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I think that that is more than enough my friend. If you spend a good few weeks practicing the both of them until you are perfect for performance, you'll forget about the next trick.

The reason people often want the next thing is because part of them still thinks that one item will make them a brilliant magician. The reality is, as ingenious as a method is, it will never make you a good magician. When this reality hits, we often look for the NEXT best thing and then still slightly believe it.

I am not saying you will never be a great magician etc, just that sometimes it is worth looking over what you already know and own and performing and recreating rather than looking for the next idea.

A book like The Complete Course in Magic, I know you said you don't like books and might already have it, provides what I think is enough information to not only learn the fundamentals of magic, but also make a perfectly plausible set for a restaurant worker or close up magician.
Rip up a napkin and restore it right in front of their eyes, tear up a playing card and restore it, find a spectators own bill in a lemon, perform countless coin and card effects...I'm not sure what else you could ask for!

TheStoner wrote:Is "Ultracinese" REALLY in their all year top ten? Costing £199 and not even released yet? I smell a bit of a rat here!

You're not the only one! It should be in next year's table, if indeed it warrants a place.

Lenoir wrote:I think that that is more than enough my friend. If you spend a good few weeks practicing the both of them until you are perfect for performance, you'll forget about the next trick.

The reason people often want the next thing is because part of them still thinks that one item will make them a brilliant magician. The reality is, as ingenious as a method is, it will never make you a good magician. When this reality hits, we often look for the NEXT best thing and then still slightly believe it.

I am not saying you will never be a great magician etc, just that sometimes it is worth looking over what you already know and own and performing and recreating rather than looking for the next idea.

A book like The Complete Course in Magic, I know you said you don't like books and might already have it, provides what I think is enough information to not only learn the fundamentals of magic, but also make a perfectly plausible set for a restaurant worker or close up magician.
Rip up a napkin and restore it right in front of their eyes, tear up a playing card and restore it, find a spectators own bill in a lemon, perform countless coin and card effects...I'm not sure what else you could ask for!

Lots of good points here. I know about looking for the next good idea, I have been in magic a short enough time to remember the syndrome. You read a write up, particularily the manufacturers or stockists, phrases like "will fry spectators" or "reputation maker" jump out and instant success stares you in the face.

You buy the effect and find that tghere is no miracle after all, even if it is a good trick for you, and many that I bought weren't, you still need to practice for hours to get it off and then practice for hours to put a good performance together. This is why I now endorse things like the new James Brown disks. Nothing flashy in them, no trumpetting about the miracle effects, just a selection of solid pieces of work with some of the best tips on performance I have ever come across.

I also endorse what is said here, and on many other threads in this forum, about Mark Wilsons Complete Course. Even though you don't like books get this one. It is ridiculously cheap and you could quite literally put togather a close up act with tricks from this book alone. Even the easiest self workers in there are good.

I am now performing, for money, once or twice a week using a small repertoire of good tricks. I am developing a performance style still, probably that will always be the case and I am not rushing in to new stuff that reads well in the write up. I have put some bad stuff out there and learned by my mistakes. The biggest mistake I used to make was to think that if a trick fascinated me it must wow a spectator. Non magicians are no more impressed by knuckle crunching sleights than they are by a self worker if the performance is right.

I have rambled a bit here but I hope that there is something in this that helps. Above all, do what you enjoy and enjoy what you do. The reaction you get will tell you how well you are doing.

Your insights are spooky! However, wasn't planning a big spend - was interested in what others felt were inspirational.

My favourite card effect is 'Queens Out of Control' - I've done it for many years but it doesn't mean that I shouldn't freshen things up as new angles on things come out. I also have the boredom threshold of a brick so I need to keep my own interest up.

Also, as a 'social' magician with a limited audience (friends, family and work colleagues - maximum audience I've done is only 20) you are also 'forced' to come up with something new at the various gatherings.

I do admit to sometimes buying effects just to find out how they work but again that, for me, is just my love for a wonderous hobby to build my own knowledge base (I purposely put hobby because I'm not as fortunate as some of you who have clearly been brave enough to run with it as a career).

Thanks for your comments - feedback gratefully received - have an excellent Xmas and new year

On the subject of Queens Out Of Control, you may enjoy Royal Scam by John Bannon.

As to surprising tricks with a wow factor Richard Sanders' Interlace is amazing. It sounds great on paper (or online); that is, a borrowed ring vanishes from your hand and appears tied onto your shoelace, but in performance, the buzz you get from the reaction is out of this world! it has to be Sanders' piece de resistance and it is now my personal fave.

Similarly colourful to Ideck, as you mentioned, is Director's Cut by Simon Shaw, although admittedly I am waiting for Ideck to arrive, having bought it off a fellow TalkMagi, but do know the premise. It's visual, it is a card trick in disguise (like Ideck, i'd imagine), and uses zany props. It also takes up very little pocket space.

Like yourself, I've overdosed on card effects and am looking to branch out.

I know this is really not going to be heard, and is going to be unpopular with quite a few of you. But I'm going to say it anyway. Chances are you already know enough magic to last you through several lifetimes, although most of it you have probably disregarded for whatever reason.

Rather then try to rekindle/spark your interest by finding more magic effects that you are going to be disapointed in, or on the other hand are going to love but only till you grow bored of it. You can save yourself a lot of time and expense by learning how to perform. Join toastmasters or any place where they teach you how to speak in public. Take a few acting lessons, take part in a comedy work shop. Or simply ignore this post.

bmat wrote:Chances are you already know enough magic to last you through several lifetimes, although most of it you have probably disregarded for whatever reason.

Rather then try to rekindle/spark your interest by finding more magic effects that you are going to be disapointed in, or on the other hand are going to love but only till you grow bored of it. You can save yourself a lot of time and expense by learning how to perform. Join toastmasters or any place where they teach you how to speak in public. Take a few acting lessons, take part in a comedy work shop.

Wise words indeed!