So You Want To Be A Magician,

A Beginners Guide
By Peter Nardi (Member Of The Inner Magic Circle)

Introduction
Firstly, can I say a big thank you for downloading this Ebook. Within these
pages I am going to explain how you can get into the secretive world of magic
and once in, how you can make your magic stronger. By the time you read and
digest the contents you will no longer be performing tricks, but what will appear
to be miracles.

My name is Peter Nardi and I'm a member of the Inner Magic Circle. I also own
Alakazam Magic (www.alakazam.co.uk); a company I started in 1990, which
sells magic tricks, books and DVDs for magicians and those with an interest in
magic. We even offer magic lessons for complete beginners. I also create magic
that is used by magicians the world over and have consulted for magic shows on
TV.

Magic makes for a great hobby no matter how old you are. It doesn't matter if
you want to impress your friends at school, freak your mates out down the pub,
entertain your guests at a dinner party, amaze your grandchildren, or even if
you just want to be the centre of attention at a party. Magic is something that
helps break the ice at social gatherings, it's entertaining and it's fun.

Trust me, you will feel amazing when you start receiving awesome reactions to
your magic. So that's enough of the small talk, let's start our journey towards
making your magic super strong and magical!
So You Want To Be A Magician?
Ok, so you may already perform a little magic or you may just be interested in
taking the first step, either way I can almost guarantee that your interest was
sparked because of the feeling you got when you saw a magician. Whether is was
a magician at a party, a friend of the family, an uncle or even Dynamo on TV.
You have seen someone and thought to yourself 'I would love to be able to do
that'.

So let's break it down. How did you feel when you saw that magician? I think
some of these words will sum it up:
Amazed
Mystified
Inspired
Amused
Entertained
Happy
The one thing that all of these words have in common is that they are all
positive! A good magician can really give you that feel-good feeling.

As human beings, most of us would like to have a positive impact on other

people. Maybe deep down that's why we want to do magic. Trust me, seeing
happy people and watching as they witness a moment of wonder is an absolutely
amazing feeling and when you perform magic like this, this is exactly what
happens and this is exactly what happened when you first saw magic. If you
could bottle this feeling of happiness and amazement you would have people
queuing to buy it.

Now, it's very important never to forget the way you felt when you first saw
magic, because if you forget that you will forget what you are supposed to be to
your audience. Your job as a magician is to entertain your audience. This should
be your number one goal!
So how do you get into magic? It's a hobby that seems to be shrouded in
mystery. In fact when I started my journey, information on magic was a lot
harder to obtain than it is today. Back then there was no internet or YouTube,
instead there were magic shops (if you could find one) and libraries. Yes the
library! I went to the local library and got hold of a magic book, which was my
first step in to this wonderful world.

Obviously today it's a lot easier. The internet has been a game changer. You only
need to look at our website www.alakazam.co.uk to see the thousands of tricks,
books and DVDs available to you.

The information is now there and within easy reach to anyone with an interest.
I have a few tips that will help you start your journey into magic.

Firstly, if you are looking to buy a few tricks to amaze your friends with check
out our beginners section and our difficulty ratings. You want to look for a
rating of '1'. This means the effect should be good for a beginner to learn. You
really do not want to try and run before you can walk. I have seen too many
people do this and guess what happens? They give up, they believe that magic is
not for them, it's too hard. Well guess what? It's not hard if you pick the right
tricks, DVDs or books to learn from.

If you're unsure if a trick is right for you, just give me or one of the Alakazam
team a call and we will guide you. We want you to be able to perform the magic
you buy. We want you to improve and grow as a magician.

If you get the chance, come and visit us. Alakazam is a proper magic shop as
well as a website. So why not come and see us, we will help you take the right
path!

Knowing what effect or trick to start with can be a minefield, so below I have
listed 5 awesome tricks that are what we refer to as 'self-working' and these will
be perfect to get you started on your magical journey.
The Vanishing Deck
http://www.alakazam.co.uk/product-Vanishing-Deck.html
Dynamic Coins
http://www.alakazam.co.uk/product-Dynamic-Coins.html
Mental Photography
http://www.alakazam.co.uk/product-Mental-Photography.html
Svengali Deck
http://www.alakazam.co.uk/product-Svengali-Deck-Bicycle.html
Stripper Deck
http://www.alakazam.co.uk/product-Stripper-Deck-Bicycle.html

The above are just five of the amazing tricks you can perform even if you have
never touched a magic trick before. I have chosen these tricks for two reasons:
1. They are easy to do, the effects are made in such a way that the prop itself
does the hard work for you; 2. They are magical and impactful. You will look like
a master magician when you perform them.

So you get yourself a trick, how long do you practice it for?

We class some tricks as self-working, but what does that actually mean?
Self-working means the trick uses no sleight of hand (this type of trick is usually
perfect for beginners), the trick will often work via a mathematical or
mechanical method. So does this mean the trick works itself? Sort of, yes, but
(and it's a BIG but) you still need to practice it. You need to learn the trick inside
out. You need to practice it until it becomes second nature to you. Before you
show anyone your new magic trick you want to be confident with it, that's what
will make it magical. Later in this book I will explain more about making your
magic more magical but for now, please trust me and practice, practice practice!
The Next Step
I know how it feels, you practice the trick and you're desperate to show people,
so here's an important point. Knowing how the trick works is only the first part.
The next step is how do I present it, what do I say when I'm doing the trick?
Well that's a hard one to answer and only you can truly make that decision, a lot
of it has to do with your personality but below are a couple of ideas.

Many years ago David Blaine's Street Magic special aired on TV. This was, in my
mind, the turning point in magic. I was interested in magic before David
Blaine's special, so I believe I'm in a position to judge. David's special made
magic cool again. There are more magicians around today due to Davids TV
special. He inspired many to take up Magic. Not only that, but the public had a
new found respect and love for it.
Now David's character on TV is very mysterious and quiet, in fact on his first
special he hardly said a word and the patter (as it's commonly referred to) was
almost non-existent. Many young magicians have followed this path and even
though it works well for TV, I'm not sure it's good for a real world performance.
To this point, when you meet David in real life his persona is different, more
energetic, more fun and more engaging. This is how you capture, keep and
entertain.

Patter is a storyline that helps you with your performance. It also helps your
audience understand the trick and often can be used to explain away unusual
props.

Let's imagine you have a little box that can vanish a coin. Here are two scenarios
one without patter and one with: 'Here I have a box, and if I put your coin in
the box, close the draw and reopen it your coin has vanished'.
If you perform the effect as above not only is the trick far from entertaining but
it also leaves a lot of questions in your spectators mind.
What's that box?
Why does he have to put the coin in the box?
Where is my coin?
Maybe it's a trick box and my coin is still in there some how?
'While on holiday I found a small antique shop full of weird and wonderful
things but nothing was as weird or as wonderful as this little box and the story
attached to it. The shop keeper told me the box belonged to an old gentleman.
The gentleman gave it to the shop keeper to sell and said he will take his
payment every time the box is used. Not long after the gentleman died, but to
this day he still takes his payment'.

Imagine saying that story or patter as you are performing the trick. You are
answering your spectators questions before they even have time to think of
them. Hopefully you can understand the impact and interest a good piece of
patter can add to an effect. No matter what the effect is.

Once you have mastered a trick, take a little time to stand back and look at
what's going on within the effect. Now obviously you can't build a cute story into
every single effect you do, but when you can, it can transform the trick into a
performance piece.

Many of the world's best magicians are great story tellers. Creating interesting
patter for your effects is not only fun and rewarding but will also help you
engage with your audience.

Try it and see!

Get Your Act Together
Once you have a collection of tricks that you can perform, it's time to build an
act. Usually 10-15 mins is enough (3-5 tricks) and building an act is about
finding tricks that complement each other and creating a flow through your
performance.

There are a few key things I'm going to explain to you in this chapter that will
help you get your act together.

Once you've learnt a bunch of effects, you need to choose the right ones for your
act. Usually when you start in magic you have a lot of trick decks, each deck
allowing you to do one trick. What you want to try and avoid is doing a card
trick with what you want your audience to believe is a normal deck, putting the
deck away and pulling out what is meant to be another normal deck. It makes
no sense and screams trick deck. So try and choose effects that will allow you to
switch trick decks naturally (if you are using them).

Also if you know a rope trick, a card trick, a coin trick, use them, as this will add
variety to your act and by using other items gives you a great way to switch trick
decks unnoticed (if you need too). I.e. Card trick, rope trick, card trick. By
placing a rope, coin or other trick between your card tricks allows you to
naturally place the deck away for your second trick (rope, coin etc) and then
remove a different deck for you next card trick. If switching decks try to remove
deck & from the same pocket you placed deck 1.

Your act should have: A strong opening effect is a must. It says who you are
and tells people they need to watch you.

Out of my top 5 beginners tricks it would be Mental Photography. It starts with

a completely blank deck of cards, which the magician then prints the fronts and
backs onto.
This effect is not only visual and magical, but can also be performed quickly, and
is a guaranteed attention grabber.

Bridging effects are effects that sit in the middle of your act or set. These should
be chosen carefully. They should be strong but also wherever possible be used to
help you transition into your closing effect.
Out of my top 5 I would choose Dynamic Coins. Not only is this a great baffling
coin effect, but it will give me a natural reason to put the Mental Photography
deck away, which will act as the switch for my big finish.

The closer is usually your most powerful effect. It's the effect that people are
more likely to remember and talk about so make it strong.

Out of my top 5 I would choose to close with the Vanishing deck. It will bring
the act to a natural end and it's visually stunning.

So here is a simple but mind blowing act taken from my top 5 beginners list.

To start, Mental Photography. I would show the cards blank, magically print
them and end the effect there rather than turn them blank again.

I would put the deck away and remove the Dynamic Coins. Perform the effect
and leave it on the table as I reach into my pocket to remove the Vanishing deck
as my finale.

I know this doesn't tell you much about the tricks themselves, but I am just
using it as an example as to what effects I would choose and why. To give you an
idea on building an act.

So once you have your act, should you script it?

The simple answer is yes, but to what extent is the real question. Sometimes
scripting word-forword can work, but other times I've seen fully scripted
magicians get interrupted halfway through a performance, leaving them a little
lost.
If you feel safer scripting your act word-for-word then go for it, but be sure to
deliver your script with meaning and passion so it sounds like the first time
you've said it and you're not just reciting the script. This will keep it fresh and
exciting for both you and your audience.

I personally like the part scripted route. Unless it's a story effect, my script is
quite loose. I know what I need to say at important points in the effect,
especially when certain points need highlighting, but most of what I say
depends on who I'm performing to and the mood of the party.

Why not give both ways a go and see which you feel more comfortable with.
Let's Do Some Magic
Ok so you've practiced your tricks and created you patter. It's now time to
perform. When you start performing you will perform to family and friends.
Even though you know these guys, they are not always the best audience and let
me try to explain why.

Your family and friends have known you for a long time and they are well aware
of any special powers you may have. So to come out one day and say 'hey I'm a
magician', I can assure you they will be slightly sceptical.

This being said, you usually don't have any choice but to try out your magic on
these guys. So here are some tips for you.

Mums are usually the best people to try new effects out on as they are always
encouraging and they will give constructive criticism when needed. I know
wherever I was with my mum she would always get me to perform. She was so
proud that her son was a magician.

Friends can be a hard crowd so it's important that your tricks don't come over as
a challenge. You don't want to come across as superior because this will get their
backs up and they will try to work out the trick to undermine you.

If you keep your magic fun and entertaining and even get them involved,
especially when performing to other people, they will be more supportive to
your magic.

It is sometimes hard because performing magic will make you the centre of
attention, so be careful you don't ignore those close to you.

Even though this sounds scary, it's usually easier for a few reasons. For one
thing they don't know how long you have been performing, so if you show them
a good trick they will believe you have been performing for years (because the
general belief is you need to train for years to master just one trick).
Also people that don't know you will be more polite and in most cases not try
and grab everything from you.

Magicians guilt is something that many magicians suffer from and it basically
means that because you know how a trick is done (and in most cases it's easy
when you know how) you will believe that your audience will know how it's done
as well.

This isn't the case, and that is why I said always remember how you felt when
you first watched magic. This is exactly how they will be feeling as long as you
have put in enough practice.

If you feel guilty or scared they will know it. You need to be KMM% confident.
Even if you're using a deck that is totally gimmicked if you act as though it's a
normal deck and treat it as a normal deck they will believe it's a normal deck.

If you are clutching and protecting the gimmicked deck like it is made of gold
your spectator will know.

So be confident and don't feel guilty. It will truly make your magic more
magical!

When you first start performing, getting great reactions is a buzz, a real buzz,
but there is one trap we all fall into, as they say to be forewarned is to be
forearmed!

I see so many magicians who have been performing magic for a few months
then go out with their entire magic collection in their pockets and will push
every trick on everyone they meet. Don't do it!

It's great to have a few tricks on you and it's great to perform, but you want to be
the guy they can't wait to see. The life and soul of the party. The one that can do
cool things if they ask you nicely.
Not the guy they want to avoid at all costs because if they speak to you they have
to sit through hours of magic tricks they may not be interested in seeing in the
first place.

By all means break the ice with a killer trick, get the party started with some
awesome magic but remember LESS IS MORE. It's always better for them to say
'can you show us some more?' rather than 'oh I've just remembered I've got to
go and see so and so'.

I know it's a harsh lesson but we all go through it and I'll help you skip this
awkward moment in your journey. You can thank me later!
Moving Up A Gear
Now you have started to perform your job should be a little more than just
performing your tricks.

In this chapter I'm going to give you some exercises to do which will help you
improve as a magician. Don't worry, there are no push-ups or sit-ups involved!
As well as enjoying your awesome magic, it's very important your audience like
you, connect with you and enjoy the entertainment you're providing. So it's
worth thinking about who you are in their eyes. Are you funny, serious,
mysterious etc.?

It's natural that when you start performing your character will start building.
You may be naturally funny, you may have a mysterious look, or you may have a
serious side.

Whatever personality you have it's absolutely fine. Let your personality come
out in your performance. During your performance think about what you're
saying and how you're saying it.

Try and pick up on the lines that get laughs or good reactions and remember
them, there will be so many ad-libs you say "off the cuff" that will get big laughs.
Don't waste them, remember them and add them to your script.
You will find that some tricks you perform will get better reactions than others.
Your job is to work out why.

Is it the trick or the way it's being done? Now I don't mean that in a nasty way,
I'm not saying you're doing it badly but sometimes just by changing what you
saying or by performing the effect a slightly different way completely changes
the impact an effect has on a spectator.

Points to remember:
1. The type of trick that impress us magicians are not always the same ones that
impress spectators;
2. Remember K.I.S "Keep It Simple", sometimes the simplest of effects get the
best reactions;

3. Don't perform when you have been drinking (I know it's common sense but
thought I'd mention it);

4. Don't try and perform anything beyond your capabilities. It's very easy to get
over confident, but in doing this you are more likely to get caught out and in-
turn it will be a massive knock to your confidence. It's very important to build
slowly, that's how you learn the key aspects of magic like misdirection.

So what is free magic?

Free magic are those moment when you get an effect out of nothing and
take full credit for it. It can be as simple as asking someone to think of a card,
you now remove one from the deck, they name their card out loud. If you get a
hit play it for all its worth, but if it doesn't just say something like 'it never
works but it would have been great wouldn't it?'. This will get you a laugh and
nothing has been lost, but imagine how amazing it is when you hit!

If you want to try this I always remove the Queen of Hearts if it's a lady and the
Jack of Clubs or Ace of Spades for a man.
Once you understand your magic, you will start to see where you can get some
FREE MAGIC!
The Real Secrets
So before you start performing I've summarised some points which should help
you be successful. Please read and take them in as they will make you a better
performer and trust me, it will get you better reactions and make you happy
with your performance.

I know I've mentioned this before, but I cannot stress this enough. Make sure
you are 100% comfortable with your routines. You should know them inside and
out. The less you have to think about the trick, the more you can concentrate on
your performance and making it entertaining.

People always remember the fun they have if they've seen a good magician and 9
times out of 10 it's because they liked the magician. They connected with him
and he/she made them feel at ease and have a good time.

Shyness and stage freight gets to us all at some point and a good way to
overcome this is to have a character.

If you look at many performers be it a magician, singer, actor or comedian most

have a character.

Even though the people you see on stage or on TV look like they are the most
confident people in the world, most in reality are not. They are just like the rest
of us. They suffer from fear, shyness and stage freight on occasions. So how do
you overcome it? You create a character. There are two main types of characters
and I will outline them here:
The unconnected character is a character created that has no resemblance to
you as a person.
Look at the great Ali Bongo and his character The Shriek of Araby. When
creating an unconnected character you usually change your appearance. You
could be a Victorian magician for example.
You will usually have a costume and change your personality to match the
character you are playing.

The connected character is just a more confidant, funnier and louder you. A lot
of performers go into a character when performing. It's a mind set. Even if
you're not one for being the centre of attention in real life, you should be when
you are performing. So imagine you are playing a super confident version of
yourself. You will surprised the difference it will make just by getting into
character.

It will help you build confidence, make talking to people easier and your
performance much more fun.
Learning More
An interest in magic gives you a thirst for knowledge and at Alakazam we stock
1000's of books, tricks and DVDs to help you along your way and remember, me
and the Alakazam team are always happy to give you any advice and help that
you need.

Just take a look at all of the amazing magic you can start learning at
http://www.alakazam.co.uk.

Every week we film a magic review show. It's a fun video blog with product
reviews, demonstrations and even a weekly competition. Sometimes we even
teach tricks and give you new ideas and handlings for effects you may already be
doing.

You can watch our Vlogs here:

http://www.alakazam.co.uk/category-The-Video-Blog-.html

A good learning tool is to watch other magicians. Now I'm not saying you should
copy other magicians BUT you should watch them, see how they handle their
audience, see how they present their magic. See if you can pick up tips to
improve your own performance.

But remember, they have worked hard on their act, their gags and their tricks
and they are not for you to take. In this industry, as with other performing arts,
it's frowned upon to use another performers material without their permission,
so please don't do it.

The magic fraternity has long had a mentor/student philosophy. If you are lucky
enough to find a magician that is willing to teach you, go for it!
Most of the best magicians have had a mentor. Just like in the film Karate Kid,
he will become your Mr Miyagi teaching you the skills you need and keeping you
on the right path.
Search Google for a local magic club. Magic clubs are great. You will be
surrounded by people with a common interest and most magic clubs are really
friendly with very helpful members.

Most magic clubs have an age restriction of 16+ and will require you to have a
basic knowledge of magic and be able to perform a few tricks, so once you feel
like you have your act rehearsed and you can perform it confidently, you should
look at joining a club.

Not only will you meet people that can help you, but usually a magic club will
have guest magicians who come to lecture and teach you.

If you live in Kent, check out our club here: http://www.alakazammagic.club

Thank You

Well I hope you've gained something from these pages. I really hope you enjoy
your new hobby.
Magic is wonderful and fun. Learning new tricks and moves will not only make
all of the hard work seem worthwhile, but will also give you a big sense of
achievement.

Good luck and if you are ever near Ashford, pop in and say hi! In the meantime,
you can add some new awesome magic to your act by shopping online at
http://www.alakazam.co.uk, we have super-fast shipping worldwide!

And don't forget to check out my other eBooks!

Peter Nardi