New effect I'm working on.

Aug 17, 2008
473
13
Ann Arbor, MI
Hey guys i wanted to tell you about a new effect im working on. Im going to upload a video soon but i just wanted to give you guys a run-down.

So you start of by showing three aces. Spade, Heart, Diamond. You show the spectator, and simply lay them face down on the deck. You next show the Ace of Spades and lay it down on the table. You then confirm that the Ace of Spades is on the table by picking it up, showing it, and putting it back down on the table. You then search threw the deck and find the two jokers. After you find them you put the face up on the deck. You show them one at a time placing them on the table one on top of the other. While this is happening the Ace is laying on the table near it. You then make a magical gesture or whatever you want, and spread the jokers. There is then a face down card in the middle of the jokers. You take it out and there is the Ace of Spades. You then turn of the card on the table and there is the two red aces. And the clean up is great because... well there isn't one, you just put the cards back in the deck... All impromptu.


Like i said i will post a video up sometime tonight.



Thanks

-blake.
 

Justin.Morris

Elite Member
Aug 31, 2007
2,814
898
Canada
www.morrismagic.ca
It sounds like a simple and straight forward effect (that is good). What will make it shine, is a good presentation and streamlining the sleights. There needs to be motivation for every move. From your description, be careful to not 'over prove' the ace of spades. The audience is not clueless, if you show it, and lay it down they will believe you.
Keep it simple, and work on some good patter to really bring it along before you shoot your video.

Look forward to seeing what you have.

j
 
Aug 17, 2008
473
13
Ann Arbor, MI
Thanks for the advice justin. Yeah, I do need to come up with patter seeing I just came up with it. And I have to show the Ace of spades a couple of times because of the sleights I have to do to achieve the effect, but I'm going to work on it and try to trim all that fat off if the trick.


Once again, thanks.


-blake.
 
Sep 1, 2007
378
0
UK
Why do you only have three of the aces?
Why do you bother putting them on top of the deck?
Why should the two red aces appear on the table? Is the top of the deck the most impressive place for them to come from?
Why should the jokers get the Ace of Spades?
Is there any personal connection or any kind of real interaction with your audience, or is it an isolated effect?

Just some things to think about.

Joe
 

Luis Vega

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Mar 19, 2008
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Why do you only have three of the aces?
Why do you bother putting them on top of the deck?
Why should the two red aces appear on the table? Is the top of the deck the most impressive place for them to come from?
Why should the jokers get the Ace of Spades?
Is there any personal connection or any kind of real interaction with your audience, or is it an isolated effect?

Just some things to think about.

Joe

I am sure he has reasons of why he is doing it this way...I think he was trying to explain the effect and the patter is up to us or the people that is going to perform it...I don´t give patter on my tricks or just a basic one from which anybody can create their own...


and blakehensley, keep up the good work...
 
Sep 1, 2007
378
0
UK
I am sure he has reasons of why he is doing it this way...I think he was trying to explain the effect and the patter is up to us or the people that is going to perform it...I don´t give patter on my tricks or just a basic one from which anybody can create their own...


and blakehensley, keep up the good work...

I'm not trying to be harsh and unnecessarily critical, I'm trying to help. Blake says it is something he is working on, and so it is reasonable to make suggestions or indicate where further thought may be required in order to help further the effect.

Creating a mediocre effect and then later searching for some kind of patter to slap on top in an attempt to justify it is not a good way of creating magic. Anyone can throw together some sleights and make an "original" effect in terms of structure, but this doesn't necessarily make for original magic.

The presentation is a huge part of the magic, and is not just something extra to make a trick a little more interesting. By presentation, I do not just mean patter. It also includes the underlying power or cause that you are demonstrating with the magic. You can know what this is without knowing what your script will involve, but if you try to create an effect without even knowing what the underlying meaning of it is, then no matter what script to slap on top of it, it will most likely look like a feeble trick with some script slapped on top of it.

I have no idea if Blake has answers to my questions. If so, then that is great, and I am genuinely interested to know his thoughts on these things. If not, then they are just a few things that he could think about that may help to improve what he is working on and bring it closer to what he is ultimately trying to achieve.

Joe
 

Luis Vega

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Mar 19, 2008
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I'm not trying to be harsh and unnecessarily critical, I'm trying to help. Blake says it is something he is working on, and so it is reasonable to make suggestions or indicate where further thought may be required in order to help further the effect.

Creating a mediocre effect and then later searching for some kind of patter to slap on top in an attempt to justify it is not a good way of creating magic. Anyone can throw together some sleights and make an "original" effect in terms of structure, but this doesn't necessarily make for original magic.

The presentation is a huge part of the magic, and is not just something extra to make a trick a little more interesting. By presentation, I do not just mean patter. It also includes the underlying power or cause that you are demonstrating with the magic. You can know what this is without knowing what your script will involve, but if you try to create an effect without even knowing what the underlying meaning of it is, then no matter what script to slap on top of it, it will most likely look like a feeble trick with some script slapped on top of it.

I have no idea if Blake has answers to my questions. If so, then that is great, and I am genuinely interested to know his thoughts on these things. If not, then they are just a few things that he could think about that may help to improve what he is working on and bring it closer to what he is ultimately trying to achieve.

Joe

You are not making suggestions....

anyway I agree about the presentation, I was just saying that maybe he was just trying to explain the overall effect and after that comes the patter...I feel that the patter is designed after the trick and sometimes you are thinking about the trick and handling first...and then comes the patter...t´s difficult to think about a trick by thinking what you are going to say first or how you are going to present it...how can you create a patter, when there is no trick in the first place?

everyone has it´s way to design tricks...mine is name first...then the rest
 
Sep 1, 2007
378
0
UK
You are not making suggestions....

Rather than spoon-feeding answers, I feel it is often more useful to offer questions that can let people realise things for themselves.

The questions I asked are the kind that I have found very useful myself when asked in the past regarding ideas of my own.

Joe
 

Luis Vega

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Mar 19, 2008
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Ok I wanted also to say this...


the patter is really important but you need a trick first...

when I create a trick of mine called "Son of A Thief" which is a really great trick, I first created the trick and the handling...the patter wasn´t even in my mind at that time...but I had an overall idea of how the trick should look...a concept...

when the trick is finished...is just that...a trick, not a routine or a miracle...just a trick...then I created the patter...

I looked at the overall effect and see how can I present this to boost the impact...not to only justify every single thing or sleight of the trick, but also strength the effect and create a great moment...

that´s how I create my tricks....I know some people here might disagree about my way...of 1.-name 2.- trick 3.- patter... but that´s my way and it might not work for other people...
 

Luis Vega

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Mar 19, 2008
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Rather than spoon-feeding answers, I feel it is often more useful to offer questions that can let people realise things for themselves.

The questions I asked are the kind that I have found very useful myself when asked in the past regarding ideas of my own.

Joe

my suggestion for Blakehensley is...

look at the effect as if it wasn´t yours...and then criticize
 
Sep 1, 2007
378
0
UK
Ok I wanted also to say this...


the patter is really important but you need a trick first...

when I create a trick of mine called "Son of A Thief" which is a really great trick, I first created the trick and the handling...the patter wasn´t even in my mind at that time...but I had an overall idea of how the trick should look...a concept...

when the trick is finished...is just that...a trick, not a routine or a miracle...just a trick...then I created the patter...

I looked at the overall effect and see how can I present this to boost the impact...not to only justify every single thing or sleight of the trick, but also strength the effect and create a great moment...

that´s how I create my tricks....I know some people here might disagree about my way...of 1.-name 2.- trick 3.- patter... but that´s my way and it might not work for other people...


This is kind of what I was saying with the underlying power or idea you want to demonstrate. I feel that the best place to start is to know what you wish to demonstrate for your audience, irrespective of the trick itself or the power. I think this is what you mean when you say "concept". However, saying "some cards will magically move over here, then a card will disappear from here and appear here, then these cards will change into those and the backs will be different" does not count. This would be like a fiction writer writing a book simply by stringing together odd plot ideas and various emotive devices. Maybe the story will be cohesive, but it will most likely be meaningless seen as the author set out to achieve nothing more than to write a story. It is just stringing together meaningless effects and there is so much out there that already has these elements, if that is really all your criteria is.

I'm also slightly confused as to why you would want to come up with the names of your tricks first. Are you sure this is what you do, or do are the names merely a creative aid in helping you achieve an effect with a previously determined goal? Why would you start with something that is of no interest to your audience at all? The names of routines are for magicians only, so why make this the foundation unless the primary goal is to make something for magicians?

Joe
 

Luis Vega

Elite Member
Mar 19, 2008
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Leon, Guanajuato Mexico
luisvega.com.mx
This is kind of what I was saying with the underlying power or idea you want to demonstrate. I feel that the best place to start is to know what you wish to demonstrate for your audience, irrespective of the trick itself or the power. I think this is what you mean when you say "concept". However, saying "some cards will magically move over here, then a card will disappear from here and appear here, then these cards will change into those and the backs will be different" does not count. This would be like a fiction writer writing a book simply by stringing together odd plot ideas and various emotive devices. Maybe the story will be cohesive, but it will most likely be meaningless seen as the author set out to achieve nothing more than to write a story. It is just stringing together meaningless effects and there is so much out there that already has these elements, if that is really all your criteria is.

I'm also slightly confused as to why you would want to come up with the names of your tricks first. Are you sure this is what you do, or do are the names merely a creative aid in helping you achieve an effect with a previously determined goal? Why would you start with something that is of no interest to your audience at all? The names of routines are for magicians only, so why make this the foundation unless the primary goal is to make something for magicians?

Joe


MMM...I am also a bit confused of what you just wrote...

anyway I really feel that the handling is maybe the first thing that some people should have down... I see a lot of magician with really stupid patter...If I were an spectator I would think you are calling me stupid or something when I hear things like "imagine this card is a mouse"...and also tricks with good patter and very bad handling...

I think the patter doesnt mean a lot when you have the same trick that everybody do....pick a card, I return the card and then I find it....in the end no matter what patter it has...it the same damn trick and I see magicians that got called for that by spectators, because they just say....anything else? or things like "My little brother can do that...you just talk to much"

I think magicians should create more tricks with more advanced handlings and new concepts like this one....sometimes magicians use the same trick about finding a card and just because they put another patter, they say It´s a completely different trick...that just don´t make any sense to me...


Now...about my method....well I don´t came up with names of my tricks...they just occur to me...as I said before in other thread...names like King of Nowhere, Sure?,Dissolution, Blindhammer,Taste...create great tricks...that is just my way of work...I really don´t care about magicians when It comes to create trick for them, I perform for spectators which is what most magicinas should do...and who says what you say is the right way to create a trick?...I don´t see any rules or anything...
 
Aug 17, 2008
473
13
Ann Arbor, MI
Hey guys. So I have read through your guy's posts and I agree with both of you.

But I am doing what Luis Vega said. I'm making the actual effect and then adding patter later.
 
Hey guys i wanted to tell you about a new effect im working on. Im going to upload a video soon but i just wanted to give you guys a run-down.

So you start of by showing three aces. Spade, Heart, Diamond. You show the spectator, and simply lay them face down on the deck. You next show the Ace of Spades and lay it down on the table. You then confirm that the Ace of Spades is on the table by picking it up, showing it, and putting it back down on the table. You then search threw the deck and find the two jokers. After you find them you put the face up on the deck. You show them one at a time placing them on the table one on top of the other. While this is happening the Ace is laying on the table near it. You then make a magical gesture or whatever you want, and spread the jokers. There is then a face down card in the middle of the jokers. You take it out and there is the Ace of Spades. You then turn of the card on the table and there is the two red aces. And the clean up is great because... well there isn't one, you just put the cards back in the deck... All impromptu.


Like i said i will post a video up sometime tonight.



Thanks

-blake.
sounds pretty darn good...can't wait to see it....
 
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