One of the things that I think takes the longest to get comfortable with is creating your own spells and rituals (or any practice really). As much as I feel like Paganism embraces individualized and personalized practice, most books only go into the bare bones on how to build a working from the ground up, and many 101 books don't really talk about doing your own thing at all. They just include a handful of premade spells and rituals, and often those don't really fit (because we are all individual, and we might live in a different country or time period from where the spell originated, which also makes things complicated).
I've always been a big fan of making your own spells (and for ease of wording, I'm going to say spells for the rest of this post, even though the same process can be used to build any spiritual working, from rituals to protections to Sabbats!), or at the very least tweaking the bits that don't work in spells you find out in the wild. In my very early days I did work with spells straight out of books, and while it has a certain comfort level (because it's very easy to doubt your own capabilities), it was always like wearing hand-me-down clothes....they feel like they don't quite fit most of the time.
But writing your own spells can feel daunting, and for many people even figuring out where to start is an issue. It's one of those weird things that feels like it should be talked about everywhere, and yet it's not, and when it is talked about, it's in a very bare bones kinda way (I mean even this blog post won't be as complete an explanation as might be wanted, but it's more extensive than a lot of the 'how to write your own spells' sections we see in books).
The start is always the why...why are you doing a spell. Note, I don't start with what you want to seek, because I feel like the why is always more important than the what. The why will lead to the what (and sometimes, as you explore the why, you discover that you are actually needing to work towards a different what than you thought you did!)
So start by asking yourself why, and really dig in here. If you wanted to make a spell to get a job, why are you looking for a job (do you want money, more excitement in your life, a chance to do something creative, or are you just bored). Notice, that all of those things could be reasons to find a job...but many of them lead to very different types of jobs. Knowing the why of your spell will help inform every step of the process!
Sometimes the why will be straightforward, like if you have a friend who is sick and you want to do something to help them heal. You care about your friend and you want them better, that is your why. But sometimes the why is more elusive, like if you want to loose weight, your why might be that you want to be healthier, but it might also include wanting to look better (and feel sexier or more confidant) and that you want to be able to play soccer without feeling winded immediately. You don't have to pick just one why, in fact exploring the many reasons behind your spell can help you create a much more inclusive working!
If you are struggling with understanding your why, it can be helpful to get outside advice. This might mean turning to your favorite divination method, and spending some time journaling out your whys, or it might mean asking a trusted friend or loved one for their input. Just remember, if you are talking to other people, that you want to not only ask someone who you trust (and who knows you), but also someone who isn't going to try to talk you out of doing your work (sometimes you can get advice on your why without explaining what specifically you are planning on doing, so take our job example, you might ask a friend what type of job they think you would enjoy without telling them you are planning on doing a spell for it).
Once you have your why, you can start to think about the main shape your spell will take. There are tons of types of spells out there, from candle spells to jar spells to bag spells or simple fire and forget spells. This is one place where reading examples (especially examples that are similar to what you are planning, so if you are wanting to heal a friend, looking at a selection of healing spells can give you a sense of what other people have found works, and that is a great place to start!). You might also just like one method over another, and prefer to use it, and that's perfectly fine too!
Almost every spell includes correspondences of some sort, whether they are physical items, representations or simply words to be called upon. This is where your whys really come into play. You will want something to represent all of your whys, so if I am wanting to loose weight (to be healthy, to look sexy and to be able to enjoy soccer more), then I should have at least one thing to represent each of my whys.
I sometimes think of deities as a way to include more correspondences. I have a pretty wide group of deities I work with, so I have a lot of choices for deities that will fit my spell. And sometimes you can work with multiple deities for the same spell, though this can often require more planning (and some deities just don't work well together, so understanding how they interrelate is important too). You don't have to call on a deity for your spells, and some people have a patron deity that functions like a catch-all for them, when it comes to calling on deities in a spell.
I also want to note that spell creation isn't necessarily something that needs to be done all at once, in one sitting or quickly. It can be, and learning to create on the fly is somewhat of a different skill, but for the purposes of this blog post, don't feel like you need to rush the process. Sometimes, I will let an idea stew in my head, and that helps me come up with connections and ideas that I might have otherwise missed. If you are planning your spell like this, having a notebook or some spot to jot down your ideas and thoughts as they come can be really helpful!
And, your actual 'spell work' doesn't have to be done in one setting either. Sometimes, we ritualize the prep, especially if you are making any kind of herbal blend, poppet, totem or amulet/talisman (which might need to be prepared ahead of time). Your spell might also extend into the future (like when you burn a 7 day candle for a spell), or have reactivation activities (like shaking a jar spell when it needs a boost or charging a ward every full moon).
With any spell work, I think it's important to not pressure yourself too much over the results. You aren't a bad witch/Pagan if you do a spell and it doesn't work out. It's not even necessarily that the spell didn't work...sometimes our spells are like trying to hold back the push of the ocean with just your hands....you might not have enough force to create the change you are working towards. But every spell you do (especially those you create) help you become better at them in the future!
One thing that I think can be important (but often overlooked) when talking about spell creation is reflecting on, and adjusting, the spell after the fact. Especially for something (like a healing spell) that you might want to use again in the future, taking the time to think about (and make some notes on) what went well and what didn't go as well as you would have liked, along with how the spell felt as you did it and the results afterward...these all help to let you refine the spell for future use.
Creating your own spells isn't as hard as it first seems, and the benefits are countless. Not only does it give you the ability to tailor your spells to your exact needs, but it also gives you complete control over what you use to do your spell, what deities (if any) you choose to work with, and how complicated or simple you prefer your work to be. I highly recommend anyone who hasn't made their own spells give it a try...it's not as scary as it sounds!
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