Guide to creating magic

[nickm1]

I know that some people think that you shouldn't use a guide to create magic, but not all the time do methods instantly pop in your mind

Well I know that there are a lot of books and PDF's teching methods on creating magic effects but I just wrote this up


First of all ask yourself some questions, why do you want to create a trick? Money? Pride? Popularity?

1 Relax yourself, try not to try this when you are either angry or sad, but try to relax and calm yourself so you think better.

2 Instead of automatically thinking of an effect you may want to, what I call “Warm up Your Brain”. To do this think of any effect that you know, think of the method, the exact method all in little steps. Example: French Drop, show a normal coin, pretend to take it as it drops into the middle of your fingers, then you bring attention to your other hand as you drop the other coin palming it in finger palm. Then you make the coin seem to disappear. So think of any effect and think in little steps what the effect is and how it works, this will get your mind warmed up and in the mood for magic, instead of just coming home from work and sitting on the couch and trying to force yourself to create a piece of magic.

3 Now ask yourself some questions, is it the effect already an idea??? Or is it going to be a new original idea. One you have worked this out ask yourself some more questions, how will you achieve this?????? What could be used to accomplish this???? You need to ask yourself really little questions about the certain effect. Here is a good guide:

Vanish
What are you vanishing? Where would it go? Where could it be hidden? What could you use to make it disappear? Where does it vanish??? In the spectator’s hands? On a table?

Penetration
What will you be penetrating? Will it be visual? What will you be penetrating through??? What could make it appear on the other side?? Do you use a duplicate of the object? If so, where could it be hidden on the other side? Is it penetrated in your hands??? On the ground In the spectator’s hand?

Levitation
What will you be levitating? Is it fast or slow? Is it high or low? Can it move a lot or is it only in one spot? What could be used to make it seem if it is levitating?? Is it in the spectators hands, your hands or off the ground?

Change
What are you changing? What could be used to change it??? Is the change slow or fast??? Is it in your hands, the spectator’s hands or on the ground?

So do you get it? Just ask yourself little questions and you may be on your way.

4 once you have answered all those questions, go and find the materials if it is a gimmick or get what you need to perform it. Then try your method and see if it works or not, if not ask yourself the questions again and keep thinking

5 Create a routine with it maybe you want to a couple of things before you do the effect or something after, remember to see what your angles are.

6 Once you have a nice routine and are most likely to forget this in a day, right it down, get a brand new book for your routines and ideas and maybe have sections for XCM/Coins/Cards and whatever more that suits you

7 When you have done this all do not perform it to people straight away, I have done this before and it’s not fun, so practice until it looks good to you in the mirror, maybe practice in front of someone who won’t expose it, maybe a friend in magic or a brother.

Well I hoped you like this and it helped you



Cheers,




Nick

 

[darosa.justin]

This isn't exactly 'precious' information. It's mostly common sense so well done for thinking...(I'm implying that you shouldn't think you're so special for writing out common sense).

And hopfully a mod can edit the exposure in 'step 2'

 

[Manny]

That was some good info, I might want to add that on #5, if your routine has a gimmick, your routine should have a good method into loading your gimmick without people seeing or do some pre-show work

 

[Angathorion]

Valuable advice, I feel.

But lose the additional question marks. They make you look very... odd.

 

[MitchellStafiej]

People creating magic should have their own ways of doing so. There shouldn't be a GUIDE perse because it's supposed to be their OWN creativity.

Just my thought.

Mitch

 

[Huruey]

Personally, I don't think this is good advice.

Here are my thoughts on the subject of creating. Consider this my guide to myself, rather than something I am preaching...

If you are creating a trick, then you shouldn't need to think twice about why you are doing it. If you do, then it's likely you are creating for the wrong reasons.

Don't try to get an idea of what you want to do. Wait. Just wait. Days, weeks, months... just wait for inspiration to strike you rather than forcing the first piece of rubbish that comes into your head into an effect. Inspiration might mean an idea for a trick, or even just a part of a trick, or it might not even be a trick at all, but a method that doesn't have an effect to implement yet.

When you have something small to go on, you can start to specify exactly what you eventually want it to become. I like to set myself goals, something to aim for. The challenge is one of the main things that appeals to me about creating, and having a "let's try this and see what we get, but I don't really mind what I get" kind of approach just isn't a challenge, it's more a lazy way of coming up with an effect that in the end will be rubbish anyway.

Once you have built up the specifics of what you want to do, you need to break it back down again. Split it into smaller goals and achieve each goal individually. I think creating magic is one of the exceptions to the rule that the beginning is a very good place to start. If I have something to aim for, to me it seems logical to start at the end and work backwards. To do one thing, there are certain criteria which must be met. For example, if you have specified that you want to make a card seemingly penetrate through a window, and have it completely inspect able once it is on the other side without any interference from yourself, and without the use of any duplicates, one of the given facts might be that the card must finish on the other side of the window. It may be obvious, but I like to go through these facts when working backwards. Avoid things which sound like the should be facts, but aren't necessarily, for example, "the card must somehow move from one side to the other". This may sound logical, but by making this statement, you have already lost an array of possible methods, because it assumes that the card actually starts on your side of the window. A better fact would be "the card must appear to start on my side of the window", thus giving you other options, such as starting with the card on the other side, and making it only appear to be on your side at the start of the effect.

I'd like to pick out a few quotes from this thread which I think this is relevant to, just to illustrate my point. While these are not strictly limiting you to any path, they still make you think in a certain direction, which I feel is harmful to creativity.

Vanish Where would it go???

This assumes the item you are vanishing must go somewhere. What if it doesn't go anywhere, and the spectator's vision is restricted by something else? What if it wasn't there in the first place?

Penetration Do you use a duplicate of the object?

This is an example of making you think in a specific direction.

Levitation What could be used to make it seem if it is levitating??

I think this is better. It does not restrict your options, it keeps things abstract, and abstract is better when you want to be thinking outside the box.

I think from this point on, regarding refining and performing an effect, it's pretty much just trial and error until you have found something you are completely satisfied with, which I'm not sue is even possible for me. I don't really want to say anything is finished, because there might always be something more. Take the biggest number you can think of and add one.

That's my view, at least.

Huruey

 

[Rmana]

I'm sure this works for you, but it won't work for everyone. For me personally, I just get an idea walking down the street or at work or something, usually away from a deck of cards and I try to figure out what I'd like to see in the routine. You shouldn't have to question why you're doing it. You should just want to do it because it intrigues you or it's a challenge. If you're doing it for money or popularity, then just do an old effect, video yourself doing it, put some linkin park in the background and try to sell it. But if you're doing it because of your love of magic, then you'll end up doing it anyways because you want to.
Just my two cents.