Magic and Memetic Marketing: A Tale of Two Books

Dear readers,

This month's book review will be a little break from my usual structure. In this review I will explore two contemporary books on magic, not necessarily their content or their fine bindings, but rather how they are presented and marketed. A tale of two books. Typically I critique the craftsmanship of deluxe editions; however, in this entry I will instead look at two standard editions with emphasis on presentation, branding, and packaging.

Epoch: The Esotericon and Portals of Chaos by Peter J. Carroll &Matt Kaybryn
Arcanorium College. 2014. 216 pages. Landscape Quarto. Full color with many full color illustrations. Includes 54 over-sized, full color, "cartomagical" cards.

Available in a single edition.

Trade hardback: No limitation stated, however the first 100 copies are signed by the author and artist.

Anthology of Sorcery: Book 1 by various (no editor stated)
BecomeALviningGod. 2014. 353 pages. Octavo. Black & white illustrations.

Available in two editions.

Standard Cloth Edition: Limited to 400 copies. Sold out at publisher

Deluxe Edition: Full leather. Limited to 100 copies. Sold out at publisher.


I often wonder about future of esoteric publishing: Where it it going? What form it will take? What content will remain relevant in our fast-paced and digitized world? And... Is the future already here? I have discussed some of these themes a number of times before, including here. When I discuss new limited editions and other hard-to-find books the words of futurist and author William Gibson often come to mind, "The future is already here -- it's just not evenly distributed." -- The Economist, December 4, 2003  

Is the future of magic and esoterisicm one that will always be looking back to days of secret lodge meetings, hidden rites in darkened groves, or private alchemical discoveries lost amid crumbling archives? Is it safer to continually look backwards to re-imagined and historically questionable golden days of yore, or should we keep our eyes fixed on the horizon, eagerly ready to adapt to (and adopt) whatever memes and technologies the future has to offer? The future used to be a slow trickle of change, often small enough that entire generations could ignore it if they so chose. Today the future is coming at us in a torrent -- a tsunami of data and society-changing gadgets. Entire paradigms are created and destroyed overnight like castles in the sand. It can no longer be ignored. One has the choice to ride the wave or be drowned by it.

"The tribal community lived in the totality of circular time; the farmers of God's universe understood before and after; workers of the clockwork universe lived by the tick; and we creatures of the digital era must relate to the pulse." -- Douglas Rushkoff

This pulse, a staccato drumbeat compelling us to be on the cutting-edge of all the newest developments, gadgets, and their endless apps & functions is unavoidable today. For better or worse, this is the ever-increasing tempo of our society. There are good and bad aspects of this of course. There are a number of genuinely useful applications available, even some with potentially life-saving potential. But what about the others? Are they really "time-saving" devices?

When faced with continuous and rapid change many people do their best to stay on top of tech trends for fear of falling behind (socially and professionally) and thus potentially becoming out-of-touch with their peers. The downside, as I see it, is that it forces us to live continually in the now -- no time to look back and reassess, evaluate, or question; no time to plan a strategy or resistance. This is exactly where the media and business world would like us to be, that is, so overwhelmed and over-saturated that we simply accept whatever we are given. After all, each device promises to make our lives easier, right? Bread and circuses right in the palm of our hands. However, some of these adopted devices turn out to be akin to the folkloric changling child masquerading as something normal and wonderful until one realizes they've been nurturing something ghastly. The old bait-and-switch.

I am not immune to the aforementioned societal pressures.  Luddite as I am, I was the last of my peers get a cell phone, finding the idea of being at everyone's beckoning call disturbing. I like my silences. Though once phone booths started disappearing and went the way of the betamax I had little choice but to reluctantly adopt the cell phone. Now it appears I will be pushed into the world of Smart phones soon. It seems that calling and emails are far too time consuming for the post-modern technophile. Information must be compressed into a text or tweet resulting in communications of lower fidelity and higher levels of noise to signal ratio. We're communicating more, but we're certainly not communicating better. Somehow I doubt I will have the same experience reading a .pdf of Glanvill's Saducismus Triumphatus in the sterile blue-white glare of and iPad, punctuated by random cartoon-like blips and beeps, as I would reading from stiff and age-darkened pages by candlelight with a glass of Amontillado at hand. Perfectly aligned aesthetics are everything.

So in the spirit of looking forward and a rapidly changing world, I would like to look at two very contemporary magic books. Epoch: The Esotericon and Portals of Chaos is a Chaos Magic book (a post-modern current if there ever was one) while Anthology of Sorcery: Book 1 is exactly what it says, an anthology of sorcery. The various authors provide a distinctly contemporary approach to magic, including some notables, like the ever-humorous Lon Milo DuQuette.

Dystopian Corporate Logos. Image Credit: catchwordbranding.com

One of the most obvious characteristics of goods and services in our age is aggressive product branding. Branding is used in a myriad of ways of course, from company logos to iconic styling. We are bombarded daily with subtle (and not so subtle) marketing techniques. Thus it was only a matter of time until someone in the esoteric book market decided to use the same branding techniques as, say, Crown Royal whiskey, or slogans reminiscent of Nike's "Just do it".

Remember the "occult scare" created by this logo?
 Image credit: Proctor & Gamble

When I received Anthology of Sorcery: Book 1 from BecomeALivingGod (<--- surprisingly no ™) I recognized immediately that I had received an unusual beast. In my hands was a black cardboard box that read, "BecomeALivingGod: Real Magick, Real Results." Each of the four sides contained a single word, "Omnipresence, Ascension, Omniscience, Omnipotence" respectively. One certainly cannot accuse BALG of setting the bar too low. Inside the box was a black velveteen bag, again sporting the BecomeALivingGod logo. I immediately thought of Crown Royal whiskey. For those unfamiliar with it, each bottle comes in a trademark royal purple draw-string bag, that is, if you're into that Canadian stuff. I have been told the bags make excellent tarot card bags.

Image credit: CrownRoyal.com

Inside the bag was a black book. Not just black, all black. With its black boards, black endpapers, black ribbon marker, black head/tail bands, and blackened edges, Anthology of Sorcery: Book 1 is the literary equivalent of a "murdered out" assault vehicle, to use the vernacular of the young. The regular edition is bound in black satin. Taken as a total package, it struck me as a rather well-designed marketing strategy. It certainly stands out. It may sound excessive, but the cardboard box and the bag help protect the book in shipping (and after), so they do serve a practical purpose. Ixaxaar ships their books in a black cardboard box with the Ixaxaar logo as well. Sometimes it it the little things that matter. Anyone who has ordered from Scarlet Imprint surly appreciates how each book is carefully wrapped in black paper.

I realize there are lot of strong opinions out there regarding the BecomeALivingGod website and its owner E.A. Koetting. However, for the purpose of this blog I am going to stick to reviewing their book only. If my readers would like to read more, Frater Barrabbas has a very fair and informative review of BecomeALivingGod and Mr. Koetting on his phenomenal blog, Talking Ritual Magick, here.

Overall Anthology of Sorcery: Book 1 is a sleek and attractive book from a new publisher with a very 21st century flair. It's a great start, though there is still room for improvement. The boards seem a little too thin for the paper weight and have a tendency to bow slightly with the text block, or it could just be my copy. The paper has a satin finish, which really helps the images pop, but I find it a bit too glossy for my taste. It causes occasional glare on the page making reading difficult at times. I found myself re-positioning the book more than I should need to. More of a personal preference, really.

One can see the sheen of the paper in this photo.

In complete contrast to the Stygian Anthology of Sorcery: Book 1 (for better or worse) we have specimen #2, Epoch: The Esotericon and Portals of Chaos by Peter Carroll, the father of Chaos Magic (though one could argue it began with A.O. Spare). Forget the all-black thing (even if all-black is the standard uniform for most Chaotes) -- the cover looks like psilocybin ice-cream. For whatever reason -- call it a "genre archetype"-- Chaos Magic books have traditionally sported covers that are (perhaps not surprisingly) chaotic, fractal in nature, and colorfully frenetic. This book is no different. I cannot think of a single Chaos Magick book that has an artistically restrained cover; perhaps Joshua Wetzel's The Paradigmal Pirate,.. maybe. The rest are tie-dyed treatises on reality-hacking and viral sigils. Read enough of those and you will find yourself speaking in E-Prime and doubting your own shadow.

Epoch: The Esotericon and Portals of Chaos is an over-sized paradigm-shifting trip through world mythologies and literary cosmologies (Carroll clearly loves the Cthulhu Mythos). It even has its own website -- here. Carroll also includes his 21st century interpretation of the Qabalah, what he calls the Chaobala. No doubt some will see this as refreshing and forward-thinking while others will see it as heretical. I've found that the latter is always a good sign.

                                          

The book also comes with an over-sized (dare I say super-sized?) deck of "cartomagical tools of the 21st century" created by the author and artist, Matt Kaybryn. The cards are laminated and fairly durable. The first thing one will likely notice is the artwork. Each "Altar Icon" card in the deck depicts a god, goddess, element, planet, or entity. Mr. Kaybryn has given many of the gods/goddesses a modern update. Horus is portrayed as a young punk which is particularly apt. Thoth is particularly striking. Unlike traditional tarot card art through the ages Mr. Kaybryn's art is digitally created. Another sign of the times, perhaps. I have mixed feelings about digital art. When used wisely, and in many cases sparingly, it is a wonderful medium. I occasionally create digital art myself. However, the Achilles heel of digital art is the human face, for now. Many of the figures look lifeless, like colorful manikins. Shuffling though the deck is like a journey through a wax museum. The eyes in particular look empty and strange. The cards containing elements, creatures, and cosmic forces are far better. I like these quite a bit. Digital art is much more forgiving when it comes to amorphous horrors.

Bucking the trend, the publisher, Arcanorium College, decided to resist the tremendous urge to sell on Amazon and instead chose to sell exclusively through Weiser-Antiquarian Books. Yes, the book can be found on Amazon; but if you notice, Weiser-Antiquarian is the actual seller. Good choice. I've found Weiser-Antiquarian to be very reliable and always have fair prices.

As one can see we have two very contemporary books here. Each is very different from traditional esoteric books in their own way. They are essentially products of our times: assertive branding & marketing, distinctly contemporary packaging and art design, and a conscious (conscience?) choice to set up distribution through independent booksellers.

Daemonologie of King James

Ouroboros Press 2014. 120 pages. Duodecimo (Twelvemo). Black and white illustrations.

Available in three editions:

Standard Edition: Cloth and letterpress dust jacket. Limited to 600 copies.

Goat-Skin Edition: Full black goatskin. Limited to 45 copies.

Hellmouth Edition: Quarterbound in snakeskin and cloth with folding plate depicting the Hellmouth. Limited to 25 copies.

First published in 1597, Daemonologie of King James is a fascinating treatise on late 16th century attitudes regarding witchcraft, magic, sorcery, folkloric creatures, ghosts, and demons. The book is written in the form of a dialog between two gentlemen, Epistemon (Greek for sciences) and Philomathes (Greek for lover of knowledge). Epistemon presents a series of arguments (20 in all) on the nature of witchcraft, necromancy, magic, and sorcery. Philomathes plays the role of the doubter, or Devil's advocate, by questioning the validity of Epistemon's claims. Their dialog offers a curious glimpse into late 16th century rationality and logic. For example, Epistemon is portrayed as somewhat unsophisticated and naive, as he is ignorant of the powers of witches and sorcerers, even doubting their existence. Philomathes plays the part of a worldly scholar well-versed in witchlore and occult powers.

The irony is that while Philomanthes is supposed to be the uninformed common man (the "Joe Public" of today), he actually comes off as the more reasonable of the two. His skepticism, no doubt intended to be dangerously foolhardy and ignorant in his day, seems completely rational and levelheaded to the modern ear. In a reversal of roles, it is Epistemon who strikes the modern reader as sounding irrational, like a smug fundamentalist. Thus a work that was used as paranoia-inducing anti-witch propaganda in its day sounds rather quaint and jejune today.

The book is dived into three parts, each with a central argument followed a series of minor arguments and elaborations.

• First Booke: The exord of the whole. The description of Magie in speciall.

• Second Booke: The description of Sorcerie and Witchcraft in speciall.

• Third Booke: The description of all these kindes of Spirites that troubles men or women. The conclusion of the whole Dialogue.

As you can see, the book is written in Elizabethan English. Those unfamiliar with it may find it challenging.

One observation that I found particularly interesting: the high value placed on information. It seems that no matter what the time period, knowledge is power. We like to say we live in an "Information Age" where information is everything. In reality it has always been everything; we just have more of it now. When describing the diabolic powers the Devil (or Deuill in Elizabethan English) grants his followers there is particular emphasis on the ability to know things beyond one's natural ability, such as the outcome of future battles, or whether a sick person will recover or die. For example:

"Sathan ... will oblish himselfe to teach them artes and sciences, which he may easelie doe, being so learned a knaue as he is: To carrie them newes from anie parte of the worlde, which the agilitie of a Spirite may easilie performe: to reueale to them secrets  of anie persons, so being they bee once spoken for the thought none knowes but GOD; ... Ye he will make his schollers to creepe in credite with Princes, by fore-telling them manie greate thinges; parte true, part false:"

As you can see, not only was information incredibly important and powerful, but also the speed at which it could be obtained -- something we take for grated today with Google at our fingertips. Those who had foreknowledge of what was to come, or advanced knowledge of something that has already occurred, had a significant strategic advantage over others. Speedy information was so powerful it was worth selling one's soul to get.

In one of Epistemon's arguments there is a passage that reminded me how little things have changed in 400 years.  Epistemon describes the sinful path of magicians and how simple curiosity can lead to far greater heresies.

"...they are so allured thereby, that finding their practize to prooue true in sundry things, they studie to know the cause thereof: and so mounting from degree to degree, vpon the slipperie and vncertaine scale of curiositie; they are at last entised, that where lawfull artes or sciences failes, to satisfie their restless minds, even to seeke to that black and vnlawfull science of Magie."

I seems that even back in 1597 people tried to use the "slippery slope" fallacy to win an argument. If Epistemon were around today he would probably be a pundit on FOX News.

Epistemon describes the differences between practitioners of the black arts. He lumps them into two groups, magician/necromancers and witches/sorcerers. The main difference between the two groups, according to Epistemon, is that magicians and necromancers generally mean no harm; they unknowingly fall into the trap of prideful lust for knowledge, including forbidden knowledge. In contrast, witches and sorcerers are out to do harm to others and lust for wealth. Magicians and Necromancers have high, yet sinful, aspirations while sorcerers and witches have lowly and base desires. Interestingly, later in the book Epistemon says that the sins of magicians and necromancers are actually far greater than those of witches and sorcerers because their sins come within closer proximity to God, that is, god-like understanding. My goodness, the arrogance...  Again, knowledge is power. If people learn too much they become a greater threat. This is why it was a burnable offense, according to those in power, unless the magician or necromancer worked for them of course.

In the latter part of the book Epistemon and Philomathes discuss the nature and existence of folkloric creatures. This amounts to a compendium of monsters and their respective natures and habits. Epistemon pontificates on the nature of lycanthropy and the existence of ghosts, dividing the latter into various subgroups: specters, wraiths, etc.. Additionally, fairies, brownies, incubi, succubi, and demonic possession are also addressed.  

Now on to the part you've been waiting for, the book itself:

For this review I will be reviewing the "Hellmouth Edition" of Demonologie of King James. Credit to Mr. William Kiesel of Ouroboros books for coming up with such a colorful edition title. I cannot say it without cracking a smile. I say, who wouldn't want a Hellmouth edition? The Hellmouth Edition is half-bound in white snakeskin and black cloth. I have no idea if the skin comes from an albino snake or if it has been bleached, though the former would be more appropriate. The magical properties of albinism is well known in witchcraft traditions throughout the world. (Unfortunately it has recently lead to savage butchery of albino people in Africa with the belief that albino limbs possess magical power.) The contrast between the white snakeskin and black cloth is striking and also appropriately symbolic. It represents how magic with good intentions can actually be something black underneath.

The snakeskin feels very smooth, has a remarkable shine, and begs to be touched. The black cloth is sturdy with a tight weave and is stamped front and back in gold with Ouroboros Press' colophon, the ouroboros circumscribing a Maltese cross. The spine has seven raised bands, each edged with gilding. Matching snakesking head/tail bands. The title, Daemonologie 1597 is stamped in gold on a black leather spine label. The book comes with a black ribbon bookmark. Opening the book reveals black and white hand-marbled endpapers. Paper is of medium-light weight and pale cream in color. The folding "Hellmouth" plate is lightly marbled parchment in color. The book begins with an spectacular period illustration of the Devil (see pic) and has several other equally attractive decorative ornaments and illustrations. This is a very elegant little book and one of the most unique to come from Ouroboros press. It marks a slight departure from their usual three-tiered business model (vellum, goatskin, and cloth). To further break with tradition, one of their newest releases, the Brazen Serpent Edition of Nicholas Flamel's Hieroglyphical Key, will feature a full Cambridge binding hand bound by Michael Atha of Restoration Books. The early pictures look incredible.

With Daemonologie of King James Ouroboros Press continues its wonderful service of providing high-quality editions of important long out-of-print works. They cater to a specific strata of the esoteric community that values source-works and is not put off or intimidated by archaic language. Like the Malleus Maleficarum, Glanvil's Saducismus Triumphatus and other anti-witchcraft treatises of the 16th-17th centuries, Daemonologie of King James provides a wealth of information about the practices and activities of magicians and witches, that is, if one is to believe testimonies given under torture. Many of the alleged diabolic acts are likely less a reality than they are a reflection of societal insecurities, namely, the rising power of the merchant class and its threat to the aristocracy, schisms within the church, and of course the ever-present fear of intelligent women with power. Fascinating and historically insightful as these books are, they were, sadly, used as tools -- even guidebooks -- for the persecution of countless people. As I alluded to earlier, books like these are valuable in that they can teach us something about the past, but they can also become an uncomfortable mirror reflecting society's age-old failings and highlighting fears that remain to this day.