talkmagic.co.uk

Your question about patter and performance is an interesting one. I use a lot of comedy in my magic, so I recommend watching lots of David Williamson, because he is excellent at audience management and his magic is good. I call him 'The Pied Piper of Magic'. Working the patter into an effect can be an arduous task, and can be the simplest thing. The effects that the patter seems to just happen with, very naturally, are the effects that fit your style the most, and effects that don't, can be stylised, but you sometimes discover that the time invested may have been better spent elsewhere.
As I say, the patter is important, and is part of the effect in many ways, because more often than not, it determines the timing, or speed of the effect that it is assigned to, as well as it's style. I think that to truly study how patter works, you need to watch other performers, in the quest to find yourself and your own style. I always tell peolple to be themselves, which at first can be daunting, because people think that it is somewhat akin to pitting themselves-the person versus themselves-the magician, but you have to believe in your magic, because like most human emotions, it's infectious, and to remember how good you are- you are the magician.
Being yourself removes the nerves somewhat and gives the audience a relaxed performance. There are magicians who have made the mistake of thinking that they are better than their audience, forgetting that they are a product of their audience, and the keyword is entertainment. If you want to be funny, but do not think it fits your style, remember what makes you laugh. I bet you any money, it isn't a clown that you're thinking of, right now. A good aid is a good joke book. In fact, go and get one, they're an excellent read. People like to laugh. It releases tension and puts you in a good mood. Magic and Comedy go hand in hand. Look at any entertained audience, and they will be doing one thing- smiling(okay, and maybe clapping,etc., but you get the idea).
Have you ever been to a theatre or show and at the very beginning, just before the act/s come on, had the thought,"God! How are they going to start? What are they going to do?" I have. I do. But, every single time, when I appoach a stage, or a table, it is in my mindset that I am going to........ be Gary Williams. After all, that's what they have paid(or been paid-lol) to see, or who I was booked as. It makes a lot of sense.
If you definitely don't want to use comedy in your act (you weirdo-lol) then if you're going to be of the mystic type, your patter would be improved by understanding the Tarot deck. I used to read tarot, and spent many years studying it, so if you have any questions about that, then I will be glad to help. There's a quick way to learn the tarot.
Oops. I've gone on and on and on again. Very sorry, but I do hope that I may have helped, because I was trying to read between your lines to offer something like what you really wanted. Failed again. Oh well, never mind. Lol. See, comedy doesn't have to be funny. It's a matter of perspex sieve. Sorry, I guess I'm a fool if I thought for one minute that you wouldn't see through that. All the best, Gary.

Erm, not to say that your posts here are not useful but if you check the dates of the posts, the original question was in 2005 I believe and the more recent ones are just ones asking where the book can be gotten.

There is a copy offered for sale this week at Magicweek.

International Magic DO have them in stock, no matter what the website says.

The Browsers Den in Toronto also has copies of the book in stock. www.browsersden.com

However if you want to learn showmanship and presentation all you need is the back section of Expert Card Technique. For some reason I seem to be the only person in magic who has noticed it. Superb stuff especially the first few pages.

I point all readers or prospective readers of Strong Magic to this graph from Andi Gladwin's blog...



Here's the blog post