Howdy! I'm relatively new to card and coin magic, having only been learning a few tricks here and there for the past six months, but I've recently decided to dig deeper and expand my knowledge of the fundamentals. So, I went and got a couple books a couple days ago and started reading (Hugard's and Braué's "Expert Card Technique: Close-Up Table Magic" and Bobo's "Modern Coin Magic", to be specific; feel free to suggest more!). With that out of the way, here's my problem; I'm not sure how or where I should start practicing, especially when it comes to building manual dexterity and reach (I have short pinkies, among other things). What sorts of things do you lovely gents and ladies for practice, and what would you suggest for me, as a novice?
well...I feel that (and since you have already started reading books, you MAY have faced this problem too) that it becomes sort of boring to read a magic book A-Z, like you can't be like "Oh I finished chaper 1 today" or something.
You might be completely fine with that but IN CASE you are like me and find that approach boring, just open to any effect that appeals to you and start learning from there. Whatever the thing is, just read the books well.
I dunno about Expert Card Technique, but as
@Maaz Hasan said, do buy RRTCM, it helps. And I guess I can tell you a thing or two to get you started on Modern Road to Coin Magic.
First off IF (you might already have) you haven't mastered the classic palm yet, do it now. Classic palming a coin has no problems with small hands. And a tip I got from
@RealityOne is to go to coinvanish.com and check out the classic palm there under ''Foundations'' option. That will require a password that you will get in Bobo's book's first chapter as well. I saw that when it was too late
Don't make the same mistake as me.
Master the classic palm and finger palm (not a problem) and THEN, turn to coins across chapter. The Inseperable Pair has given me a LOT of mileage and am sure it will help you too as well! Check out ''Quick Tricks'' chapr and ''Coin classics" as well, they are dope. I don't own ANY coin box, so I don't know abt them. If you have one, feel free to check out the chapter on them too!
I'd recommend (as always) ''Complete Idiot's Guide to Street Magic" by Tom Ogden. Pay attention to the name of the book, there's a book with a similar name and same writer, don't mix it up.
Go to Jay Sankey's website--Inside Deception--and download the three free pdf's. There is one that is full of thoughts about magic. You won't understand its value now. Later, you will thank me for recommending that
Other 2 pdf's have all secrets and methods, which am sure is ALL you wanna read now.
And know what? That is what you SHOULD be doing. Learn all you can right now, WHATEVER you find, soak it up (I have often heard how beginners in a field are like a sponge). And then slowly some of your tricks will just speak to you. For some reason you will just like them more. And then you can develop your style and stuff more.
For now, just focus on the sleights. Character and things will come just a bit later. Say, a few weeks to a few months more.
And PRACTICE!!! Please practice! Practice, practice, practice. This repetition is necessary. It doesn't matter if you know how something is done, you need to be able to DO it.
A few things you should be familiar with (not a concrete list) in card magic is a superb double-lift, a control, a force and the charlier cut.
And if there's anything more important than practice in magic, it is performance. So perform a lot. Perform for every friend and family member! And take their criticism (if any) POSITIVELY.
Magicians can give you loads of advice and tips. We can pretend to be in the spectators shoes and help you. But no magician's advice can be as valuable as a spectator's feedback.
So that's your mantra for months from now
Practice, practice, rehearse, perform, back to practising.
Also read what you have bought and what I told you. Check out You Tube. Learning magic should be FUN. If it is not, you are doing something wrong.
So do whatever feels like fun to you with magic!
Except, don't see an effect once and go to perform it, that's a no, sorry
