I have a question for everyone:
How do, or did, you structure your approach to learning your magic ?
Did you focus intently on one genre before learning another, or did you learn a little of everything at a time ?

Those of you that are primarily card performers, how much coin magic have you learned, and vice versa ?
Do you find that working with cards, if you're a coin performer, is distracting, or does the change in pace feel refreshing and bring new perspectives ?

What about magic with rope, silks, and mentalism ?

In the beginning I guess pure impromptu type magic was most important to me. I really didn't want to use cards and gaffs and concentrated on money and cigarette effects as well as other readily avalable things.

I tried a lot of different things with no real plan. I'm not much of a planner. I was exploring and eventually buying books on all kinds of magic except large illusions.

If I start feeling burnt out doing coin magic I'll move onto something else. Other stuff is always within reach. Today I use cards and have no problems using gaffs.

I do try to organize effects according to possible situations that may arise. What could I do totally impromptu, at a tavern, wedding reception, picnic, at work, etc, and play with related effects and the necessary gimmicks. Occasionally I'll work on pulling routines together for formal, strolling and parlor magic.

Erratic? uhhuh.

Hm, this is a tough question for me, because I´m fairly new to magic. But I can say that all areas of magic give me new perspectives. I do mostly card stuff and story-telling, but for example I try to have some mentalism and coin magic on my mind to be prepared when it´s needed.

Magixx

I started out with all the gaffed tricks I could possibly purchase. That's all I wanted before since that's all I thought magic was all about, plain trickery with the use of special things.
When I learned that sleight of hand existed, I definitely moved into card magic. I've been doing it for quite a while and soon I got sort of bored with it. So now, I am venturing out to coin magic as it is more visual, magical and truly challenging.

Because of $$$ I only started with cards and the available books at the library. But if you can get a variety of experiences with different areas, that would be great. Then you can narrow your focus on your interests.

When I first discovered magic, it was with cards. I got turned on by a book I bought on a whim. Then I found myself trying any type of magic, at least any that could be considered close up. I bought hot rods, silks, sponge balls, some coin gimmicks. But I always really felt the love for card work.

Now, about 80% of my work is card related. I do some other stuff with sponge balls and some TT effects. And I wouldn't even be doing that much if it hadn't been for the influence of a good friend. Sometimes I feel like I may be cheating myself a little by not branching out a bit more. As time goes on, I'm becoming more open to other types of effects, but cards will always be my true love.

For example, I'd love to really become as adept in coins as I am in cards, but I've yet to really put the time and work into it. I know I will one day.

I also used to be a gaff junkie! And still am to a degree. But I noticed as I grew as a magician, my work became more about sleights with standard decks. Not that I'm above a little gaff-work now and then. I know I'll never consider myself a purist.

But that's me ina nut-shell. A work in progress.

I started magic cos one of my friend showed me a couple of card tricks and hence I began my career as a card magician.

I usually have abt 2 tricks and practise them concurrently...concentrating on only 1 to me is kinda boring at times. however, I will make sure I master those 2 before moving to another 2. (need to as I perform to earn extra cash so its not nice to be sluggish in my tricks)

I do coins occasionally like matrix and coins across...i find it refreshing to divert from cards once in a while..its not distracting at all

cheerios

I started magic because I had some friends doing it. I didn't like learning magic as much as I liked seeing it. But eventually I went out and bought something.

I only do card magic because I would like to be good at something so that you can look like a pro magician when you are still learning the basics in other groups. Have touched coins a few times but aren't very good.

Since I am a beginner I bought stuff on splurge. I have tons of magic that will last me years. I look through everything and then focus on the good stuff.

Not that I did this, but

I think starting in a book like Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic gives a person a change to try out many different forms, at low cost.

I, rather, plunged into coin magic, when I started to feel a little burned out by the tediousness of leaning new slights, I tend to go back to what I referred to as "physical" magic: torn and restored, penetrations. I have enjoyed returnig to Wilson's book for some of this kind of stuff.

I started with cards, like many other people. then I moved onto coins. I always had a quite well defined range of interest. but some days ago I had the chance to chat a little with Cellini and he was saying that you should learn "everything". Thinking a little about that, I feel he's right. Of course I won't start doing magic with doves, but I'll maybe have a look at the Slydini silks, even if I don't want to show them.
Everything you learn will maybe be useful another time.

I hit every used and new book store in town and bought everything I could. I then started looking on the "net" for tricks, and found out there were places a person could go to buy magic "magic shops" I believe they were called and though none were anywhere near me I found you could buy stuff over the internet from them. First Tannens then L&L. I buy and try everything from any source. It may be a while before I settle down to getting really good at any one thing.

When I decided to get involved with slieght of hand work this last summer I focused on close up in general, a lot of cards and coins. Trying to use as little gaffs as possible. It was hard for me at first since for 15 years I have been using self working gimmicks out of kids sets, but it has paid off and my confidence in preforming magic is getting a lot better.

I started a few years back when I was living in New Hampshire -- the winters there are pretty rough and if you aren't into skiing or logging, well you are basically confined to quarters and have to find some way to pass the time... It all started with seeing a coin walk on TV and that triggered remembering having seen some pretty good magicians as I was growing up...

Anyway I found a half & learned how to walk a coin and wanted to find out more so I looked online for coin tricks and found Bobo's on Amazon, I figured that since I am getting one book on magic, I might as well get a couple more and I also ordered Royal Road and Anneman's Practical Mental Magic. I found I was more taken with cards and coins than mentalism (*especially* in the beginning) as it seemed a little too 'dry and stuffy' for me.

Personally I think you can 'appear' to be a good magician knowing only a handful of sleights and a few flourishes thrown in in a couple varieties of 'magic branches'. Any time you put in on new stuff will increase your repertoire, muscle memory, and give you more control over what you CAN perform so that IMO should be a good thing.

I try to make sure I have mastered my necessary sleights for my chosen routines though before moving on to new stuff.

For me, I tend to try out things in small groups. I'll pick up 3-4 new effects and hone them before moving to something new. I will retain what has the best impact on spectators but remember what I learned because everything tends to build on other things.

I also only buy magic instructional books and videos and stay away from "one-trick-wonders". I try to constantly organize the tricks I do into sets of 3-5 so that I when I "do a trick" it is normally a small show of a handful of effects that compliment each other.

In my case I only got serious about doing magic in the last couple of years, though I've always been a fan, dabbled as a kid like most people do and had played around with illusion principles in photos and 3D modelling. I'd also been doing escapes for a long time though I recognised the difference between "sport" escapology as a hobby and performance escapology that I could put on a stage and be entertaining with.

Anyway, on starting out as a performing magician I went out and got every book I could and tried everything; a part of starting out is throwing as much muck at the wall as possible and seeing what sticks, though I did make the rookie mistake of trying to do too much too quickly (a particular trainwreck of a show last year that made me re-evaluate every aspect of what I do showed me that).

Now I still read up but in a more focussed way. Instead of trying to cram in the biggest repertoire of tricks in the shortest possible time, I deliberately limit my repertoire to a few main ones that fit my character and that I can keep developing, with the addition of ideas in my notebook I want to work towards. My main interest is in escapes and physical illusions (which is what I began with; the muck that ends up sticking tends not to be much different from the person throwing it). For example, for the moment I have no interest in learning mentalism, because to do it properly requires time and effort I'd rather spend elsewhere. I play with cards, coins and rubber bands at a more reserved pace because I can practice them anywhere, but focused on a few specific techniques.

Between books, tapes, the net, lectures, club meetings, conventions and the like you end up with an avalanche of new material, which is great. But learning to pick out just those few things that suit you enough to warrant your full immediate attention from the other bits that you merely put away for a while to contribute to your general understanding of the art is an important skill to learn.

I also don't own a single packet trick, but that's as much due to me being a tightwad as it is creative principles.

I started with cards, but really I like anything close up. Cups, sponges and some coin work are all favourites. The things I'm not so keen on are mentalism, children's effects and large scale illusions. I prefer sleight work, just as a form of personal achievement, but I'm not averse to using gimmicked stuff. I think that's actually the best way to have an effect on an audience. Do some stuff with ordinary borrowed items then a knockout using a gimmick. Switch back to ordinary items they can examine. Keep them guessing that way.

I didn't have a lot of cash to spend when I first started out as I was only 9. This meant I stuck entirely to close up, at about 11 I started learning flourishes and soon realised they could be used close up and on stage. I have been homing a close up routine for 7 years, but in the last year have begun to look at stage illusios. I have almost finsihed putting together my show.
Yours Magically
Nick

I think when you start you should have a goal on what the end results are going to produce. I started in my magic at very young age ,no tape ,no dvd around then.
I started with coins which I still love ,but have branched out to other type of magic. I think the most inportant thing is what ever you ejoy doing ,then give your all . Magic has so much to offer and what ever you like is what you to go with,
besides you find some magic is more suited for you than other. But sleight of hand
of what ever cards ,coins,cups will teach you so much about magic as an art.
Alson

I think I could sum this up by saying, learn a little everything, but focus on that genre which makes you happiest and suits you the most.
I agree - I'm partial to the bizarrest genre (no kidding ?), but I think I can find something to learn from everything - cups'n'balls, coins, cards, rope, rubberbands and paperclips, mentalism, heck, even D'lites. It all builds dexterity, skill, and perspective.
It's all good.

Definitely learn something of everything. When you work close up for just one or two people, sometimes a card effect won't go down as well as it does with other people. This often due to audience preference. Many people know about card tricks or card sharps, and the magic isn't there because they have an inkling of trickery. But, vanish a silk with a TT or perform some very visual coin work or sponges, and they are transfixed. Be versatile!