Loud G wrote:
I've read books where the title wizard has nothing to do with gender. I've also read books where wizards are male and witches are female.
Don't forget Warlock, more commonly used for Male Witches.
A Wizard, in my studies, is typically a master of metaphysics. More science based than faith.
Witches and Warlocks typically depend on faith and spirituality.
But again - that's only in THIS world.
Male and Females could be Witches and thier evil counter part could be Wizards. Or vice versa but I typically would cast the Witch on the side of good since they like to worship the Earth. It would be like calling the Earth evil.
--- "No story that ever began 'So I was playing a Half-Elf, Chaotic-Neutral, Fighter/Thief/Mage' can ever end well." -The Bard Noir
Re: a question about titles Whether you like it or not, "Wizard" is very much associated with male magic-users (I've no idea whether or not it is supposed to be gender-neutral, although I think it is).
Remember there are many other names for magic-users;
Warlock - Witch
Sorcerer - Sorceress
Enchanter - Enchantress
Mage (or Archmage)
Magician
along with any made up name (like Robert Jordan's Aes Sedai).
Whatever you do, do not spend too much time into deciding what is ultimately just a title of a magic user. Also, in my opinion, you should try to introduce these magic users without using their title, allowing their actions to show (at first) they may be 'gifted', and later confirming it.
Re: a question about titles The word "warlock" has several different meanings depending largely upon who is using the word and why; various etymologies are offered in this Wikipedia article.
Re: a question about titles I prefer to keep things simple sometimes.
So when it came to shamans, I made the title unisex. Male of female, you are just a shaMAN.
Wizard doesn't scream male or female to me, but I don't use that one. It sonds scholarly. Like Professor, or Doctor.
Mage I use without regard to gender/sex, but it is a generic category for users of elemental magic (mage was easier to use than "elementalist" or whatever). Specific types of mages might refer to themselves as priests/priestesses, monks, etc.
In the real world the word "witch" was actually used to refer to both men and women and various points in time. Thus male witches were not always called "warlocks", just witch. Though I do admit I like the sound of warlock better. It just sounds more menacing. "Look out for that WARlock!" I don't use either word in my writing.
