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It's not them, it's you.

If you are doing trick after trick, 15 minutes is too long. A children's show needs to be designed to hold their interest by having a theme and a plot. Kids sit for an hour to watch the Disney Live or Sesame Street Live shows. Why, because there is a plot (however contrived). Children know...

Do a bottom deal, hold the card in your hand and say "wait a minute, I forgot to shuffle." Put the card "back" on the top of the deck and do a riffle shuffle retaining the position.

I'm going to second this. It is based on Steinmeyer's Incessant Newspaper. It is impromptu and can be used with the tabloids. I actually saw Andrew Mayne perform and teach this. It is a great effect.

KeoSilver: I lay out my shows like a script, but more so in a paragraph form because I'm the only speaker. I put the blocking, instructions and spectator responses in [brackets]. A magician friend recently sent me a link to free scriptwriting software, but I haven't tried it. That being...

The book is by Steven Covey and is called First Things First. Another book that I recommend is Steven Covey's Seven Habbits of Highly Effective People.

I'll disagree. True magic happens in your heart and soul. It is what connects us to others and what makes us human. Can you make your performances resonate like the magical moments in our lives?

Balancing in life is very difficult. I remember something from one of Richard Covey's books about how your life sometimes needs to be out of balance. Sometimes, family has to take priority. Sometimes it is your job. Sometimes it is other commitments. As long as those periods are short- lived...

L Craig: I don't think reinstalling your OS will solve the problem. The problem is the amount of RAM (Random Access Memory -not to be confused with the amount of storage space on your hard drive) in your computer and your Internet speed. Skype takes a good chunk of RAM and uses a lot of...

Mark Wilson has a levitation that would work in his Complete Course, but it requires a curtain. The typical way to levitate a child is a chair suspension, but the child needs to be at least four for it to work. The appearance is easier. First stop is Mark Wilson's Complete Course where there...

Check out RNTII HERE. They are more expensive, but the quality will be better than something from Magic Makers.

Hmmmm. I'm not sure I agree. Lots to choose from in the last five years, these are from a quick check inside the front cover of some of the books on my shelf: A Book in English - Woody Aragon (2011) Maelstorm - Tom Stone (2011) Vortex - Tom Stone (2010) Gift Magic - Larry Haas (2010) Moments...

As I reread this post, I began to wonder if the emphasis on clothing was not were you are going. Are all magician's outdated cliches? I think the answer is yes, but no, but yes again. Let me explain. What do most people think of when they think of a magician? The guy from Frosty the...

Pseudo-goth? Faux-goth? I know there is a distinction between Criss (and his wannabes) and someone who has a real character (and a freaking cool top hat with a skull and cross bones). Your character has always struck me as a sightly macabre Victorian gentleman than Criss Angel rocker/goth.

Fashion. Robert-Houdin brought magic off the streets and into the parlor (or stage) by dressing like someone from high society. The top hat and tails was something that was worn by those in high society. Now the trend in magic is to return to the streets and dress in Goth fashion. Go figure...

It is the difference between tricks and magic. I have to disagree. It needs something more. As the routine was presented, my summary of it is "watch how I can change the color of cards repeatedly while I play with different colored light bulbs to justify my showing off." Creative? Yes...

The first solution I come up with is to switch out the shot glasses for a martini glass. That makes more sense in the routine and makes it easier to fill one object with a lot of liquid rather than three objects with a little liquid. For the method, I'll shoot you a pm.

I think the difference between my advice and your advice are that I'm making some assumptions which would lead to the conclusion that "you are only teaching the student the basics...." My assumptions are that it is possible that the teacher's abilities are not advanced enough to teach more than...

Although I work a lot with kids and have taught kids magic tricks as part of a show (nothing even approaching a French Drop or a Cross Cut force - if any worker is using the material I teach they have bigger problems the me teaching their methods) I haven't taught magic one on one. That being...

I'll second Greg Wilson's On the Spot. Apocalypse (although it is an awesome resource) may be a little overkill for what you are looking for. I think the best route is coins. Get Eric Jones's Metal and a copy of Bobo's Modern coin magic.