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Hiya Forum,

I suddenly noticed something rather grave recently. Which is, although I know sooo many tricks, I only actually have one or two routines; my main being ambitious card.

The problem is, as cool as allot of tricks are, when I'm working in the restaurant, I can't afford to have a 2 minute reset. Sometimes it's hard having my 10 second reset using Ambitious.

Are there any solid routines you guys would recommend checking out? Being in a restaurant, I already have my eye on Liquid Metal.

Oh and before I forget

Is there anywhere I can get help for writing better routines? I find the entire concept strangely challenging. Flowing from 1 trick to another / patter (which seems to be a choice of `watch this` or some obviously unbelievable/boring storyline)

Well I'd say that with a little thought, if you know hundreds of tricks you should be able to link a few together into a logical and practical routine. As for creating a scrips or story to go with it, again a little thought this shouldn't be too difficult but depending on your performance style and/or settings while performing this may only need to be a few words here and there.

When you say working in restaurants, do you mean moving from table to table or lingering at the bar? I don't really do restaurants but I do work things like weddings in which case reset isn't usually as bigger issue as you make it seem. It may be down to the routines I've worked out.

Turn it on its head.
Don't think about linking your current tricks together. Concentrate on a theme, then adapt your tricks to the theme.

Tell a story e.g. looking forward to the Olympics. Pretend you are an athlete competing then jot down lots of key words about that theme.

medals, gold, silver, bronze
Practice till you are in peak condition
international countries, flags, national anthems
Athlete's aspirations
5 circles emblem.

make up a short interesting story using the keywords, weave in a joke or anecdote.
Then think about effects you have that could be adapted to that story.

eg. gold/silver/bronze .. could be a coin effect
practice, getting wrong = sucker trick ends good
countries/flags could be a force of country names with prediction
aspirations could be - ambitious card (rising to the top - medal positions)
circles - linking rings effect or zenner cards become all circles.

suddenly you have the bones of a routine.
with the same patter you could start and end your story in the same way at each table, but use a different effect in the middle of the routine at each different table. then you only need reset anything after say every 4th table.

Reminds me of start of RRTCM where David Devant is approached by a young magician saying "Mr Devant I know 100 tricks with cards how many do you know?" and he replies "6"

(The numbers may be being misremembered, but the point remains)

I recently picked up a fab book in the states (suffered an attack of the CUPS while on holiday last year) called Beyond Deception which is entirely about shaping tricks around themes and fleshing them out into routines. It's got a few brainstorming techniques for the process and general guidelines on how to re-frame an effect.

-Stacy

There is course a counter argument that you should be thinking about the routine first and then learn/buy effects to fit into that routine.

It doesn't grant immunity to CUPS but at least it focuses the mind so CUPS doesn't cause UPPFS (Uncontrollable Pay Pal Finger Spasm).

I personally like to think up a theme first, where I'd like the routine to go and how it'll play out before I even start to think about the methods and effects. Only once I know where I'm trying to get to, will I start to think about the hows to do it.

Also see the sticky about routines
ftopic39438.php

Also there's a nice section on creating routines in Stephen Ward's new Performing Magic to the Public book.

Thanks! (my head won't fit out the door in a minute!) When i did magic i would always use a chop cup, it is ideal for restaurants as there is no real reset, rather easy to do and you can make it short or long to suit your needs.

Personally I think about theme, character location personality etc then build the routine around that. It is hard to try and make a trick fit into a routine for the sake of it. You cant fit a round peg on a square hole. If you do decide on a group of effects and then try and think of a.theme it gets more.dificult with more tricks.
All that said you don't need a common theme for all your effects as long as you can link them together. All you need todo is list your tricks think of patter for each one then think of a way to introduce/link each trick. Being your own compere. The most important point is to stay or appear relaxed allowing.it to flow from trick to trick.