talkmagic.co.uk

Last night I was at a party with a few of my friends one of whom does some magic as well and when people at the party found out as per usual they were asking us to show them some things what was awesome is that because both of us were doing tricks we found perfect setup times etc because the other persons trick worked as our misdirecting to swap out decks or setup for the next trick everyone was focused and all the tricks went over great in the end we decided to stop the show cos well as they say always leave them wanting more well that and the drink started kicking in but this was our first proper routine performances for us both and we both learned alot from each other as well.

Ive definately got the performing bug and as soon as I get some actual time off work might start working out a full routine and getting into some other magic other than cards but all in all a great experience especially with the double act

Justin

I am soooo tempted to reply:
"A great discovery - punctuation".
Bruce

BrucUK wrote:I am soooo tempted to reply:
"A great discovery - punctuation".
Bruce

It's a good job you managed to resist that temptation.

Yes I dont really do punctuation and I was also typing this on my iPhone whilst at work.

Your English teachers must be disappointed.

Yes I dont really do punctuation and I was also typing this on my iPhone whilst at work.

...probably why no-one wants to talk back then.
Strange really, but very common in magicians that are starting out, it is almost like you are saying "Presentation is unimportant".
How do you script and rehearse your patter if there are is no punctuation, commas and semicolons where, for example, you will plan to look and then misdirect etc.?
Bruce

just because I do not write in perfect grammar does not mean I dont use it, when typing and writing in general I struggle to differentiate where commas and full stops are appropriate I know where my pauses are and I also know the message I'm trying to convey just because I dont use proper grammar when typing does not make me an idiot and I do understand the importance of presentation the simplest of tricks can become an amazing one simply by the way in which you convey yourself, and if my lack of punctuation offends you and that is the only input that you wish to make perhaps this isnt the place for me to discuss magic as it seems you would rather discuss the use of proper grammar.

So in conculsion if all you are going to do is whine about my lack of grammatical correctness and not actually put any input other than, please do not reply to my forum posts.

All I am suggesting is that if people cannot read your posts easily, (and there are a few of us out there who like reading and answering posts), then you cannot necessarily expect results.

An easy trick, (excuse the pun), read the text out before posting. Where you run out of breath is the place to put a comma, or fulllstop.

It's certainly not the only contribution I have to offer, however, is it not a reasonable starting point, reasonably made?

Presentation, altered accordingly for all audiences, is important. Here's the problem. You say "I know what message I am trying to convey". Just like magic - if your audience do not get the message then there's a possible issue, if you care to see one and care.

There's a famous experiment called "The Tapping Game" which demonstrates this perfectly. Tap a tune on a table with a pen, (or magic wand). It will COMPLETELY obvious to you as the "tapper" what the tune is - but it will be almost impossible for a "listener" to decipher what it is.

Seeing that this is a "Miscellaneous" Forum, this seems a reasonable place to mention this; but I actually do not care; I'm just trying to point out a possible area where your posting might generate more interest.

It's your call whether you punctuate or not. I do not really care. As they say, "Increasing your options increases your options".

Bruce

BrucUK, I think you're being totally unfair! There are many perfectly good reasons why someone might have trouble with written English, it's not really down to you to critisise.

jtCardMagic, well done to you on your performance. It sounds like you had a great time and went down really well.

Fair enough.
It's just something that I, and many others, have discussed dispassionately many many other times.
If it's a taboo subject over here, that's fine.
Bruce

thank you lady of mystery and bruce do not get my wrong I understand where you are coming from but punctuation is always something ive struggled with i already know that trick you mentioned for punctuation but i do believe i said i struggle differentiating where commas and full stops are appropriate not where needed my written grammar has been an issue my entire life, this is why i can never get any jobs where written english is appropriate. I am a salesman by trade and therefore know exactly how important wording expressions and mannerisms are for different people, as i said before just because I cant use grammar in my written english doesnt mean i dont understand its importance

OK.
If I have seemed offensive, I apologise.
People have differing views on this, everyone has their position and justifications.
Take care, and good luck.
Bruce

As has been mentioned many times before, the use of a spell checker would help avoid a lot of the common errors. I usually post my stuff into Word or even Hotmail, do a spell check and copy/paste into TM. It doesn't catch all the mistakes but it certainly helps!

While its nice to be able to read posts which are written clearly I dont think its that important. As long as we can understand the jist of the post (like we can here) I think thats all that matters. If we start picking at grammer and punctuation, or even spelling then it may be rather off putting to those who feel their writing isnt up to scratch - it may even stop some of our foreign friends from posting at all.

Lets not turn this into another Cafe where the sleightest mistakes in spelling or grammer are pounced upon.

jim

jim ferguson wrote:Lets not turn this into another Cafe where the sleightest mistakes in spelling or grammer are pounced upon.jim

It's slightest and grammar.

Just kidding.