Why Get an MA in Magic & Occult Science?

I was as surprised as the rest of the academic world when the University of Exeter announced a master’s degree in Magic & Occult Science in 2023. When I tell people about it, I get the same stunned – but delighted – look every single time, the raised eyebrows and mini-gasp that exclaims “that’s a thing??” It’s new, but yes, it’s absolutely a thing. And it was a call I couldn’t ignore when I learned about it.

Most of my friends, family members, and colleagues weren’t surprised that I decided to move to England to pursue something so unique – this is pretty on brand for me. But there’s also the (valid) question of what I plan to do with such a degree.

Just as I would ask many emerging writers while I was working as a professional script reader why their characters do what they do, it was important for me to know the reasons behind my own motivation for such a leap.

A few click-baity headlines have floated through social media blatantly misrepresenting what we study, implying that all we do is read tarot cards and talk about crystals all day. No shade to tarot cards and crystals – I have an ample collection of both – but no, that’s not even close.

It’s an inter-disciplinary program that fuses history, sociology, philosophy, theology, literature, media studies, and classics to look at the ever-changing boundaries between magic, religion, and science over many centuries. Favorite topics of mine include – but are not anywhere near limited to – monster theory, the uncanny, Neo-Platonism, folk medicine, belief in demonic possession, alchemy, mesmerism, and spiritualism as a means for social reform. These are not inconsequential stories that have floated around the outskirts of more “serious” topics like philosophy, medicine, and law; they have been integral to the evolution of society since the beginning of conscious thought.

And sure, as a witchy person myself, I do bust out the tarot cards in the middle of study sessions with my classmates.

I’ve spent almost twenty years working in theater, independent film, and TV as a freelance writer, producer, and script supervisor in between full-time work at companies like Sundance and NBC Universal. The writing, especially, is where my heart lies.

It’s hard work, there’s no doubt about it, but even those of us who know exactly how the sausage is made, who have worked from 6 a.m. to midnight on a shoot, battled fraudulent insurance claims, been extorted for exorbitant hidden fees in the permitting process, fired a sound engineer for an inappropriate tantrum at midnight and had him replaced by 7 a.m., been stiffed on invoices, insulted by executives, strung along by agents, and on and on and on…somehow, we still think of it as magic.

Storytelling is magic. And magic is storytelling.

Magic is the stating of intent and the manipulation of energy to achieve a desired emotional effect. This is why people consume art; it’s not (just) because we want to be distracted or entertained, it’s because we want to feel, to learn, to grow, and to find out what in the world lights us up and connects us to our own core motivations in the finite time we have to live on this big, beautiful, blue rock.

And like anything else in life, stories are complicated. They can be used for good to educate and build empathy, or used for nefarious purposes to disseminate lies and propaganda.

Just like magic, the root of whether a story is good or bad always boils down to intent. It always boils down to the why.

* * * * * *

The industry collapse has been super hard on all of us.

Like many other creatives who also happen to be chronic over-thinkers, I wonder how we got here and whether I could have somehow avoided the brunt of the mess and kept my career chugging along. Maybe I should have done something differently in L.A. Maybe I should have stayed in my last stable job or should have been good enough to get promoted faster than I did or should have moved there earlier to get a bigger head start before everything changed.

Should. What a weird and surprisingly loaded word.

Should comes with a lot of baggage when it’s attached to big life decisions. Beyond responsibility or practicality, it’s so often tied to approval.

If I’m going to spend the money on a master’s degree, shouldn’t it be for something “useful”? Something that will make me money if I have to pivot away from freelance writing and independent film? Should I choose something…safe?

But what could possibly be considered safe anymore? Five years ago (or less?) the world seemed to agree that coding was the bullet-proof plan for a high-paying career. Now? Not so much. Medicine is always growing, right? Finance? Engineering? Aside from the fact that all of these degrees come with an astronomical price tag and STILL provide no promise of a stable career, there’s a more important factor: I would have HATED all of these things.

None of these things would be authentic to me. None of them appeal to the way my brain works. None of them feel worth starting from the very, very bottom and spending the rest of my life working my way up the ladder.

There’s no clear answer to what anyone should do in this situation. But magic is never about listening to the should. It’s about listening to inner truth.

Ultimately, my why is a hope that the study of magic will make me a better storyteller. That what I’m learning and sharing can inspire others to connect to the history of our collective human experience just a little more deeply. That we all stop underestimating the power of intention and the power of voice.

Fellow storytellers and magic makers, I hope you’re still inspired by your why in these difficult times. I can’t wait to connect with you again very soon.