Hi John

I'm a fan of your materials. It keeps me entertained always.

Here are some question from me.

1) How do you create so many magic effects? How do you get the inspiration, motivation and ideas and then piece them together?

2) What will you perform when in a very impromptu situation?

3) What you will perform to a new friend whom you've just know?

I usually start developing an effect by posing new plot or plot twist to an existing effect...followed by an exploration of method and presentation.
To help spur creativity, ask yourself “what if?”...a lot. Visit odd shops. Keep up with the latest Twitter trends. Just keep asking.
And read, read, read. The more you research other magicians and know what's’ out there, the more solid the foundation on which to build a creative launching pad.

Many times, a new trick comes about by accident. I used to perform Allan Ackerman’s Gemini Mates to produce the four Aces. One time during practice, four random cards came up by ACCIDENT. I perplexed, mad and surprised! A very dramatic moment, but it need closure to turn this failure into a plot twist that would exceed expectations. That’s when I thought how great it would be to have actually predicted these random cards. That’s how Gemini Prediction” (Brainstorm volume 2) evolved.

Look for missing puzzle pieces Sometimes adding a “missing” piece inspires creativity. Lost & Found adds to Roy Walton’s Jefferson’s Jest by adding a phase where the card goes BACK inside the clear sleeve. But how? I came up with as many methods as possible, ranging from gimmicking the clear sleeve to switching it out. During this process, I discovered something I call the friction principle (those of you who own Brainstorm know what I’m talking about).

Look for several puzzle pieces that might fit together. Bizarre Prequel is an example of combing ideas of Point of Departure, Grasshopper, Bizarre Vanish and Bizarre Twist into a tight cohesive sequence. The result of this exploration helps generate creative ways to economize moves, create a pleasing sequence of events, and hide out something until the very end!

Truth In Advertising evolved by adding a one-degree shift to my previous effect, Optical Opener. Adding the odd-backed card challenged me to make presentational sense of it all. The result was a presentation that was authentically ME and an effect that featured three amazing moments. It also embraced my goals to have clean handling, engaging interaction, and creative presentation.

In these, and many more examples, creativity evolved out of researching, questioning, searching for opportunities, building upon the strongest points, and realizing that even a small change can have massive impact.

John G