The best answer I can give you is to watch
Joe Tucker's Racking Secrets, 1 and 2.
It explains why making a ball in 9 ball should be automatic, 90% of better.
Don't be fooled by the name, it's not a video about how to rack or slug the rack.
It's a video about how to break, and how to read the rack the opponent or referee gave you.
It explains the trick to making the wing ball in 9 ball even without a magic rack.
In a nutshell you want to break from the side (and if necessary, cutting the head ball,
causing the cue ball to hit the side rail closest to you).
Corey understands this info better than anyone, probably better than Joe himself, and he is very careful and precise about breaking where a lot of other players just try to hit hard.
The other 'secret' which is just common sense is, you want the rack to be PERFECT. Not just tight,
but PERFECTLY tight. Not a paper-sized gap anywhere, if possible. This is automatic with the
magic rack, but without one it takes a lot of futzing and hassle. If you watch guys like Shane,
Corey, Mike Dechaine... they are very careful with this in rack-your-own events.