Magic is great as hobby or passion, but can be hard to break into if you don't have guidance. Here is a guide to approaching the craft, understanding what it is about, and getting a strong start in your learning.
So you want to be a magician?
The study of magic is highly rewarding, and can be taken as far as you
wish—from the ability to provide living-room entertainment for your friends to
performing onstage in Las Vegas.
Getting started requires an understanding of what you want from magic, the
basic rules and elements of the field, and the right resources to start your
learning.
Watch Magic to Learn Magic
The best piece of advice that a writer can get when learning the craft is to
read. The more a writer reads, the more he or she learns 'how it is done.' The
same holds true for the budding magician. Watch as much magic as you can. Your
local library should have a few videos or DVDs (if not, ask if they can order
them for you.) And while you will eventually want to watch instructional magic,
start with magic shows.
Watch them at least twice—once for the entertainment
value, and a second time to see how the magician performs. Take every
opportunity to see magic that you can. So the next time someone says,
"Hey, do you want to see a card trick?" Say yes! You will learn
something every time you watch magic; even badly performed magic will teach you
something.
How Deep is Your Love of Magic?
How much do you like magic? You have to like magic to learn it—so learn in
proportion to your passion. If all you would like to learn is a couple of card
tricks, no problem. If you want to be the next Houdini, Copperfield, or Blain,
no problem; the steps are the mostly the same, one just requires more effort
and time than the other.
Decide What You Want Out of Magic
What kind of magician do you want to be? A hobbyist? The life of the party?
A mysterious wonder worker? Or perhaps a famous stage performer?
Hobbyist: You love the
riffle of cards in your hands, the idea of rolling a coin across the back
of your knuckles, and reading up on all the classic effects of magic, but
you are not so thrilled about the idea of putting on a show.
Life of the Party: You are ready with
a pocketful of tricks wherever you go. At a moments notice you can make a
saltshaker disappear, defy gravity with a borrowed ring, and entertain your
friends for a half-hour with card manipulations.
Mysterious Wonder Worker:
Your daily routine involves more than putting on your clothes and grabbing
your wallet and keys. Your personal space contains more secrets than Fort
Knox has gold. You are ready
to float a borrowed dollar bill, make a match dance in your hand—even
levitate off the ground!
Famous Stage Performer:
Yes, you can do card tricks. Yes, you can do impromptu magic. But you are
also a Performer; you have blocked your steps, rehearsed your moves to
music, written and rewritten your lines, built and bought large-scale
illusions and booked the show. When the curtain lifts, you are ready to
blow your audience away.
Deciding what kind of magician you want to be, at least in the beginning,
will help direct your learning. If you have no desire to be a stage performer,
there is no need to buy a book on how to saw a lady in half—certainly not as
you are just starting out. Likely you will fall somewhere in between two or
more of the different types. Since you are just getting started pick the one
you lean more heavily towards, and allow that to direct you.
The 3 rules of magic
There are three universal rules to learn when becoming a magician: Think of
them as the magician's code.
Never reveal the secret to
a trick—it ruins the mystery.
Practice to Perfection –
never show a trick until you can do it properly every time—A poorly done
trick inadvertently breaks rule No. 1.
Do not repeat tricks in
front of the same audience—no matter how much they beg! Most magic is
based on the spectator not knowing what to expect. The second time around
they will know what to look for, and might spot the secret!
Why is it so important to stick to these rules? All for the same
reason—maintaining the illusion. All magic is based on an illusion, and if that
illusion is not maintained, magic loses its impact. Other magicians will get
jaded audiences, and the audiences themselves will lose their ability to enjoy how
magic is done.
There are exceptions to the first and third rules. You would
reveal the secret to a trick if and only if you are instructing someone who is
just as passionate about magic as you, and who will abide by the three rules.
And some tricks are supposed to be repeated, mainly because there are surprise
effects in the repetitions.
The key elements of magic
Misdirection: Most
folks think this is only a physical action where, say—the right hand waves
about while the left makes a secret move. While this is sometimes the
case, misdirection is more psychological than physical. It is the ability
of the magician to focus the audience's attention on whatever he or she
wishes to successfully complete the illusion.
Patter:In its simplest
form is what the magician says while performing a trick. Sometimes it is a
story, sometimes a joke, sometimes a description of what the audience sees
("Now I cut the cards three times…")
Entertainment: Have
fun! It's why you are doing magic in the first place; as long as the
audience is being entertained then you are a success! You will have a
style all your own, molded a bit by all the magic you've been watching. If
you are good at telling jokes or being a bit silly, then make your
audience laugh while you do your tricks. If you lean more toward the
theatrical, strike a pose while you find their card. It bears repeating:
Have fun!
Getting on with it
Learning: Some tricks
are self-working (e.g., mathematical card tricks), while others require
complex sleight of hand. No matter the method used, learn each element of
the trick as a separate unit, then work on putting them together. Repeat
all the elements of the trick until you can do it all the way through.
Practicing: Do the
trick 100 times—literally. Walk through every part of the trick, including
what to say, where to look, what to do with your hands, where your props
need to go—as if you were performing it live. Practice in front of a
mirror so you can see what your audience will see. So much depends on
angles! If you mess up, don't move on, start over. You build your skills
by repetition, doing the entire trick as one unit. Once you have done this
trick so many times, you can do it in your sleep, you are ready to perform
it.
Performing: Relax!
After all that practice, you are ready to perform. And if you think you
are not…STOP! Do not perform; it's not worth the risk of messing it up and
ruining your chance to amaze someone with your new trick. Once you feel
you are ready, have fun with it. Relax, act natural, and remember that
your audience doesn't know how it's supposed to go. So if you stumble a
bit along the way, don't panic; just continue on. Remember, if they are
having fun, you are a success!
The right kind of learning
Books: It is important
that you find good books on learning magic that are well and
smartly illustrated. Magic is very visual and usually requires some form
of sleight of hand, even if it is just a bit. Well-written books with
clear, intelligent descriptions and relevant illustrations will serve you
well. The other kind will just frustrate you.
Videos/DVDs: The great
part about a video is that you can see a trick in action from start to
finish. You also get the added benefit of seeing how it is performed,
which can do wonders for your own presentation. DVDs are even better, as
you can pause and move about the instruction when needed. Books can still
be a better investment, as they typically contain much more detail on an
illusion as well as many more tricks for your buck. But…Videos and DVDs
can be a great asset, especially when focused on one kind of magic such as
cards or coins.
Personal instruction:
Nothing can beat personal instruction, especially at the beginning. Make
friends with a magician! Working with someone who is better than you can
help improve your performance, streamline your sleight of hand—and they
always have something new to show you. If you are going to pay for
instruction, ask for references from former students. You want to make
sure your instructor is people-person. who will make the most of your time
together.
Where to Learn More
Recommended Books:
General Magic:
Now You See It,
Now You Don't, by Bill Tarr
Mark Willson's
Complete Course In Magic, by Mark Willson
Tarbell Course in
Magic (seven volumes), by Harlan Tarbell
The Magic Handbook,
by Peter Eldin
Magic for Dummies,
by David Pogue
Magic with Everyday
Objects
Card Magic
The Royal
Road to Card Magic, by Jean
Hugard and Frederick Braue
Magic with Cards,
by Frank Garcia and George Schindler
Self-Working Card
Tricks, by Karl Fulves
More Self-Working
Card Tricks, by Karl Fulves
Mental Magic
Self-Working
Mental Magic, by Karl Fulves
Practical Mental
Effects, by Theodore Annemann
13 Steps to
Mentalism, by Corinda
Number Magic
Self-Working
Number Magic, by Karl Fulves
Mathemagic, by
Royal Vale Heath
Mathematical Magic,
by William Simon
Rope Magic
Self-Working Rope
Magic, by Karl Fulves
Abbott's
Encyclopedia of Rope Tricks for Magicians, by Stewart James
Handkerchief Magic
Self-Working
Handkerchief Magic, by Karl Fulves
Recommended Videos
"Easy-to-Master
Card Miracles," (three volumes), by Michael Ammar