Essentials of magic and cardistry???

May 5, 2015
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What I mean by this is, what are the essential books, DVDs, downloads, anything to get started in magic and cardistry? I'm open to general magic, but I'm more into cards than anything else. Also, how do I find time to practice? I'm currently in Grade 10 and I find that school gets in the way of me practicing.
Thanks to anyone who replies, I really need help with this and I want to get better.
 

DavidL11229

Elite Member
Jul 25, 2015
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Seattle
Watch the free video on this site by Jason England where he talks about the books he recommends everyone should read. Many are available inexpensively on Kindle and paperback. The books he discusses are all on card magic. Not sure what is out there on cardistry, though there are also free videos in the Wire section of this site.
 

Fox13

Elite Member
Aug 19, 2014
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Tower of Lunatic Meat

Elite Member
Sep 27, 2014
2,447
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Texa$, with a dollar sign
Literature on cardistry is a bit tough to come by. Honestly, my biggest suggestion is to master some necessary one-handed flourishes in both hands in order to acquire the dexterity to move onto the two-handed stuff.

Fox13's suggestion to check out the 'Big List of Tutorials' is the best go-to I can think of if you're strapped for cash.

If you have some cash to sling, there's Andrei Jihk's 'Genesis'.

Magic books. Books. Books. Books.

Let's see. DavidL11229's suggestion to check out the David England free video of what books to select is a great resource.
Don't forget to check out your library as there may be books there. I mean, why spend money if you don't need to. However, I will say that if you find something like 'Royal Road to Card Magic', you will be spending MONTHS on it if you follow the book to a 'T' and go hard charger. The way 'Royal Road' is set up is that the book acts as a bit of a mentor. IT's a bit of a dry read, but it's worth the read.

ALSO. Get corporeal BOOKS. Can't stress that enough. Speaking from personal experience, please don't get PDFs if you can help it. Because BOOKS don't crash. Your computer crashes, so does your magic library. Books only crash in a fire. Plus, books don't require a battery, plugin, or updates. AND, the best magic lies in 2 sources:
1) books
2) asking the right questions (which happens to be for free. Can't go wrong there)

Bobo's Modern Coin magic is a great resource for coin magic, if you so happen to divert and want to expand your magic knowledge.
ALSO, since you're still in school. If you so wish to do so. I encourage you to take a drama or theatre/drama class. Or a theater group or club if you really want to improve your magic. This is to build up your confidence in performing and being able to construct a character.

In magic, we are all actors PLAYING THE PART of a magician. The backbone of what we do is magic, the CORE of what we do is acting and performing.
To this end, (and I think I'm going to get my teeth kicked in for this) I believe that it is more important to become proficient in the performance aspect of magic than it is the sleights.

Say you purchase 3 tricks from this site. For sake of example: Break, Invisible Card, and French Kiss.

You become a MASTER that those tricks and you can perform them frontwards and backwards. If your character and performance is dull and lacking, your audience won't care what you do; no expensive trick will save you. I believe it is paramount to work on your performance and a creative script for your routines. There's a lot to magic other than the sleights. A lot of it is the 'behind the scenes' work that the audience will only see the 'final product' of.

As far as time to practice? That's all up to you, brother. I know you're in school and, more than likely, have a lot on your plate--at least a bit more than I do ;)
You must find a good balance between what is important in your life and your newfound 'hobby'. No one is pressuring or pushing you to accomplish certain goals within a certain time frame. It's all up to you.

Take your time, no rush.

But be careful of showing your magic in school if you purchase or become great at a sleight--especially high school, I've heard more nightmare stories than good ones.

I hope this helps in some capacity. Welcome to magic. Welcome to cardistry. Welcome to Theory11. Enjoy the ride.
 

Fox13

Elite Member
Aug 19, 2014
200
171
ALSO. Get corporeal BOOKS. Can't stress that enough. Speaking from personal experience, please don't get PDFs if you can help it. Because BOOKS don't crash. Your computer crashes, so does your magic library. Books only crash in a fire. Plus, books don't require a battery, plugin, or updates.

It's a matter of personal preference. Buying digital books vs hard copies is the same as buying digital music vs hard CDs... some like it, others are not there yet. You can get over the crashing part my making some backup copies, or just plain stock them in your dropbox account. Plus, you have your library on you at all times for reference. Plus it is less obvious what you are reading when at a coffee shop or waiting during the kids ballet class.

Anyhow, many advanced books in magic will just not be available in digital format. But Lybrary.com sells some of the classics at a very low price. They even listed the books they have available from the Jason England 17-book list:
http://www.lybrary.com/jason-englands-17-card-books-to-study-a-14.html
 

Tower of Lunatic Meat

Elite Member
Sep 27, 2014
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Texa$, with a dollar sign
Do you know of any good books on this aspect of things?

I have two recommendations:

'Our Magic' by Maskelyne is one I recently read that deals a bit about the subject--as well as many facets of magic. Just be careful though, as I read the first third of it and felt I was being blamed for doing magic a disservice--I haven't even performed magic yet! I went on a rather panic-driven spree asking questions about the first third of the book across 3 different forums. Just go 'Our Magic' with an open mind.

As for performing. I used to do open-mic stand up comedy for 3 years in Las Vegas and really got into scripting and performing. The best book I read about the subject was: 'Comedy Writing Secrets: The Best-Selling Book on How to Think Funny, Write Funny, Act Funny, And Get Paid For It'.

While it talks about how to make a good stand-up routine, I think it's relevant in the sense that it teaches the nuances of how to construct a cohesive script that's 'all meat & no fat'. Plus, who doesn't want to be funny? I think it's a great book to have in the good ol' arsenal.
 
Jul 30, 2015
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Here's some sound advice. Focus on school first. You can practice in your spare time.

You can practice while taking your morning constitutional, watching your favorite television show (after you have finished your homework, of course), while walking, and generally, whenever your can keep your hands free and your attention isn't fully occupied by something more important.

Ace high school first. Worry about the other Aces second.

That said, get Giobbi's Card College and/or Card College Light. And pick up The Royal Road to Card Magic by Hugard and Braue. Great starting points.
 
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Nov 10, 2014
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I went on a rather panic-driven spree asking questions about the first third of the book across 3 different forums. Just go 'Our Magic' with an open mind.
Thinking about it I actually remember following that while browser the forums, don't think I ever saw the conclusion so nice to know that you got past that book's obstacle.
 
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