Book Recommendations for Theory (not tricks and sleights)

[NinoIng]

...or I should say, not just tricks and sleights.

I’m looking for something a bit different to read. I have plenty of material for learning card, coin and band magic (probably enough for a few careers worth if I work through it properly) but apart from the afterwords in card college and expert card technique I’m really lacking anything in the way of theory of performing and creating.

I enjoy those segments during live lectures where they talk about the ‘why’. I’m curious to read something along the lines of Bob Cassidys 13 steps to mentalism only for card magicians or even magic in general.

What would you recommend fellas?

 

[DavidL11229]

Strong Magic by Darwin Ortiz
Designing Miracles by Darwin Ortiz

I found these 2 to be the most enjoyable and relevant to my magic.

I also like Ascanio
Magic of Ascanio Vol. 1 The Structural Conception of Magic

Others will also suggest Tamariz, but I found the ones above more to my taste.
The Magic Way
Five Points in Magic

There are of course more, but these are the ones I own. Tommy Wonder's Books of Wonder have been reprinted and will be available at the end of the month. I have pre-ordered/pre-paid mine, but it is a matter of conjecture as to whether or not I own them yet.
They are not just theory, but they are recommended in that department.

Let us know what your approach is and what you find magical and we can point you in the right direction. Or just buy them all if you just like magic books like some of the rest of us here.

 

[Mr_ARPY]

Almost all of derren brown books.
-Pure effect
-tricks of the mind
-absolute magic
-confessions of a conjuror

 

[NinoIng]

Thanks for the ideas so far!

Let us know what your approach is and what you find magical and we can point you in the right direction. Or just buy them all if you just like magic books like some of the rest of us here.

A great question. What do I find magical? I guess I like magic that stays away from displaying too much skill with cards. I think people are often wise to sleight of hand existing even if they don't know any. On the other hand I don't expect people to believe in actual magical powers. So I like things that fall somewhere between impossible and unexplainable, that perfect point where all a spectator's logical explanation that they've been giving the trick up to a certain point disappear as the final effect is not what they expected, and they've been completely led down the wrong road and can no longer find their way back.

Tricks that present themselves as one thing and then do something unexpected at the end. Tricks that seem to be completely predictable right up until that 'what the hell' moment.

I don't know if that's any clearer

I've heard good things about the Darwin Ortiz books so I'll check them out. I love Derren Brown but I've also heard his books are pretty rare, so I'll leave them for now.

 

[NinoIng]

Sorry to double post, but after watching the brief interview with Darwin Ortiz about Strong Magic I feel I have something to add to my previous post (I'm ordering this now for sure, by the way.)

He talks about creating grander implications in the mind of a spectator. He gives the example that a gambling demonstration may make a spectator think 'I'd hate to play cards with you!'

I guess my magic, when cards appear suddenly in strange places or when colours are separated or found inexplicably, I like to tap into the small question that everybody had (even cynical people) about the nature of psychic intuition. Even cynics have felt deja vu, or correctly predicted something in a bizarre way, or witnessed and unbelievable coincidence. I often frame my magic around intuition and signals like this, because I think deep down everyone has experienced them and believes there's just a little bit more to it than we can explain with science. Those are the kind of tricks I like - they make people question their own beliefs about intuition and reading people.

 

[DominusDolorum]

Scripting Magic Volume 1 and 2, by Pete McCabe, are both excellent. Together they are pricey, so I would recommend just picking up the first one if you can. They have essays, scripts, interviews, and tricks contributed by the worlds greatest magicians. What I really love about this books is that the tricks that are taught are coupled with the creators/performers script and then thoughts that went into creating the whole piece. You can't ask for more in a book on presentation. The book also delves into the pros of character development...which segues into my next recommendation.

Boffo is a short manuscript on character development, and it's written by none other than our @ChristopherT. Much like in a few sections of SM, Christopher talks about the importance of having a character, even if your character is just an extension of yourself or a part of your personality. It will help you focus, create a logical consistency for your magic and affect how your audiences percieve you.

 

[cgstorz]

In addition to and in agreement with everything that has been said so far, especially by DavidL, I would suggest The Workers series by Michael Close which has some excellent "theoretical" essays scattered through it in addition to a ton of the solidest material. Well, pretty much anything by Close actually since when he describes a routine he just doesn't give you the what and the how, he also gives you the why.

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

Absolute Magic and Pure Effect are two of my favorite books, but unless you get lucky you're going to be spending 200-400 to get both.

I really enjoyed Maximum Entertainment by Ken Weber. It's a no-nonsense, to the point book about making a performance better.

Scripting Magic 1 & 2 are great. This is an excellent example of a book with a clear goal that doesn't get muddied up. Pete aims to help people write better scripts, and both volumes do just that - teach you how to write better scripts. No fluff.

One of the more obscure volumes I really enjoy is Alchemical Tools by Paul Brook. Maybe it's because he's a mentalist and advertises more to that market than general magic, but I really enjoyed that book and it really made me think about how I was performing.

Counting Scripting Magic as one set, those are my top 5.

Strong Magic is good, but I had issues with it. For one, I don't like how often Ortiz references his other works. It comes across as both bragging and a sales pitch to me. I also felt that whenever he strayed out of his specialty (As in, when talking about mentalism or bizarre magic, for example) he was clearly not drawing on personal knowledge. I think everyone should read this for sure, but it does have flaws.

Jamie Ian Swiss has several books out, and there was recently a nice box-set of leather bound versions. I think they called it "The Works". I read 3 of 4 of them so far, but got burned out on Swiss' writing style a bit. Jamie has a reputation as the controversial "bad boy", and when you read his stuff you can tell that's something he was clearly going for.

Swiss and (to a lesser degree) Ortiz also are part of the cynics who call themselves skeptics. This is relevant to the thread, because their anti-mystic views interfere with their own goals. Swiss talks a lot about creating miracle situations for audiences, but then focuses on meaningless card tricks. They are so opposed to anything that might possibly hint at the supernatural that they don't allow their audiences to enter that space of possibility. I've always felt the need to tell the audience that it's all tricks and sleight of hand to be utter arrogance, though, so feel free to take my opinions with a grain of salt.

Our Magic is kind of the original Theory Book. I enjoyed reading it quite a bit - particularly since what they talk about is still relevant, today. Change the wording around a little bit and their essays would look right at home on any contemporary magic forum. It may help that I scored a first edition print and I'm a huge book nerd.

Another book that has a good bit of theory in it is The Paper Engine by Aaron Fisher.

 

[NinoIng]

Swiss and (to a lesser degree) Ortiz also are part of the cynics who call themselves skeptics. This is relevant to the thread, because their anti-mystic views interfere with their own goals. Swiss talks a lot about creating miracle situations for audiences, but then focuses on meaningless card tricks. They are so opposed to anything that might possibly hint at the supernatural that they don't allow their audiences to enter that space of possibility. I've always felt the need to tell the audience that it's all tricks and sleight of hand to be utter arrogance, though, so feel free to take my opinions with a grain of salt.

I’m glad you mentioned it as I completely agree with you on that side of magicians. If everything is just dismissed as quick hands and trickery by the very person performing then you aren’t performing ‘miracles’, you’re showing off dexterity (although some personas do this brilliantly ie, Greg Wilson, but that fits with his style).

Thanks for your in-depth recommendations. I’m curious about the Paper Engine, I haven’t heard much about Fisher apart from his packet tricks. Good to know he’s worth looking into.

 

[cgstorz]

Arg.....How did I forget The Experience of Magic by Eugene Burger. Well, I didn't exactly forget it, I just thought it was out of print. Which it turns out it isn't. That is to say, it is in print.

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

The Paper Engine came out some time ago, and he hasn't really done much to advertise it in several years. It has several pieces of really solid sleight of hand in there, but it also has tidbits at the end of each section with his tips and tricks on the subtleties. It's mostly a technique book, but has valuable theory too.

cgstorz mentioned Eugene Burger - obviously a good choice. He's a legend for a reason. I have a couple books of his and they are good. He wrote in the older style, though, so you have to glean the wisdom out of the descriptions of the tricks. I recommend anything he's ever written, though.

 

[Lord Magic]

...or I should say, not just tricks and sleights.

I’m looking for something a bit different to read. I have plenty of material for learning card, coin and band magic (probably enough for a few careers worth if I work through it properly) but apart from the afterwords in card college and expert card technique I’m really lacking anything in the way of theory of performing and creating.

I enjoy those segments during live lectures where they talk about the ‘why’. I’m curious to read something along the lines of Bob Cassidys 13 steps to mentalism only for card magicians or even magic in general.

What would you recommend fellas?

Ticks of the Mind and Cconfessions of a Cconjuror...
They are dope!

 

[RealityOne]

Larry Haas Transformations.