When people asked me, WHERE I learned it.
I've got three replies, I tell them.

A: My dad had to go work with 'Shell company' in Asia and we were in a community. I was 6 years old and did not have to go to school. There was this group of ninja's there, that were totally into magic. And they taught me everything I know.

or

B: We used to have this old Chinese man living next to us. When he got really old, he taught me all these tricks while he was dying.

or

C: When I was 4 years old my parents worked in a circus as trapeze artists. My specialty was doing summersaults on a trampoline while being lit on fire. (you know those suits stuntmen wear? I wore one of those of course) In that same circus, we had a magician working there, he taught me everything I know.

I tell this to people with a really serious face and when they start to smile, I pretend to be upset they don't believe. And they really believe it at a certain point. I've told these story's so often I almost start believing them myself. The stranger the story, the easier they tend to believe it.

What do you say? Cause if you say: books or video's it kind of takes the magic away.

cheerio.

Coincidentally, I've been using your 'A' response for several years now. But in my case, the story is actually true.

Q: Where did you learn that?
A: Buying overpriced books, downloadable unreliable ebooks, giving into magic hype and paying ridiculous shipping prices because of a well shot demo which did not show the setup.

Well, when they say, how is it done, I say, I do not know myself.

Everything I know I learned from my mother (NOT)

"If I told you, they'd take my wand away"
or
"I got bored"
are responces I've used (and the second one is close to being true)

Years of focus, martial arts training, and geeky magic books?

"I stayed in the Freedom Alps for about 10 years, I met a man and he told me the secret of life, how to get rid of a Mac and the art of magic."

*DR Evil Voice* honestly.... who wants to know the secret of life...