On Character Creation

You are not defined, and thus get to define yourself

I already posted a list of how to begin magically altering your life. If you haven’t read that, go do it now.

This is one of several posts I’m going to make, breaking down that list. Let’s start with the idea of character development, otherwise known as invoking.

Ego and personality aren’t permanently defined traits. You get to try on different personalities and presentations until you find one that fits, like outfits. No one shows up the same way in all aspects of life. We wear different personality costumes to the doctor’s office, a friend’s birthday party, Thanksgiving dinner, a funeral, and so on. Often, this is unconscious. We are going to bring this process to the surface and make it conscious.

The self does not exist. It is an eternally changing thing that you get to have a hand in crafting. You are not defined, and thus get to define yourself.

To do this, it helps to try on other people for a bit and see how it feels. We do this through a process called invoking, where we bring the spirit of another being into our own. Below is a basic process of invoking.

• Pick a person you admire and look up to. This does not have to be a real person. Fictional characters, historical figures, celebrities, gods, and saints are all up for grabs.

You may choose to invoke a certain figure for a specific reason or event. We will get to that later. For now, just pick someone you look up to.

Write down things you associate with this figure. If you don’t know these as facts, that’s even better. What do *you* think the answer to these questions are? You can write down anything, but for the next part of the exercise you must at least have some of the following:

• What does this person smell like?

• What songs do you associate with them?

• Is there a symbol or icon associated with them?

• How do they dress?

• What colors do they like?

• How do they do their makeup? Their hair? What products do they use?

• What foods do they like to eat?

• What do they like to drink?

The answers to the above questions will form the basis for your ritual toolkit.

For general character development you are going to do the following: For at least a week, you are going to invoke this being into your own. You are going to wear these clothes, eat their favorite food, do your hair and makeup like them, so on. Try this person’s skin in for at least a week and see how it feels. Do people treat you differently? How do you show up? How do you feel? Note that once you get into the flow, more touchstones of character may appear. These things do not have to make sense to anyone but you, and are what we used to call back in the day a form of “unverified personal gnosis” or UPG.

It may be that embodying this figure works well in some scenarios, but not others. It may be that you don’t like the feeling of being them at all. It might be that you never want to let them go, and they leave a lasting impression. This is all good information for the next exercise.

Now, let’s focus in and try invocation for a specific task. Let’s say you have an important event coming up and you need things to go a certain way. Maybe you want to hook up with someone, maybe you need to land a job, maybe you need to charm a room, maybe you need to come off as strong and unfuckwithable. Whatever.

Choose a figure to invoke for this. Who or what would absolutely kill at what you are trying to do? It helps if you have already invoked this figure a few times before so you know how they feel, but it’s not necessary.

As you get ready for this event, invoke them.

• Sound: play music that reminds you of them.

• Symbols: wear symbols you associate with them in the form of jewelry, t-shirts, underwear, lingerie, socks, a piece of paper folded into your pocket, so on.

• Anoint: wear perfume that smells like them.

• Mask: do your makeup like them.

• Costume: dress like them, or wear things you associate with them.

You can layer these and play with them. For instance, you can anoint a necklace or symbol you associate with your chosen figure with perfume. With time and practice, you might develop enough of a relationship with this figure to have an altar in your home where these objects rest.

If any of these items are difficult or expensive to get, you can substitute with something more readily available. Really, stop overthinking this stuff and making excuses. If you can’t get Chanel no. 5, can you get a rose perfume? Don’t talk yourself out of magic.

Life is too short for one self. We can’t always get stuff done on our own. If the self doesn’t exist, then it’s ok to try on different selves and see if others fit better, or can be used for better purposes. Use invocation to get stuff done and get over yourself.