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Bill Palmer Profile
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Registered: 09-2006
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Expanding your horizons in magic


Most of us find a specialty -- something that we do better than anything else, magically. But we do get tired of doing the same old things all the time. One solution is to branch out to another facet of magic. How can you do this without falling flat on your face and without wasting a lot of hard-earned money?

The answer is very simple. Watch and read. Watch what other people are doing. When you see something that you like, picture yourself doing something similar. Then read the basic books and/or watch the basic DVD's on the subject. Once you have a good grounding in the fundamentals of the new kind of magic you want to try, then find an item in that branch and work on it.

Let's say for a moment that you are primarily a coin worker, but that you have seen someone do mentalism really well. You want to try some mentalism. Get some of the basic books on mentalism and a couple of DVD's. Here's the thing -- if you were just taking up coin magic, there are certain books and DVD's that you know are the basic ones for that category. You need to find the mentalism equivalent of Bobo, Roth, etc. So get DVD's and/or books by mentalists, not necessarily by magicians. You learn very quickly that mentalism and coin magic have very little in common, as far as the presentations are concerned, but they may have a lot in common from a technical standpoint.

Then you realize that mentalism is about a different kind of presentation.

So, what do you do when you have finally learned a couple of good mental items? Do them regularly. Practice them until they become boring, then practice them until they become beautiful.

One other thing -- make the presentations your own, not Derren Brown's or Banacheck's. Their presentations won't fit you. But your presentations won't fit them, either!
10/5/2006, 10:36 am Link to this post Send Email to Bill Palmer   Send PM to Bill Palmer
 
dmkraig Profile
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Re: Expanding your horizons in magic


Good advice, Bill.

I would like to suggest, for those who are unfamiliar with it, a book called The Trick Brain by Dariel Fitzkee. It gets readers to start thinking magically and helps take concepts and make them evolve to fit your needs.

It helps you change magic tricks into magic.
10/24/2006, 1:28 pm Link to this post Send PM to dmkraig
 
Bill Palmer Profile
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Re: Expanding your horizons in magic


The Trick Brain is an excellent book. In fact, the whole Fitzkee Trilogy is a necessity. Granted, some of the examples in Showmanship for Magicians are somewhat dated. However, Fitzkee knew this would happen. In fact, he says that he know that Hawaiian music will not be as popular 20 or so years in the future as it was when he wrote the book. Nonetheless, the principles still work.

Magic by Misdirection is also very important. It gives the reader the key to making it look real.

The Trick Brain awakens your analytical skills.

Magic by Misdirection helps you make it look right.

Showmanship for Magicians gives basic principles of selling the material.
10/27/2006, 8:54 pm Link to this post Send Email to Bill Palmer   Send PM to Bill Palmer
 


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