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KyleMacNeill Inner circle 2757 Posts |
Quote:
On 2011-12-30 07:22, Vlad_77 wrote: Hi Vlad, I have emailed Jerry, hopefully the Card Cavalcades can be shipped across the pond somehow. Yes, the DVDs will definitely be a Back - up option if I can't find the books. I know, everytime is the wrong time to join the party! Still, I think magic 30 years ago was in a way better than now - so many books, with loads of tricks e.t.c. And your last comment - I doubt it, but who knows! Best, Kyle |
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duanebarry Special user 883 Posts |
Reprint prospects:
Although the Elmsley books were written by Stephen Minch, L&L was the publisher and presumably owns the rights to them. Richard Kaufman has said that Card Craft is physically too large for him to reprint in a cost-effective manner. |
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Josh Chaikin Inner circle Kansas City 1430 Posts |
I had a discussion with John Greget about this...what he had said was that the reason volume two is rare is that there are fewer copies of it. There was a reprint of volume 1, but it didn't sell well enough to justify a reprint of volume 2. I don't know if that's the case...anyone have a second printing of volume 1 care to chime in?
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Vlad_77 Inner circle The Netherlands 5829 Posts |
I would love to see reprints of a LOT of books. Unfortunately the magic market is very small compared to other areas of publishing. What I would like to see magic publishers consider is the mechanism that mainstream publishers are getting into and that is having books printed on demand. I don't know however how cost effective this would be considering the niche market we occupy.
Mainstream publishers are not going to touch magic books at our level simply because a demand does not exist and again we are a tiny market. I would hazard a guess however that if a publishing giant like Elsevier or McGraw-Hill would publish something like CardCraft or the Elmsley books, they would look more sexy but the cost to us would be even higher. There IS a solution however but many magicians resist it and the solution is the e-book. It's growing but a lot of magicians I have spoken to tend to resist them. Look, I love a nice physical book as much as the next magician but what is even more important to me is the knowledge contained within and in that respect I really do not care what media conveys the information as long as I can read/hear/see it. It drives me crazy that with few exceptions magic books as a rule are ephemeral. And this year has been a hell of a year for magic books and most of these books will be OOP within two years. Richard Kaufman did the publication of Greater Magic in 1994 and I snapped up the last copy available at a magic shop near the campus of the University of Virginia; I discovered it quite by accident and I had wanted the book for a long time. The dealer told me that I was lucky because there would be no more reprints. The book cost me 70.00 USD and the prices today for a Kaufman edition are higher than a Carl Jones original. (Richard Kaufman added a lot of material of course and perhaps that makes his edition more desirable). I loathe the after market in magic and here I do apologize to collectors but magic books are meant to be studied - not sitting on a shelf. The rapid rise of DVDs of course has affected the popularity of magic books. That frightens me. While I can more readily understand the price point of the NYC Coin Seminar DVDs, I simply cannot justify spending 50.00 USD of a linking cigarette routine DVD. All respect to Akira Fuji but for 50.00 USD a magician can snag One Degree and a couple of packs of cards and build an ACT. But again, the central point is whether the market will bear such a product or not. I want to qualify my statement about the after market however: in every instance in which I have bought second hand from the Café, I have always had great service and sellers for the most part will work with you on shipping. Jon Greget is also a guy that won't gouge. I do hope that we "veterans" can educate our newcomers to the value of books. We know the value of books and can impart invaluable wisdom about them and thus create a demand. One can only hope. Ahimsa, Vlad |
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FrenchDrop Inner circle I can name that tune in 1647 Posts |
I'd pay the same price for an eBook as for a printed version -- if the printed version was out of print and impossible to buy at its cover price.
When it comes to magic, I don't mind eBooks at all. I tend to learn and practice new tricks at my computer desk anyway. With an eBook, I can have the cards on the desk in front of me and the book on my monitor screen above them, and I don't have to worry about finding real estate on my cramped desk to set down a printed book -- or a way to keep the book open to the correct page while both of my hands are occupied with the cards.
"A great magician has said of his profession that its practitioners '… must pound and rack their brains to make the least learning go in, but quarrelling always comes very naturally to them.'” -- Susanna Clarke, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
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motown Inner circle Atlanta by way of Detroit 6127 Posts |
One interesting thought might be to take the best of both books and republish it as a single volume. The Best of the Collected Works.
"If you ever write anything about me after I'm gone, I will come back and haunt you."
– Karl Germain |
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Josh Chaikin Inner circle Kansas City 1430 Posts |
Quote:
On 2011-12-30 16:40, FrenchDrop wrote: I picked one of these up for about $5, it took care of your latter problem...real estate is still a little bit of an issue, but not a major one. |
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Vlad_77 Inner circle The Netherlands 5829 Posts |
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On 2011-12-30 16:15, Ibidem wrote: Absolutely Ibidem! As I had written, the information is most important to me. I am not implying that the the e-book is "better" than the physical book. But FrenchDrop really nailed it in that if the hard cover/physical book is unavailable and the only access to it is a LEGAL digital version then yes I would buy it and yes I would pay the same price. But e-books tend to be less expensive because they do not cost as much to produce. High quality archival paper stock and the best signature bindings have nothing to do with the most important component of a book: the content. Where ebooks really flourish is in the area of long running magic journals and magazines that have been long OOP. For me - and I stress for me - it would be foolish to not have purchased The New Tops for instance merely because it is only available now either at exorbitant prices for a complete physical run, or at a fraction of the cost for the digital compilation. Seems contradictory when I have already stated that I would be willing to pay the same price for a digital version as its paper counterpart. However, ebook compilations give us access to an untold number of effects and essays that otherwise would have been lost to history on a collector's shelf - or worse. Many would call me foolish but I am waiting for the possibility of ABRA to be digitally compiled. Whether it will happen or not is a mystery except to whomever bought the rights from Goodliffe. Café members Peter Duffie and Cameron Francis to name but a couple have released absolutely stunning magic available in ebooks. Why would I not buy them? So yes, if I didn't have CardCraft or The Collected Works of Alex Elmsley in physical form and the only way to get them would be through Lybrary.com or The Miracle Factory I would jump on them in a nanosecond. As always, YMMV. Happy New Year!! Vlad |
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Kingman Loyal user Willow Spring NC 294 Posts |
I would and have paid as much for ebooks as I have for the hard copies. I love ebooks, I have over 400 on my iPad (not all magic, obviously and including pdfs). I think it is great that I can have so much of my library where ever I am. It is very convenient. If I can get a hardcopy then I do not hesitate, only because books are more than a passion for me, they are a deep love. I hope to never be without full book shelves. I was recently very lucky, as others here on the Café were to get a reprint of Darwin Ortiz's Scams and Fantasies. That was a great treat and I have now completed my collection of his material including the lecture notes. I love Harry Lorayne's book quality as well as the material they contain. I have old books and new. So many that I wish I could add and if the only option was an ebook, then I would have no qualms about paying for it.
Kingman |
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Patrick Differ Inner circle 1540 Posts |
Any type of copy of Alex Elmsley's Collected Works that you can find will be the best money you ever spent on the subject. When they were first published, I ate mac and cheese for two weeks to scrounge up the money to get them. I have never regretted that decision. I still own my originals, and nearly every page is dog-eared. I do more stuff from the first edition than from any other work, and they are my "go to" books for ideas.
IMO, Elmsley was the greatest thinker and plotter in card magic in the 20th Century. He had a major influence in everything we do. Vernon, Marlo, and Elmsley, and not necessarily in that order. Good luck in your search. You won't be disappointed.
Will you walk into my parlour? said the Spider to the Fly,
Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy; The way into my parlour is up a winding stair, And I've a many curious things to show when you are there. Oh no, no, said the little Fly, to ask me is in vain, For who goes up your winding stair -can ne'er come down again. |
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Ryan Bliss Regular user 136 Posts |
Ebay haha. I've seen those two books together go for over 500 bucks if their first edition.
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NFW Inner circle UK 1002 Posts |
Stil cant find these for less than $400 !
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Slide Special user 533 Posts |
There is a set on the forum right now for sale for $250, NFW
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KyleMacNeill Inner circle 2757 Posts |
I PMEd you NFW, found the first one for around £50!
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martydoesmagic Inner circle Essex, UK 1666 Posts |
Kyle, do what Cameron suggests and get the Lake Tahoe Sessions DVD set. Nothing quite like watching the master at work (they're still my favourite DVDs to watch).
Why on Earth L&L don't re-publish these volumes is beyond me (the books not the DVDs)! Marty |
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KyleMacNeill Inner circle 2757 Posts |
Yes Marty, I will do in the future
I have actually found the books at really good prices, I am going to hopefully get Vol.1 at Blackpool Kyle |
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NFW Inner circle UK 1002 Posts |
Thanksd Kyle and slide
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Erdnase27 Inner circle 2505 Posts |
I got volume 1 4 months ago for eeh .. 25$.....
Talking about a deal! (mint condition) |
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magicfish Inner circle 7004 Posts |
Quote:
On 2011-12-31 09:52, Patrick Differ wrote: You bent the pages? yikes! |
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Cameron Francis V.I.P. 7025 Posts |
The book is a learning tool. Why wouldn't you bend the pages or write in it. You should see what I do to scripts!
If you' re a collector, that's one thing. But a lot of us buy these books for more practical reasons.
MOMENT'S NOTICE LIVE 3 - Six impromptu card tricks! Out now! http://cameronfrancismagic.com/moments-notice-live-3.html
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