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Magic, like any other passion, can lend itself to burnout when enthusiastic new fans dive in headfirst, immerse themselves in it too much too fast, and then get worn out. Merchant Of Magic’s research suggests most new magic hobbyists — about seventy percent — will quit within six months, although most of the rest will stick around long term. Avoid getting so caught up in how good the top performers are that you feel like your own skills are too meager to bother developing. Practice the same tricks until you master them, but to different audiences, and avoid binge-practicing.

Key Takeaways:

• Most people who begin learning magic, burn out in a short time and give up being a magician.
• Break down your goals. Learn and perfect just one trick at a time before moving onto master another trick.
• Vary your practice times into small increments instead of large blocks of time. And vary your audience so you aren’t practicing in from of the same people all the time.

“In fact, statistics from our research at the Merchant of Magic have shown that almost 70% of total beginners drift away from learning magic within 6 months of ordering their first proper magic trick, book or DVD. The remaining magicians tend to stay studying magic long term (5 years+).”

Read more: http://blog.magicshop.co.uk/2019/02/prevent-magic-burnout.html

Equivoque magic – often referred to as the Magician’s Choice – is the way in which a magician grants the audience the illusion of freedom of choice. An example: the magician asks an audience member to pick a card, but doesn’t indicate whether this card is to be removed, flipped over, etc. until after the choice is made. In other words, the audience member’s participation was meaningless, just a way to make him feel he was in control. In this and in many other ways, Equivoque becomes one of the most powerful tools a magician possesses.

Key Takeaways:

• Equivoque Magic is one of the most sought-after magic techniques by professional magicians.
• Mastering equivoque magic involves an intense amount of practice, paying close attention to details and having a supreme way with words.
• The key to successful equivoque magic is to captivate the audience by allowing them to take control of the wheel and guide them into an illusion of their choice.

“This may seem simple, but pair this concept with a large deck of cards or an audience choosing or picking, and you have yourself magic deception at its finest. The same card the magician intends to be ‘the one’ is the going to be ‘the one’ whether you pick ‘the one’ or not.”

Read more: https://rebelmagic.com/equivoque-magic/

The Magic Awards of 2018 feature several enticing magic tricks that are sure to wow any crowd you perform in front of. The winner was the Static Marker that provides an audience the experience of simulated electric shock. Number two was the Rubik’s Cube Glass Bottle trick where a square Rubik’s Cube is squeezed into a glass jar that is half of its size! The gear for these tricks can be found at the MoM magic store for anyone who is interested.

Key Takeaways:

• Every year, more and more innovative magic tricks are being made available to the amateur magic market.
• This year, so many brilliant magic tricks have been created that it was challenging to rank the best.
• The top magic tricks, chosen by the professional magic shop MoM, are the Static Marker, Rubik’s Cube in a Bottle, and Winner’s Dice.

“Winner’s Dice is one of those tricks that is so cunning and well engineered that you can’t help but grin the first time you use it. We played with this for a while before launch and loved every second of it.”

Read more: http://blog.magicshop.co.uk/2019/02/the-best-magic-tricks-of-2018.html

Ideally, magic should be about art and showmanship, not about “winning” against the audience in an adversarial contest. Don’t “challenge” your audience with confrontational language during tricks, and don’t present the audience with the the attitude that you are better than they are or don’t respect them. You can have challenging tricks, but the tone of the challenge should be friendly and playful, not adversarial. Finally try to not remind your audience that your trick is even a trick in the first place — you might want to try telling a story instead.

Key Takeaways:

• Magicians should make sure magic isn’t an “I win, you lose” situation but it should be a win-win situation.
• The first step to a win-win atmosphere in magic is for magicians not to use “challenge” vocabulary in their acts.
• The challenge atmosphere doesn’t bode well for magicians because when they believe he is fooling them, they become unhappy with him.

“When you are performing magic, the last thing you want is for the audience to believe they’re in some kind of conflict with you.”

Read more: http://blog.magicshop.co.uk/2019/01/atmosphere-for-magic.html

Dan Harlan has recently published his Tarbell: Every Trick In The Book series for users to download on the Penguin Magic website. He has incorporated several lessons that can also be viewed within his series of previously-released video lessons giving the rundown on becoming a high quality magician. The subscription is great for those just entering the field of magic, and those who are just looking to sharpen their skills a bit to capitalize on their already developed skills.

Key Takeaways:

• This book is recommended for not only new magicians, but also those already in the trade looking to improve their established skills.
• It is not mandatory to read the previous publications, as each chapter is set on a step-by-step basis and easy to comprehend.
• The entire course associated with Every Trick In The Book is available through the Penguin Magic platform.

“If your New Year resolution involves becoming a better magician, whether a day one beginner or a grizzled old performer, I suggest you give Every Trick In The Book a serious look.”

Read more: http://itricks.com/news/2019/01/goodbye-tarbell-every-trick-in-the-book/

Joe Sankey grew up in Canada. Like many youngsters, he was drawn into the maguc of making magic early. He got his first magic set at the age of 11. And, it was immediately evident that he had a flair for it. Sakey went on tour as a one man magic act before even reaching his 21st birthday. By that age, he was already experimenting with special slight of hand tricks, for which he would become well known, as well as for close up magic. Besides his magic abilities, Sakey also developed a comedic capacity and took to the stage as a one man show and stand-up comic. He combined his flair for comedy with another love, wroting, and wrote a book entitled, “Zen and the art of stand-up comedy.”

Key Takeaways:

• Jay Sankey is a Canadian, a stand-up comedian, author and a magician, who specializes in close work and special effects.
• At the age of 11 Jay was given a magic set and it was immediately obvious he had a gift for it.
• Jay’s book, “Zen and the Art of Monologue” combines his skill at comedy with his flair for writing.

“By the age of 18, Jay was traveling the world lecturing about sleight of hand magic to both amateur magician and professionals.”

Read more: https://rebelmagic.com/jay-sankey/