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This may come as a disappointment for some people, but working magick can
involve paperwork! Welcome to the fine art of magickal record keeping.

This paperwork is a valuable record of your magickal workings both for you and those who come after you. It also allows you to see your skills developing over time.
There are a variety of activities that can be recorded, from spell and ritual
preparation, to dream journals, to a personal journal, to the ultimate Witch
record, the Book of Shadows (BOS).

Spell and Ritual Sheet

When you are about to work a spell, it is important to have several elements straight in your head.
The easiest way to do this (for me at least) is to write them down. You can
rough the spell out on a scrap piece of paper and as you get it to the finished
product, why not write it out neatly and put it in your BOS?

Here are some things you might want to include in your spell sheet:

Type of spell/ritual
Date and time spell/ritual
Moon and Astrological Correspondence
Specific Purpose
List of tools and/or ingredients and/or supplies needed
Location
Deities invoked
Step By Step Instructions for preparation and use. Results (if the spell
worked, how long did it take, any specific results)

A Personal Journal

A personal journal is a great thing to keep, whether you are Pagan or not.
These can be kept daily or weekly and can include a variety of things. What
happened to you and your family, what was happening in the world, and how did you
react or feel about those events. At the end of each year, you can make a list
of goals for the coming year and revisit this list at the same time next year
to see how you have done.

Personal journals can also become a valuable recollection of family history.

A Dream Journal

I find it very hard to recall my dreams, even only a few days
later, this is where a dream journal comes in handy. You can now buy lovely
dream journals from bookstores, but another way to consider organising it is in
a loose-leaf binder. This allows you to arrange your dream journal by a
particular subject or symbol, if you desire. Record the date, moon phase, the
general story line of your dream and anything else (symbol, person, event) in your
dream that stands out. You may like to jot down notes of what particular
symbols mean to you. Try reading your journal every few months to see if recent
events throw light on your dreams.

The Book of Shadows

The Book of Shadows or Grimoire, is the magickal history of an individual
witch or coven. The personal BOS should contain all your magickal research and
working information.
You could have research and working information on the following things:

Divination - Tarot, Runes, I Ching, Dowsing etc
Correspondences - astrological, herbal, colours, crystals, elements,
Magick - spells, rituals, definitions, candle magick, crystal, colour, moon
magick
Ethics
Mythology/Pantheons - Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Celtic, Indian, Native American
Songs/Prayers/Blessings/Prayers
Magickal Records - of spells, rituals, readings etc. There are no set physical
requirements for the BOS. Some people love to acquire or make large, leather
bound, parchment filled tomes. Others prefer a loose-leaf binder, with
dividers.

Now, go and do some paperwork!