We are all too often are conditioned to think of magic as divided into "good" or "evil." Many use the terms "black" and "white" magic, which have gotten too tangled up in history as euphemisms for evil and good forces, respectively. These terms imply that magic comes from one of two sources: helpful, or harmful. I don't see magic as being from a force of good or evil, but nature . I believe it's neutral—like fire, like electricity, like heat—it's energy, and has no alignment of its own. It's simply a resource to tap.

Rather than calling magic good/white or evil/bad, which perpetuates this notion that magic is either from gods or devils, I started searching for different terms that I felt were more applicable. At first, I used the terms "positive" and "negative"—which, to me, was more like the different charges of a battery. Even though it's applicable, it seems the word "negative" is too tied with negative connotations to be effective here.

I've come to embrace the terms "constructive" and "destructive" now. Constructive is not always benevolent (I can construct something to help you, or something to harm you) and destructive is not always malevolent (I can destroy you, or destroy something that's hurting you).