#Willworks

[contentcollectivestudio]

30+ Years Experience in Textiles & Fashion / Luxury Goods, 4th Generation Retailer that understands social commerce, merchandising and taking brands that Last Mile - over and over again. I understand what you need to be visible and have the experience to set the tone and fly! Contact me, there are a couple select openings in the studio - looking for retailers and brands that want to make a difference. Will Works Pin It!

[thisfuckingloser]

Called out of work cause my fucking wallpaper is yellow (my mental illness is getting worse) and then when I go to do something productive (cut my dogs nails) I clip one too short and now he's bleeding everywhere. (He's fine now I wrapped it in gauze and he's on the couch). Just feels like I can't do anything to help people, like I'm just getting worse and bringing others down.

[stardewstardropthoughts]

I’m here again bc I’m down bad for these men (and 2 exceptional ladies): What would they get us as a wedding gift, and how they react to us coming up the aisle 🥹💖💖💖

God I am down astronomical for them so I get that lol, I’ve included links to what wedding rings I think they would give you 😌 I just did the bachelors in this one but if you want the bachelorettes lemme know!

What the bachelors give you for your wedding and how they react to you walking down the aisle

Harvey:

First off, he’s sweating

This is a lot of attention and he’s not use to it

He got you something meaningful as a gift, something to symbolize what you mean to him

It’s a beautiful hand made photo album with all the pictures you’ve ever taken together in it, and a few he’s taken when you weren’t paying attention

Under each picture is a brief description and the reasons he loves the photos and you

Very worries you’ll think it’s cheesy or dumb but you love it and him

The moment he sees you walking up the aisle towards him?

He’s trying not to sob, he thinks you look absolutely ethereal

Could hardly stop complimenting you enough for mayor Lewis to get the ceremony started

This is the wedding ring:

Sam:

He’s so excited, he’s been pacing all day

His mom and his friends could barely keep him calm lol

He got you one of those eternal roses that are in like the jars of liquid to preserve them

It’s not much but you love it none the less, it’s a super sweet gift

When you start walking down the aisle?

Tears, doesn’t even bother to hide it he just loves you so much, and to see you walking toward him ready to spend the rest of your life with him? He’s crying

Gives you a forehead kiss before mayor Lewis can start his speech

This is the ring he gets you:

Alex:

He’s trying to remain calm on his wedding day, trying to look very nonchalant

But he’s readjusted his tie and shirt like 25 times in the last ten minutes

He’s frazzled but he won’t show it

He got you a silver heart shaped locket with a picture of you on one side and him on the other side

Your wearing it currently with your wedding outfit

When he sees you walking down the aisle any anxiety he had has gone out the window

He thinks your the most elegant person out there and he can’t believe he’s so lucky to have you

This is your wedding ring:

Shane:

He’s so nervous and it shows, he’s sweating, he threw up this morning

His anxiety is off the charts

He got you a dainty bracelet with little emeralds embedded in it since you once told him those were your favorite gemstone

When he sees you walking up the aisle he’s so much calmer

It’s amazing how just the sight of you can help his nerves settle

Thinks you look absolutely amazing, he still can hardly believe that you want to marry him

This is the wedding ring:

https://mollyjewelryus.com/shop/kite-cut-lab-emerald-engagement-ring-solid-rose-gold-2/?gclid=CjwKCAiAr4GgBhBFEiwAgwORrRCFJ6df2CMqs7EB8KVAaZhuZT6AQVATBAl-CGhiBUY2nsfi9ojYIRoCNkcQAvD_BwE

Sebastian:

He’s pretty calm day of, he is however enjoying watching his mom run all over the place fretting

Has to tell her to calm down a few times

He got you a dainty little necklace with a labradorite crystal on it in the shape of a star

When he sees you walking down the aisle towards him is when he starts sweating

He thinks your the most perfect person on the face of this earth and he isn’t sure how he managed to bag a baddie like you

Can’t stop smiling for the life of him

Just adores you, tears on his waterline but not falling cause that would ruin his eyeliner

Yes he wears eyeliner

This is the ring:

Elliott:

Oh god this man is so excited

He loves you with all his soul and he cannot wait to be married

He got you a very pretty pair of pearl earrings and a matching necklace to go with them

When he sees you walking down the aisle he has to physically stop himself from running down it to pick you up and kiss you

Thinks your absolute radiant, the most beautiful person he’s ever laid eyes on

Could recite a whole sonnet for you on how much you mean to him

He’s sobbing though so you’ll have to wait for that

This is the ring:

[retroactivebakeries]

notes from a d&d heartbreaker in which each class is based on the mechanics from one of the weird 3.5 classes:

Mystic/Warrior/Expert: "Passive" classes, where your powers are either always on or just things you can use whenever, as much as you want (although maybe borrowing resets from the swordsage and warblade). Mystic is modeled on 3.5 warlocks and dragonfire adepts, while Warriors and Experts split the difference on the various non-casting classes, and the non-casting parts of guys like rangers or bards. The simplest classes, intended as an easy entry point into the game.

Mage: For each level of spell, you can cast a certain number of spells each day. Modeled on 3.5 sorcerers and other spontaneous casters. The next-simplest class down from the passive classes.

Channeler: Similar to the mage, except instead of divvying up spell uses by level, you have a single pool of resources that's used to cast all your spells, with the cost scaling with spell level. Based on 3.5 psionic classes.

Chaos Adept: Each round, roll to randomly determine which powers you can use that round. Modeled on the 3.5 crusader.

Living Grimoire: You have to prepare your spells in spell slots of the appropriate level in advance of casting them. Modeled on D&D wizards/clerics/druids, but drawing more from the weird, pulpy roots of its inspiration, the writing of Jack Vance.

Pactbroker: Make pacts with multiple puissant supernatural beings, each with its own set of powers—but you can only use one at a time (at least, to start out with). Modeled on 3.5 binders and vestige magic, and to a lesser extent, dragon shamans' auras.

Willworker: You can cast spells as often as you like, but have to succeed on a roll to do so, with failure meaning you can't use that spell again until some 1/interval reset. Modeled on 3.5 truenamers.

Demiurge: Instead of spellcasting,you have a set of magical devices, construct servitors, and other neat stuff, gaining more or upgrading existing items as you gain levels. Modeled on 3.5 artificers, but without the infusion part.

Gifted: Similar to the passive Mystic class, but not all of your abilities are constantly on—you have a limited number of points to allocate between them, requiring you to choose your power load-out in advance until you get time to reallocate. Modeled on the 3.5 incarnum classes.

Some classes will need a specific set of unique powers—probably the passive classes, chaos adepts, the gifted, demiurges, and pactbrokers.

For the rest, instead of class-specific flavor/spell lists, you'll largely customize the classes' flavor by picking from one of a couple sets spell lists—maybe something like, Earthsea/Gandalf-style wizardry, Thulsa Doom/Elric-style pulp sorcery, cleric-type miracle working, psionic powers, and wuxia-style cinematic action that may not technically be magic.

Some classes may have a handful of spells that are unique to them, primarily ones that play off the unique quirks of their casting mechanics.

[maddiviner]

So, @ceruab13 was asking about books focused on Enochian magic and the Angelical language.

I scrolled a bit, and it turns out that the interest stems from the popular television drama, Supernatural! I actually think it’s kind of neat that Supernatural incorporated the Enochian language into the show. I watched an episode or two back in the day, but have trouble keeping with long shows, so it’s not my fandom.

If people are interested in learning more because of it, though, so be it. I could try to write my own summary of Enochian magic, but other people have done that, and much better than I could, so I’m providing a list of books instead. Some are published and available in ebooks and print; a few are freely available online, either out of copyright or just free to distribute.

This is a short reading list featuring books I’ve read focused on Enochian magic, the history of it, and the concepts involved. It is not a recommended reading list, exactly. It’s just a list of everything I’ve read that might be relevant, with a little bit about each book.

Some are books written by magical practitioners to help others learn the art; others are focused on the history surrounding John Dee and Edward Kelley. I hope you find something worth reading here. Again, these aren’t limited to recommended favorites - it’s just a list of everything that might be, in some way, helpful.

First, before I start listing the secondary sources, I’ll suggest reading some of Dee’s diaries.

They’re actual diaries, and you should keep them handy in a tab if you’re reading more about this. Also check out A True and Faithful Relation, which is a later account of their workings. That link includes (typed) excerpts, but you can find scanned copies through Cornell’s digital library, too. You can keep these handy while reading any of the following works, and it’ll be helpful. Don’t feel discouraged if the Elizabethan grammar and such seems obtuse, and if secondary sources help provide context, let them!

The Essential Enochian Grimoire, by Aaron Leitch.

This one’s really comprehensive, and covers both purist interpretations of the tradition and Neo-Enochiana. On top of that, there’s a lot of good historical context here, too. A lot of the strictly historical authors ignore the existing occult traditions that influenced Dee and Kelley, or just don’t talk about them enough, whereas here there’s entire sections devoted to them.

I really liked the chapter that attempts to outline the worldview present in Dee’s diaries. I recommend this for the willworker who hasn’t got any experience with Enochian, but not for someone just starting out with magic. If you’re used to working in a spartan fashion, you might find the calls for equipment daunting, but the workings in this book are very adaptable.

John Dee and the Empire of Angels, by Jason Louv.

Not a book of practical magic, but a biography of Dee and Kelley. Louv himself is an occultist, and therefore willing to entertain explanations for the incidents that other history researchers might not. He also keeps grounded and admits that none of this can be strictly proven, and that Kelley, of course, could’ve been a charlatan. I tend to see a critical approach to Dee and Kelley (rather than treating them both as sages) as the mark of a decent book on Enochian magic.

Here, the author speculates a lot on what was actually going on, and doesn’t shy away from mentioning the paranormal aspects that are hard to explain. Louv’s tone and pacing are excellent, and the conversational tone of the book will no doubt maintain your attention to the very end. A lot of it feels like juicy Elizabethan gossip (except with citations!), and will give you a feel for Dee and Kelley’s complicated world.

The Angelical Language, by Aaron Leitch.

Whereas The Essential Enochian Grimoire covered the working of Enochian magic in practice, Leitch’s The Angelical Language gives us a narrative of the system’s reception and development, with special attention to the language itself. There’s plenty of practical bits woven in there, and the blending of history and magical technique enriches the experience of both. Also, while I did like this book, I had a tonic clonic seizure while reading it. I liked how the author included pronunciation notes for the Enochian letters, even though I doubt I vocalized them properly.

Primarily focused on the language itself, the book doesn’t include as much practical advice as The Essential Enochian Grimoire. The practical parts he does give look like they’d be easy to adapt to different scenarios, though. There’s not an overt focus on having a lot of tools. I lost consciousness and seized for a good three or so minutes while reading this book on break at work and woke up in the emergency room. I’ll probably get the second volume and read it soon. Leitch himself suggested not reading the Angelical words out loud next time? 😆

Enochian Vision Magick, by Lon Milo DuQuette

Lon really isn’t my cup of tea, particularly since I’ve ditched Thelema and don’t plan on ever going back. This book is notable, though, because he uses really archaic techniques for his scrying operations, making them quite different in energetic texture than the more common Golden Dawn methods. His methods require a lot of “stuff,” so to speak: ritual tools and accoutrement.

DuQuette’s attitude of treating ritual tools as training wheels to be internalized and eventually rendered unnecessary as skills develop isn’t exactly unsound. It’s certainly one method of doing it, but it’s not very accessible. It’s certainly not how most people (who tend to pick up magic in their early years, and may not have a ton of resources) are doing things. I didn’t. I’m mentioning this one for completeness, mostly. Read it to see what Thelemites are doing Enochian-wise, and how Crowley’s influence survives to this day in Enochian magic.

The Vision and the Voice, by Aleister Crowley

Crowley was an abusive piece of shit. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, you can check out The Vision and the Voice. It’s available here online. It’s Crowley’s journal of his experience scrying the Enochian aethyrs with his student and service top, Victor Neuberg. They had decided that the Algerian desert was the perfect place for a month-long scrying operation facilitated by a sex magic ritual wherein Crowley took the passive role. In the desert. Let that sink in. 😝

Following this experience, Crowley considered himself to have reached a state of enlightenment. The experiences therein and the visions were, in fact, fairly intense. Oddly, I hadn’t read this when I did my (first) Enochian workings, and didn’t pick it up until much later, and then only for completeness sake. I don’t recommend actually listening to Crowley’s advice on hardly anything, but it’s good to read this to understand his influence and history. You probably shouldn’t listen to one iota of his actual “teachings,” but there’s plenty to be learned from the guy. You can learn a lot about aerodynamics from watching a fiery plane crash.

The Queen’s Conjuror, by Benjamin Woollet

This is more of a straight-up history book detailing the remarkable lives and work of John Dee and Edward Kelley. Woollet provides enough background material to give an ample window into Elizabethan life, occult and beyond. This book gives no practical (or other) instructions and, as far as I’ve been able to tell, was written by a non-magical historian. I consider The Queen’s Conjuror a necessary read for that reason.

Sometimes we forget how magic can intersect with things like politics and science. This biography of John Dee reminds us that it’s all always already connected, and that Dee’s primary impetus was a (highly political) “immanentization of the Eschaton”. This book entertains various theories about the situation at Mortlake, fully admits Kelley may have been a charlatan in some capacity, and features other refreshing takes from an academic perspective.

The Black Lodge of Santa Cruz, by Satyr

Magic, much like fire, can be a useful tool. It can also reduce precious things to embers. This is the memoir of a magician who, in the late 1980s, was part of a small and controversial Enochian studies group in California. Read it here.

Satyr, working with his wife and their easily-possessed mentor, begins a series of experimental Enochian workings. Things rapidly spiral out of control amid already tense occult political situations. The context for this (the Caliphate OTO’s squabble over succession, etc) may feel irrelevant to modern practitioners (it is to me, for all intents and purposes). Nevertheless, we can all recognize the egos, personality clashes, ambition and other factors that contributed to the unique situation in Santa Cruz. In terms of magic itself, this memoir documents a period of great innovation, both inside Enochian circles and in other areas.

Heartbreaking in places and illuminating in others, The Black Lodge of Santa Cruz gives the story of one of the most infamous cases of the notorious “Enochian breakdown” phenomenon people talk about, where someone starts doing intense Enochian workings only to have their lives driven into pure chaos. Recommended reading before you attempt any so-called hell-rides (those month-long scrying operations people keep doing), at very least.

I hope something here interests someone!

[ghoul-mortician]

The horror in Mage: The Ascension

From Guide to the Technocracy page 24

Let’s begin be re-examining the foundation of the whole game. We can sum up all the mystic mage philosophy presented so far in four words: Reality is a mess. Some people believe that reality is guided by consensus. If that’s true, then this reality, as we experience it, is defined by the combined will of billions of humans. Collectively, the human race creates a dominant paradigm for the world, one based on simple, reasonable ideas: gravity works, truth is proved through logic, two plus two always equals four and so on. A few isolated groups rebel against these notions, but the general consensus still creates what we see and experience. For the most part, our world is the one humanity has chosen. There’s one complication, though: Although humans form the most populous society in the world, they’re not the only one present. If reality is a tapestry woven by mankind, then someone or something is starting to snap the threads. Fringe groups, occult societies, monstrous creatures — all of these terrors hide within the warp, woof, and weave of the world, straining against the accepted fabric of reality. The insanity of the supernatural world is tearing reality apart. Some creatures are even more dangerous. They drastically alter reality itself to fulfill their own desires. By their will, so is it done. Call them whatever you like — willworkers, magi, mystics, shamans, Reality Deviants — in a word, they’re mages. They do not share the reality of the Masses. Instead, they place themselves above and beyond it, pursuing their own dangerous dreams. Through their power, any madness can be made manifest. ... Think, for a moment, of the horrifying reality of that statement. Through the mind of a mage, all things are possible. Any dream, any nightmare, any lust or desire can be realized. Any base urge can be fulfilled through sheer force of will. The darkness in a wizard’s soul calls out for meaning to define the mysteries of his existence. Offer him a mythos of primitive gods, and he’ll summon them into reality. Tell him lies of death and resurrection, and he’ll tear the veil between life and death asunder. Speak to him to him of spirits and the unseen, and he’ll release them into the world. Such is the madness of primitive magi.

[coloursfalllikesnow]

finally got around to doing some quick headshots for a few of the NPCs in my Hunter the Reckoning game. got a few more to do but here’s some for now.

Gabrielle & Destiny: Newly moved to the West Virginia town of Bone Ridge after the mysterious death of Gabrielle’s ex-husband and subsequently inheriting a house in the area, these two were the reason the cell came to the town in the first place. The House of the Basilisk discovered some posts online where Destiny showed a photograph of a creature she stumbled on in the abandoned mine in the area, which, as the cell learned when they arrived, apparently tracked her down and attacked her while they were en route. After the cell ended up bungling their assignment to protect Destiny from the monster, the girl vanished from the home after another attack from the creature - and, based on some deductions and a photograph of a large wolflike monster escaping the house, became one of the mysterious Lycans.

Lousia: Encountered for the first time outside the mine as they were investigating it, Lousia didn’t start off with a great first impression of the cell, but things warmed up. Lousia is a member of the Riese family, known locally for living on the outskirts of the town and being strange and a bit reclusive. Louisa is a kinfolk to the Bone Gnawer tribe, and she and her family are under the impression the cell are also kinfolk, due to their ability to see spirits and apparent immunity to the Delirium... which is thanks to their Sight.

Ozzie: Louisa’s uncle and a Bone Gnawer Ragabash, Ozzie assisted the cell in clearing out an infestation of strange, mutant animals. He’s a jovial, friendly fellow, and enjoys jokes, as well as teasing the “kinfolk.”

Patricia: Louisa’s grandmother and Ozzie’s mother, Patricia is a powerful willworker as well as a Garou elder - she’s the one in charge of their tiny sept, and is keeping a very close eye on the newcomers.

“Jack”: That’s probably not his real name. This enigmatic figure has a canny knack for appearing and disappearing wherever pleases him, and seems to appear as a void under a Hunter’s Sight, and that can’t be a good sign. But he’s been helpful so far. Maybe. It’s hard to tell.

???: It’s probably fine, don’t worry about it.

[straightyuri]

oh wait maybe alex's mobs willwork now

[a-celestial-dream]

If my future man doesn’t propose to me with THIS ring in particular:

I probably won’t say yes.

This is literally my dream ring because it looks like the midnight sky is trapped in a stone.

(Ring belongs to Willwork Jewelry)

[neotrances]

ok i’m stopping for now i did two other things but willwork on them more before posting eh

[eleemosynecdoche]

I hope whatever magician/"adept"/'"willworker"' who's been putting together the Goncharov working is having a very good day.

[contentcollectivestudio]

Progress. You determine and enjoy. Content Collective Studio, Authentic & Storytelling.

[the-firebird69]

We have reason to believe that these people are going to try and do things to our son today and they're going to try and ding him all day long that's the whole bunch my son is laughing I also understand is what I said our son is what I said and not the other two sentences we are watching you mess around with us too and we're going to get rid of you you should see it coming but you're very stupid We're having us do in space as you call it it's ridiculous less than childish crap and we're making a pay well where do you have a dream do that brian how are we pushed you to it in Westborough near another fruitcake and forces will be eliminated with ease you have so much arrogance and confidence and you just turd it have to say the trump in the end realizes he needs a laser that actually works instead of his mouth so gonna go after you and make quick work of you I'm going to get ready to go do the stupid laundry at the stupid laundry mat cause you stupid **** insist we don't have any patience for you before your dumb routine we're gonna make this suffer regret that you called us this morning we're also gonna take you to town and we're also gonna take you to court and we're gonna make sure that you never do anything to anyone ever again

Thor Freya

We have around 10 lawsuits and they're forming up rather nicely here in town and they're against multiple parties course you know about it you're suing each other you say but we have a team of lawyers on a couple of them all of them and you still can't figure out who people are so we're gonna go in there and we're going to take care of business and go after you and it is today. There are two cases today they're coming up this morning and we are going to go after you because of that now we noticed that you as a people were obeying the law for quite awhile and now you're all miscreants and you're losing all your stuff and you made the wrong decision to do so and we're making the right one to stop you associated with the lawsuits are criminal charges and somebody will be going to prison today and you will knock it out and you'll die and we are going to make sure that you die we have tested it we can get people in and out even though you say it's a lock and we're going to make sure that you understand what we're talking about and Trump is having to offer proof says that he has to kidnap our son and he says it all damn day and night because these juvenile loser and we're going to hold you guys responsible for him too all I can say is we're going to come in there and straighten you out

Bitol and Goddess Wife

we use this they are sscoffing blabbing and laughiing we hit them now. leadership is down yes. four point ninne mac morlock six point seven psuedo empire and clones are at 22. soon all three are out. the masses will not follow orders. and your attack on ours much weakened. it will take seconds for you tosee it but really only when it counts. and we shall ready as if it willwork so we do se why your so arrogant

Thor Freya

Olympus

[throatslug]

I am here because if I try to meet other willworkers in the city, I get stuck with choristers! Ha!

[apocrypha-of-darkness]

In the Beginning...

Simultaneously the most important and least impactful place to begin, how everything got started. How the clock towards the end of all things got rolling.

As despite the modern age theoretically being utterly divorced from these events, beyond mythic remembrance, it sets the stage for all that is to come.

----

Lo, hell, hello.

In the beginning was a great bang

In the beginning was six plus one days of toil and rest

In the beginning was a corpse which would become all that exists

In the beginning was a roiling sea of chaos ultimately given form from the formless

In the beginning was a dream.

A choir and a host worked, at the behest of another, hand in hand to construct an Immaculate Machine so that this dream could be made manifest. Whose soul was made of three component, each less than its sum, each with the capacity to see all that was wrought turn to ash. Nestled within the branches of all that could be, drinking deep of the well of that which could not be, it came to be known as Gaia. The Wyld tide nourishing the Weaver while the works were devoured by the Wyrm.

The first cracks appeared in the eternal engine when the Host and Choir moved on to other endeavors, turning their gaze to other works with which to occupy themselves in the formation of all.

The next would appear with the Age of Wrath, as the Host forsake their duties to take up arms against their brethren. The Immaculate Machine, even still before it could be truly brought to awaken, resonating with the sorrow of what was to come.

The Age of Wrath came to an end, followed by the Age of Sorrow: though for those not trapped within a torment-pit beneath all of existence it was an Age of Legend. Where god-kings ruled over miraculous lands, where Atlantis enticed the first of the willworkers to gather, to learn.

Until it came crashing down, when those unable to escape the deluge were swept away when the heavens burned in the wake of the Exarchs.

--------

Woaow

so it fell apart at the end there, but good first try and formatting it like this I'd say!

put more plainly, drawing from the oWoD for the origins of the world.

Where similarly to Demon the Fallen, the world was constructed by the Elohim- one of their many names- and things existed in a more or less 'stacked' set of realities. Many simultaneous truths that did not contradict.

During this time they created what would become known as Gaia, with the Triat existing in a state similar to the subsidiary(?) souls from Exalted. Each a part of Gaia, yet independent in their own right. Whatever strength the earth may have had being more than a little hindered by the destabilization dear old Weaver would see to in her ironic pursuit of ultimate stability.

The Fallen paved way for the Exalted the era of Atlantis from Mage the Awakening, alongside pieces of, well, yes, Exalted as well as the pre-flood world as presented in Days of Fire. Where the First City coexisted alongside human kingdoms that warred with one another, and magic flowed freely. With the biblical flood coinciding with the Shattering of all things following the oopsiedaisy of the Exarchs yanking up the Celestial Ladder.

Both as a result of direct manipulations (Thank you Gate exarch) and Gaia being unable to truly keep the Abyss at bay, this directly led to the Fallen World as the supernal-touched know and love it. (I won't go in depth about it now, but similarly the drained-ocean of the Underworld from New World/Chronicles in my mind is the result of things shattering. Where once Stygia and the Underworld connected properly, there was now just a gaping pit that everything slowly drained out of; starting with To The Strongest and only going down from there)

Though the werewolves, fae, and others would still need a bit more time before their equivalent disasters strike. Bet 5$ mages will be behind that too.

[maddiviner]

Hey everyone. I’m posting this to raise a question.

As witches and willworkers, we (should) try to show conspiracy theorists the door, particularly those who’re bigots. But what do we do about people who’re obviously experiencing delusions? Someone who’s mentally ill? Struggling and hurting?

As my username suggests, I’ve got a lot to say about this topic, but there’s not really an easy answer, and I think it needs some discussion. I’d be happy to hear other people’s perspectives. I do think people like me (who’ve experienced psychosis) might have strong feelings about this, but so might those hurt by conspiracy theories. It’s complex.

People online like to laugh when someone posts that the earth is flat, that the moon is a demonic lair, that mountains are trees, etc. When someone starts claiming they’re being “gangstalked” by aliens or the Illuminati, etc, people laugh.

My question is, where do we draw the line? Truth is, a lot of these weird delusions of persecution people write about online are symptoms of actual mental illnesses. So why do people treat it as funny?

Nobody’s going to post a video of me having a seizure and laugh when I bite my tongue. We don’t chuckle when someone with multiple sclerosis experiences spasms. People don’t post screenshots of people talking about deleting with “hahah look at that depressed loser,” so why the “hahah look at that stupid schizo” vibe?

I get that it’s hard not to laugh, at times. Some of it can be quite ridiculous from the outside. If someone on Facebook tells you they think you’re working with the Illuminati to spy on them for purposes unknown, it can be hard not to respond with anything but a confused giggle.

Still, though. Imagine being that person, believing that. From the inside, it can be a terrifying experience. Those things feel unbelievably real in the moment. Three months later, you might find that low dose Abilify (or something) returns your life to normal, but believe me - delusions feel real when you’re in them. I’d wager that’s true for all delusions. When we’re in it, we believe it, we feel it - the fear’s real.

I don’t want to discuss my personal experiences with delusions when I was much younger. I’d rather have written this entire post without mentioning it, but I don’t think my perspective would be taken seriously otherwise. While frightening, my own delusions didn’t involve these kinds of conspiracy theories. They aren’t really relevant here, except to say that it feels incredibly real and terrifying.

In other words, you can be sure that the boomer dude accusing you on Twitter of being a “perp” working with the gangstalkers and beaming “nausea waves” at him really does believe it, and really is frightened on an existential level.

With that in mind, can we really feel okay laughing at people like that?

I guess we might be unable to suppress a private giggle when we read someone’s comment about the hollow earth, or those moon demons supposedly drinking our blood. But it’d be downright unconscionable to directly bully them, even under the guise of “trying to talk them out of it.”

It’d of course, be worse, to pretend I *am* the moon aliens that terrify them, and start messaging them. And yes, that happens sometimes. I have an old friend who developed schizophrenia in 2007 and is STILL convinced we were all working against him/stalking him (at the time) because another person tried to turn his delusions into a joke, thinking it would “make him realize how silly he was being.”

Of course, by “turn them into a joke,” I mean “pretend they were real” and act out the scenario via Skype while the rest of us frantically tried to stop him.

If we’re going to talk about why humor might make such situations worse, we need to discuss humor itself. There’s some evidence that humanity’s capacity for laughter evolved as a way of signaling to our comrades that a situation isn’t actually dangerous. In other words, ancient humans might have laughed as a way of saying, “Yes, this looks scary, but it’s not!”

When we laugh at these things, we’re affirming (to ourselves, if not necessarily anyone else) that we’re not afraid, either of the moon demons or the person frantically telling us about them. Thus, the “laugh at conspiracy theories” thing can be a way of inoculating ourselves and others against them.

We shouldn’t do this at the expense of people who’re scared and suffering, though. We should always take care to avoid making things worse for other people who might have been unfortunate enough to fall into this kind of thing. The issue, of course, is how to do that while also not allowing a place for such conspiracy theories.

I hang out sometimes in transhumanist spaces online. It’s not frequent, but I do keep tabs on the movement and new papers, etc. Naturally, the topic of human enhancement, cyborgs, all that, attracts some conspiracy types, some of which are clearly hurting. In those cases, the moderators of those places tend to show them the door, because reading more transhumanist material and interacting with a volatile online space like that could be harmful for them in that state. That, and of course, not everyone’s kind, and people were trying to “mess” with these “crazies” too.

What it comes down to is this. If it’s a friend of yours or a family member, you likely have the means to help, even if in a small way. When it’s an internet person, you really don’t. Trying to talk them out of it likely won’t work, and might make things worse. Play-acting to make them “realize they’re being silly” is disingenuous trolling, and you’re a grade-A piece of shit if you even consider it. Often, removing yourself from the situation is the best you can do, if the person seems to be in no immediate danger.

I actually wish I’d been banned from certain spaces online when I was dealing with this kind of thing. It sounds ridiculous, but many of the places I visited during my episodes delayed recovery. When you’re experiencing psychosis, material and interactions that would otherwise be innocuous can have straight-up toxic effects. There’s no sense to it - that’s why it’s psychosis, I suppose.

At one point I commented on here that I didn’t do Tarot readings for people currently experiencing mental health crisis or psychosis. I was called ableist for that, and told that I should simply “ask them their triggers and remove those cards.”

Yeah, no. Psychosis doesn’t play by that sort of rules. Or any rules, really. Even if, from the outset, I can’t cite “violent impalement” as a trigger, I might be terrified by the Ten of Swords, especially if I were experiencing delusions again. This is not a black and white issue, and I’m still figuring things out - I just think the matter of mental illness is an important thing to consider. And a lot of these conspiracy theories were intentionally designed by bigots for bigoted purposes. Popular conspiracy theory influencers nowadays exploit the vulnerable for fame and profit.

Many of these conspiracy theories are just updates of centuries-old antisemitic blood libel, though. And these ideas cause a lot of real harm. You only need to skim the news over the past few years to see how far-reaching and dangerous things like Qanon quickly became. How can we best combat this kind of thing, knowing that they specifically target people who are struggling?

We shouldn’t give conspiracy theories so much as an inch. We should be working to both debunk them and warn others from falling into those belief systems. But what do we do in situations where someone is clearly unwell?

As I said, delusions don’t play by normal rules. Mine didn’t. Presenting evidence isn’t going to work, and that’s not because the person is obstinate, either. I usually just walk away, disconnect - but this is something worth talking about. How do you handle these situations? Why?

Before I go, I want to also note that sometimes a response you post to a person online isn’t actually for them. It’s extremely hard to change someone’s mind by arguing with them online. Other people read those exchanges, though, and are influenced by your words.

In a way, when I argued with Qanoners on Facebook during the lockdowns, I wasn’t typing words for them, but for the lurkers who might come across it. I knew the person I was arguing with wasn’t going to listen, but I also knew we had an audience. So, that, too, is important to keep in mind when dealing with conspiracy theorists (of all sorts) online.