The Guild Record is the journal of the Sorcerer Guild. It has appeared four times a year since 1976 and is sent to every member. A selection of its papers, addresses and reports is published here.
Report of the General Convocation, 2026
The fifty-fifth General Convocation met at Lantern House from September 24 to 27. The Warden of the Seal reports on the roll, the business transacted, the Masters' pieces presented, and Founders' Night.
The Problem of Results
How do we know that a working has worked? The honest answer is that very often we do not, and that learning to say so is the beginning of knowing anything at all.
Notes on the Planetary Hours
The hours are simple to reckon and easy to get wrong. Some practical notes, with a worked example, for members who have begun to time their work and have met the usual difficulties.
The Circle Is Not a Wall
Beginners are taught that the circle protects them, and many go on to work as though besieged. The circle is better understood as a frame: it does not keep danger out so much as keep attention in.
A Winter Solstice Address
The Guildmaster's address for the Convocation of the Long Night, read in every Hall of the Guild on the evening of the winter solstice, 2025.
Banishing: The First Skill and the Last
Banishing is the first thing an Apprentice is taught and the last thing a Master stops practicing. It is also the most misunderstood operation in the Art, and nearly every troubled letter the Gate receives describes its absence.
On Keeping the Record
Reprinted from 1978. A founder's instructions on the keeping of the Record, and on the three temptations that beset everyone who keeps one: to improve, to explain and to omit.
Why We Memorize
A rite read from a page is a recital. A rite known by heart is an act. Some notes on why the Guild asks its members to memorize, and on how to set about it.
About these papers
Papers in The Guild Record express the views of their authors and not of the Guild, which as a body holds none. Members who wish to offer a paper should write to the editor at journal@sorcererguild.com.