and exercises for how to create your own magic system and how to incorporate aspects of magic into a book. In addition to helpful exercises, she includes a list of creative appendices and clever footnotes.

Charlie is very funny, genuine, and really shines in this short book as a master writer and lover of fantasy. I kept a list of the books she referenced and there were around 50 of them! She offered great tips and insight that came from how well-read she is. I took notes and enjoyed the exercises. It really got my creative brain flowing!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Oliver Heber Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh my. This was such a lovely read. It was short, memorable and POWERFUL. This was like reading a secret book from another realm, and somehow I was lucky to find a copy behind a tree or something. I loved every moment, every page and every wonderful, There is so much knowledge here about different authors and how they write about magic, and Charlie managed show a lot in very few pages. Wonderful, from A to Z! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

This book is just what I needed. I’m currently working on a fantasy novel using a lot of magic. While I had some ideas in my head, I wasn’t sure where to go to flesh them out and come up with more. There are a lot of books about magic, but none of them broke things down the way this one has.
There are in-depth explanations, great examples to refer to, and worksheets that can get your imagination fired up. I highly recommend this book to any writer who is trying to create a magical system for their story. Quite frankly, it’s the best I found on the topic.

I loved this so much. I read it just at the right time, since I’m embarking on a writing adventure this month and hope to write a longer piece of fiction specifically within the fantasy genre. There are so many good ideas here! It’s been very well-researched and contains many brainstorming exercises to kickstart your writing. I will definitely be referencing this quite a bit from now on.

Thank you to NetGalley and Oliver Heber Books for an eARC. I am writing this review voluntarily.

Charlie Holmberg’s Book of Magic is a weeklong magic worldbuilding writers workshop condensed into book form. It’s short and sweet with no fluff. As a reader, it gave me tools to understand and articulate why some fantasy books are better than others. It also returned me to a teenage version of myself who really did dream of creating fantastical stories. Unfortunately for that version of me, the process felt so overwhelming, I contented myself to being a reader. This book broke down all the steps and made the idea of creation feel a lot less overwhelming and a lot more tangible. It gives you the structure to create a unique and meaningful fantasy world while preserving the fun and the creativity. I appreciated and marveled throughout at how well read Charlie is in this genre, and I loved seeing her take concepts and use other well known books in that genre from a myriad of different authors to drive the points home. This book is a treasure trove of information. Definitely worth the time and the money if you enjoy reading fantasy or if you’re an aspiring author.

I would like to thank Oliver Herber Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

If you are a new or aspiring fantasy writer, you need to read this book by a prolific author with numerous books and series to her name. In fact, it might be important to the success of your book. Charlie explains categories of magic systems and why they are important. She analyzes limits to magical power and how to get around them if your story needs to do so.
Holmberg discusses originality and why your work should not rely too heavily on someone else's system. She’s the perfect person to do this because Charlie’s series are not carbon copies one of the other. She has original, creative and engaging premises for her different series. If you've read or are a reading one of her series, you will know that you like her writing. But you will not know how another series will use magic, magical touches or magical reality.
In this volume, Holmberg points to examples from many writers to help you understand choices and make it less tempting to copy.
You might want to read her book before you start and then again while you're writing. From Charlie you can learn what needs to be considered and how to make intelligent choices both for your characters and your plot.
You might want to consider a physical cooy as The author gives you many places to write down your choices and look at the consequences. You can analyze whether your happy with the world you're building. But if you really prefer an e-book, you could always print out those pages.
The further you go I to the Book of Magic, the more technical Holmberg becomes. At the end you’ll find appendices and a bibliography. It's a no-brainer that you should have read a lot of fantasies before you start to write your own. Her bibliography will either help you get started or let you check your reading against her suggestions. Helpful either way. This is not a long book, but I think it will give new or aspiring authors a jump start. Maybe you an avoid some mistakes others have made. Happy writing.