I am of the opinion, as well as the hope, that the same spell could be performed in a multitude of different ways. For example, to create a candle light effect, one may cast a low level spell with a fire base and perception intent. Or perhaps a create intent with a fire base. In the same way, a bolt of fire could be just as damaging as a shard of ice. This would allow you to be essentially equally effective as your peers in the same situations, but at the same time, each spellcaster has different skillsets. Of course, once higher level spells are created, specializations would be formed, each with its own...flavor.
Yes, there are often various approaches, though the focus shifts. For spells, that is not as important, as they are very specific. But for spontaneous magic, you want to use the proper Intent at least - a "Perceive/Fire" spell will always give you some illumination to see by, because that is what you specified. A "Create/Fire" spell may, with a few shifts, create just a smoldering, for example, which is a fire created, but won't give you much light.
Basically, really
do use Intent as "what is it you intend to do", and not just as a method.
