The Right Word

From our Magic Words outpost at Blogger:

"'Creation,' like 'creative,' is one of those hypnotic words which are prone to cast a spell upon the understanding and dissolve our thinking into a haze.  And out of this nebulous state of the intellect springs a strange but widely prevalent idea.  The shaping spirit of imagination sits aloof, like God as he is commonly conceived, creating in some thaumaturgic fashion out of nothing its visionary world.  That and that only is deemed to be 'originality'—that, and not the imperial moulding of old matter into imperishably new forms.  The ways of creation are wrapt in mystery; we may only marvel, and bow the head."  —John Livingston Lowes, The Road to Xanadu, 1927

Our dictionary of Magic Words has garnered five new reviews:

Magic Words is more than a dictionary - it is an impassioned call to writers, magicians and laypeople to bring magic back into their vocabulary. It is, in fact, an incantation calling forth the demons hidden within our speech, and no reader will finish this book without succumbing to its spell.

Let there be no doubt about it: Conley is on a mission to promote literacy, and his love of words possesses the cabbalistic reverence of an alchemist in pursuit of gold. For it is in the meaning of each word, of each letter of each word, that we discover the mysterious powers of language - or, as the author puts it, it is the inherent enchantment of the word that gives literature its magical influence. And this book will influence you in a most magical way.

—Anthony Marais, author of The Cure

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Words are inherently magical for the writer—also frustrating, obtuse, enchanting and expressive in various moments and times. We struggle with them, delight in them, and weave them together to form significant combinations.  Dictionaries are our friends, lists of synonyms our best buddies, and there are many of us who take simple delight in the well-turned phrase.  Craig Conley has given us a gift beyond regard: a dictionary of 720 of the words used by (stage) magicians throughout the ages.  Who can forget the shiver of delight we felt when hearing "open sesame" in the tale of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves?  Or the eternal Abracadabra! and Hocus Pocus?  Now we know where they originated, with their meanings, in combinations, and source material.  But this is no common dictionary!  Conley clearly loves words.  "Hocus Pocus: These primal, rhyming syllables echo the transcendental incantations of Latin rites, reverberating through hallowed cloisters.  They invoke an ancient, unworldly power, especially when enunciated slowly and authoritatively." (p. 327)  Highly recommended for anyone with a taste for words.

—Lisa Mc Sherry, Facing North

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This 352 page dictionary of magic words was a real hoot to review, I had a blast just thumbing through the pages and learning about myths, origins, trivia and other cool stuff. I even learned how to summon zombies and bring big changes into my life. I also found the illustrations and icons to be very helpful with the process.  I must tell you I knew of some magic words from books and movies, but I never imagined there were so many and even how they came to be in the first place. I think this voluminous teacher will go a long way in helping anyone broaden their horizons. I would recommend it to those who enjoy learning. Thanks Craig, for the interesting and informative experience.

—Riki Frahmann, Mystic Living Today

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I just got "Magic Words: A Dictionary." What fun! Magic words taken from literature, plays, movies; all the way from Ovid to Shakespeare to Ronald Hutton to J.K. Rowling!

Each word is presented as a word (with variations, if any) and then in a quote, and then meanings are given from many historical sources.

It would be interesting to sprinkle them in my conversation or journal writing or even for magic! Alakazam and abracadabra and hocus pocus, but also Hola Noa Massa, and Lit Flitt Latt Flight, and Shubismack. They are even just fun to say.

There is also an Appendix of "magic words" used by people in various professions - "action" for movies, "troubleshoot" for computer technicians.

—Chela's Amazon.com review

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Any interested in the words and philosophy of Wicca and magic will find Magic Words a fascinating dictionary packed with magic words and phrases from around the world. Over seven hundred essay-style entries probe the origins of magical words, their history, and their variations. Sources range from ancient Medieval alchemists to modern necromancers and magical legends, making for a fine trivia and study reference.

—Diane C. Donovan, California Bookwatch

We wrote a guest blog about magic words for Neatorama today.

Did you know that International Swear Like Shakespeare Day is Nov. 27, 2009?  We're honored to announce that SwearLikeShakespeare.com is featuring our illustration of curses of Shakespearean proportions.

If an infinite number of monkeys type for an infinite amount of time, will they will eventually produce every possible Shakespearean insult?  This is our question, not Wilfried Hou Je Bek's, but he did inspire it.  Here's a link to a PDF of a maledicta book produced by a group of Sulawesi Macaque monkeys: Notes Towards the Complete Words of Shakespeare.

"The author of every book is a fictitious character whom the existent author invents to make him the author of his fictions." —the stunning Italo Calvino, If On a Winter's Night a Traveler

"Speculate, reflect: every thinking activity implies mirrors."  —Italo Calvino's masterpiece, If On a Winter's Night a Traveler

"At one time a language existed that was immediately comprehensible to anyone with the concept of language." —William Burroughs, Cities of the Red Night

Writing an "abbreviated history" isn't as easy it would seem.  For example:

Lt. Gen. Wm. B. of LV, NV (b. '43): mia (awol?) c. '63.  [42 characters]

Translation:
Lieutenant General William Baxter of Las Vegas, Nevada (born 1943) went missing in action (absent without leave?) circa 1963.  [106 characters]

The best abbreviated history we've seen has the squirm-inducing title of Castration: An Abbreviated History of Western Manhood.

"You have with you the book you were reading ... which you are eager to continue, so that you can then hand it on to her, to communicate again with her through the channel dug by others' words, which, as they are uttered by an alien voice, by the voice of that silent nobody made of ink and typographical spacing, can become yours and hers, a language, a code between the two of you, a means to exchange signals and recognize each other." —Italo Calvino, If On a Winter's Night a Traveler  (We've mentioned that this book is a masterpiece, right?)

"How to establish the exact moment in which a story begins?  Everything has already begun before, the first line of the first page of every novel refers to something that has already happened outside the book.  Or else the real story is the one that begins ten or a hundred pages further on, and everything that precedes it is only a prologue." —Italo Calvino, If On a Winter's Night a Traveler  (We need not mention how wonderful this book is.)

"'Escape' is one of those words I cannot hear without abandoning myself to endless ruminations."
—the immortal Italo Calvino, If On a Winter's Night a Traveler

"The more gray and ordinary and undistinguished and commonplace the beginning of this novel is, the more you and the author feel a hint of danger looking over that fraction of 'I' that you have heedlessly invested in the 'I' of a character whose inner history you know nothing about." —Italo Calvino, If On a Winter's Night a Traveler

"'Questionable' is a splendid word; I have always attached a great philological value to it.  It calls up a desire both to pursue and to avoid, or at any rate a very cautious pursuit, and stands in the twofold light shed by what is noteworthy and notorious in a thing—or a person."
—Thomas Mann, Doctor Faustus

When we're asked to weave stories out of the whimsical dictionaries we compile, we're left scratching our heads [oops—the Majestic Plural gets tricky!].  The lexicographer gathers the words for the writer to combine.  The satirist Dr. Boli knows what we're talking about.

Often confused with "anamorphic," the anthropomorphic format is a photographic projection in which an animal mask is required to view the original aspect ratio.  In this example, an anthropomorphic kangaroo (Prof. Oddfellow) and his silver tabby watch David Lynch's "Rabbits" series.

From our outpost at Blogger, here's an excerpt from Janet Boyer's review of our Magic Words: A Dictionary:

The first 48-pages of Magic Words are utterly fascinating, with Conley an engaging tour guide through literary, philosophical, cultural and spiritual landscapes—realms dotted with landmarks that pay homage to the power of magical utterances (and, sometimes, even to silence and mysterious glyphs).

Not only does Conley offer examples of poetic incantations and the mysterious power of words in his introduction, but he also provides fascinating insight into the vocabulary of ritual (and why we get the giggles during solemn occasions!), the four archetypes of the Magician, and our ability to imbue “ordinary” moments with the magic of both cadence and connation.

The rest of Magic Words is dedicated to, well, magic words!

With word origins, facts, variations, meanings, mystique and appearances in literature, this A to Z guide offers a mind-boggling array of information to be mined by would-be magicians, entertainers, writers and artists. . . .

Magic Words is, indeed, a meticulously researched, heavily footnoted, and absorbing read, especially for lovers of trivia and words.  Performers seeking to spruce up their magic routine would do well to consult this book, as would all manner of artists who seek to infuse their work with meaning, mystery, flair or sacredness.

See the full review here.  Janet is author of The Back in Time Tarot Book.

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Gary Barwin writes: