theory11 — Magic Tricks & the World's Finest Playing Cards

How do I go about inventing tricks?

M

MagikKid

Feb 25, 2008
7
1
In a house.
Hello everyone!
I just recently joined this forum (and I think it's great) and was always wondering, how should I start creating tricks? I always try to think of an effect but nothing rational or new has come to mind. Any advice?
 
Unfortunately, WE can't tell YOU how to create effects. It all lies within you and your creativity. What you should do is expand your creativity to new lengths! A great way of doing this is watching films that you never thought you would watch, never waking up before noon, and watching tons and tons of magic videos. It all lies within you! Keep working at it :)

Mitch
 
Welcome to the Forums!

Since your new I did not expect you to know this but, there has been a few topics about this in the past which I will link you too, as they will help :).

Link Yi
Link Er

Browse through those, and if you have any more questions I recommend contacting some of the artists through Private Message or E-mail, as well.

-RA69

Edit:: Yi and Er are 1 and 2 in Mandarin. Just thought I'd mention that. Although I'm not actually fluent I took it in my first semester :).
 
It's really up to you how to develop a trick. If you have an idea start with that. More ideas will branch off with that. Once you have a solid idea of what you want you can began developing a method.

It's really all in your mind. YOU are the only person who can create an effect.

Good Luck!

Michael
 
Why try to create something so soon?? There are a ton of classics you should look into, instead of trying to create something. I'd say look into Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic. A GREAT book that I still refer to quite often. The Royal Road to Card Magic....another GREAT book that is a classic as well.

Contrary to popular belief, inventing something won't make you famous. Especially not so soon. But, by consistently performing for real audiences, you will over time start to come up with your own presentations to certain routines. And from there, you start to tweak a move here or there, and before you know it you're going a completely different routine that got developed through actually performing.

So...forget about creating and start performing. That's all you need to worry about, and the rest will come naturally. :)

Good Luck!
Steve
 
I say this a lot, and I'll say this again.

What you have to do is work backwards. You can't create a trick but starting at the beginning. Think, "What would be something I would want to do?"

Make it out of the box, insane, so crazy that nobody would even think of attempting it. And then make a method.

That's basically it. Think of what you want to happen, and then think of a method. Never in reverse.

The only exception is if you have a sleight you know you want to include in the effect. In that case, you can build the effect around that key sleight.

Hope this helps! I've created about 4 or 5 solid effects using this technique.

David
 
d4v1dm15n3r said:
I say this a lot, and I'll say this again.

What you have to do is work backwards. You can't create a trick but starting at the beginning. Think, "What would be something I would want to do?"

Make it out of the box, insane, so crazy that nobody would even think of attempting it. And then make a method.

That's basically it. Think of what you want to happen, and then think of a method. Never in reverse.

The only exception is if you have a sleight you know you want to include in the effect. In that case, you can build the effect around that key sleight.

Hope this helps! I've created about 4 or 5 solid effects using this technique.

David
Click to expand...

I completely agree...Though mine haven't been that out of the box crazy effects...I have created 3 effects working on my 4th and most of them started off by either i seeing or knowing an effect, and then i either wanted to make this effect reality for me or alter a method for an effect to make it better or impromptu

one i saw and effect but knew how it was done and took the method and molded it around and ended up with a completely different effect (though the method was similar)

its really hard to just think of an effect out of the blue... most of the effects you may create will either be a branch off of something you saw (ex. DC saws his body in half, you want to saw your hand off)

And in the process of creating tricks, don't hesitate to create your own sleights as well. At first i did this and i found my effects were to ordinary or they almost mimicked another effect. So I guess what I'm trying to say is:

MAKE YOUR OWN SLEIGHTS

if you find that another sleight that exists ends with the same result but looks better or something then just use that one
 
Daniel Madison said in one of his eBooks:

"If I walked up to myself, how would I fool me?"

That inspired him to think outside the box and all that other crazy jazz that he does. (Offtopic: I can't wait for Dangerous!)

If you wanted to know which book it's from, I think it was "Bound"...
 
I am a strong believer that creativity can not be forced. I don't think it is ever wise to try and force an idea. Let it all happen naturally. Play around with different sleights and different gimmicks.

I once read an interview with rapper Missy Elliot and she was asked something to the extent of "How to you keep making such great and funky music?" She said "I don't listen to the radio a lot and I don't watch music videos a lot."

In a way, keeping your self out of the loop will lead you to create new things. It will keep you fresh and it won't let you conform to the current trend. I suggest you learn as much as you can, read as many books and watch as many DVDs as possible, then stop.

Completely disassociate yourself with everything you knew and everything that’s going on in the magic world and you might be surprised with all the new ideas that flow into your head.

I am a song writer and I approach magic just like I do music. I can't play a single full cover of a song. I can play pieces of songs, but never the whole thing. I can learn the techniques and ideas for riffs to create my own music which is much more satisfactory for me.

I do the same with magic. I think I know or perform about two effects that are someone else’s. The rest are all my own. I have taken ideas and sleights and maybe even completely new ideas and sleights and gaffs, reworked them into something that works for me and of course gets the reactions I want.

You have to let your mind completely be free. No barriers. You have to day dream.

I will say that some people just aren’t creators. It takes a certain kind of person to create anything, whether it is magic, music, or a painting. Some see things in ones and zeros while others see things in light and color. It just depends on the kind of person you are.

I hope some of this has helped.
 
Steve Simmons and Ben both make excellent points. Creativity is very "do or do not - there is no try". Learn a wide variety of tricks, expand your knowledge of sleights and solutions, keep on just playing with magic and sooner or later you'll stumble on something.

That's not to say there isn't method to creativity - but its something which you have to learn by feel. Nothing says you have to be creative though! More often than not what you'll end up doing is more personalisation of a trick than something new and revolutionary. Everyone has a preferred toolbox, and so it makes sense to approach a trick using that toolbox. This is a practical, sensible approach to creativity.

But if you insist on wanting to do more, why not start with a trick that you like. Strip it down to the fundamental premise, and figure how you can apply that premise in a different direction. An example from David Stone vol 2 - Ringbox: a ring is borrowed, turns into a key, the key unlocks a small wooden box, and inside is found the ring. What a stunning premise for a trick! The idea that the object turns into something which provides a clue for how to find it again, superb stuff. There's about a million different ways you could apply that idea and come up with some great ideas for tricks. Then its up to you to find a solution.
 
I think creating your own tricks is talent rather than wanting to create something. You can achieve that talent by really thinking outside the box for effects that no one has ever even thought of before. The reason I say its talent is because look at all the great creators in the magic community. Most them haven't created 1 great effect. They've created a few or many great effects and they have achieved this talent that so many magicians desire.

Alex
 
i have a well detailed piece of advice ill send it via pm to you.... but that advice is from me, to get "professional" help on how to create tricks u can get jay sankey's how to create your own magic
 
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