Yes, I said it. 😂
And no, I’m not trying to be rude.
I’ve been a professional spellcaster for nearly 20 years, and I’ve actually discouraged happy clients from leaving positive reviews. I’ve even asked people who wanted to defend me publicly to think twice.
That might be the strangest marketing strategy you’ve ever heard.
But there’s a reason for it.
Reviews sound wonderful. On paper.
One customer tells the truth about an experience. The next customer makes a better decision. Everybody wins.
Except the internet didn’t quite cooperate.
Businesses can manufacture praise. Competitors can manufacture complaints. Fake accounts can turn a handful of opinions into something that looks like a consensus. And real people with real experiences get mixed into all of it.
I’ve watched the ugly side of review culture firsthand.
Does that mean every glowing review is fake, or every complaint is a smear? Of course not. Legitimate warnings matter, and people deserve to share their experiences.
But a system that’s so easy to manipulate deserves a little less worship.
And that’s true in practically every industry, not just mine.
Then there’s the matter of privacy.
People come to us with wishes they may not have told their closest friends.
A broken relationship. Someone they hope will return. A financial struggle. A private hope they’re almost afraid to say aloud.
To me, those aren’t stories waiting to become advertising.
They’re someone else’s life.
My team and I believe spellwork should remain private. Even when the client is thrilled. Even when they’re disappointed.
In our spiritual tradition, discretion is part of the work itself. We believe inviting the public into someone’s deeply personal wish can interfere with it.
Other practitioners do things differently. Some share photographs, videos, or testimonials. I respect their right to practice that way.
But we don’t have to practice the same way.
And what exactly are people comparing?
I understand the question almost every anxious client wants answered:
How long did it take for someone else?
When you’re hurting, you want a timetable. You want to hear that someone with a situation just like yours got what they hoped for in two weeks.
I understand that feeling completely.
But in my experience, a situation that looks simple can take a very long time, while something that seems almost impossible can change unexpectedly quickly.
Two situations can look similar without being the same.
We can tell you how many nights we’re scheduled to perform the spellwork. We cannot predict when your wish will manifest—or guarantee that it will.
Sometimes a disappointed client comes back much later with good news, even apologizing for having doubted us. Those messages mean a great deal. But I can’t know exactly what caused their changed circumstances, and I certainly can’t use their experience to promise yours.
That’s why I don’t think another person’s review is a reliable forecast of your future.
But don’t you have testimonials on your website?
Yes. Our reviews and privacy disclosure explains that identifying details may be changed, generalized, or omitted when reviews are prepared for publication, while preserving the essential meaning of what a client shared.
That’s not the same as permission to invent clients, change the substance of their experiences, or manufacture outcomes. The disclosure matters precisely because readers should know they’re not seeing untouched quotations.
I understand why that raises questions. We’re not pretending our website testimonials are independent proof that spellwork will succeed.
So nobody should leave a negative review?
That’s not what I’m saying.
If someone believes they’ve been deceived, mistreated, or charged for work they never received, they have every right to speak up. Privacy should never be used to silence legitimate criticism.
A happy client doesn’t owe me publicity. And an unhappy client doesn’t owe me silence.
I’m simply asking people to consider whether a deeply personal spiritual experience needs to become public content at all.
You can ask a practitioner what they’ll provide, what they’ll keep private, and what promises they can actually stand behind—before spending money. That’s a lot more useful than demanding a particular number of stars.
After nearly 20 years, my team and I are still trying to do right by our clients, our profession, and the spiritual work we put into the universe.
We don’t want to turn someone’s heartbreak into advertising.
And we don’t want to turn their private hopes into public entertainment.
So please don’t take the title personally.
We appreciate the kindness behind five stars. We just believe some wishes deserve to stay between the people entrusted with them.
— Lilly