The GLOMM - Part Three - A Routine

Originally I had considered loading up the GLOMM membership card with a bunch of outs and reveals for magic and mentalism tricks, but I looked at other examples of tricks in this style that use fake credit cards or membership cards and they all seemed universally terrible to me so I decided against it. Somehow a card with a whole bunch of extraneous information on it seemed less interesting than a simple, straightforward card that implies some greater, enigmatic organization.

But there is a trick that is fun to do with the membership card. It's a little play-lette with a satisfying dramatic structure and a premise that is at least mildly intriguing. It requires a bit of acting (at least as I do it), but you just have to act like an indignant idiot, which shouldn't be too hard for you. It utilizes a couple very useful tools that should be in your repertoire anyway. And it's pretty much self-working. 

During some dead time while hanging out with a friend you are looking for something in your wallet and you pull out your Global League of Magicians & Mentalists membership card. She makes some comment on it or you bring it up yourself.

"Oh this? Yeah, this is just the card that indicates I'm an Elite Member in the Global League of Magicians & Mentalists. It's no big deal. I mean... well... technically I guess it is. It's pretty exclusive. The GLOMM is open to every one, but only a rare few are Elite Members."

"Actually, there's something I wanted to try that I was reading online today. It's a trick that supposedly is guaranteed to work for Elite Members, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet. Can I get your help? Let me see if I have those instructions I wrote down earlier."

You pull a piece of paper from your pocket and unfold it. "Ah, here it is."

You turn your GLOMM membership card face down on the table. You take out your phone and open it up to the calculator and hand it to your friend. "We're going to create a personalized magic number for you, okay?"

You start going through the process you wrote down or printed out earlier in the day.

"Step 1. Have the spectator enter any two digit number that has a personal meaning to them. Don't let me see it, I think I'm not supposed to know what it is."

"Step 2. Press the multiplication button and then have the spectator enter any three digit number that has some meaning to them. This one you can share with me. What was it? 592? What's that? The numbers on your license plate? Ok, that works."

"Step 3. Press the multiplication button and have the spectator enter a random three digit number."

"Step 4. Press the equals button. Your spectator has created their 'magic number.' Despite the fact this number was arrived at based on the spectator's personal choices and random number selection, you will find the number reflected on the front of your GLOMM membership card."

"What number did you get," you ask. "4,141,079?" You scribble it down on the other side of the instructions you've been reading from.

"Well, this might be hard to believe, but does my membership number look at all familiar to you?"

Without looking, you snap up your membership card and show the front to your spectator, with a big shit-eating grin on your face. She gives you a confused look. Your smile falters as you look at the front of the card yourself.

"Sixteen! What the fuck!?"

You turn on your phone and place a phone call. Your spectator only hears your end. 

"Uhm, yes, I would like to talk to someone there. My name is [Your Name] and I... what? Yes... Member no. 16, that's correct.... Actually that's what I'd like to talk to someone about. You posted that trick online today and you said it was guaranteed to work. But I just performed it and it failed miserably. Now, I'm paying good money to be in this society and I demand a certain level of respect, not to be jerked around like some common--... What's that?...Yes.... Yes.... We followed the directions. Well I... No, we did it correctly, but at the point where it said it would match the number on the other side of the card, it was way off. My membership number is 16... What?... Actually, that is what it says, madam. It say, 'you will find the number reflected on the front of your GLOMM membership card.'... 4,141,079... yes... that's right... Well, no, it doesn't say the number on the front of the card... What do you mean?... Turn what upside down?... [You turn the paper in your hand upside down.] Oh... I see... my mistake... I understand. Thank you. Yes. May GLOMM be with you as well. Thank you."

You set your card and the number you wrote down on the table in front of your friend. Without saying anything you turn the number over.

Method:

This uses two things that should be in your repertoire because they're incredibly useful for creating spur of the moment magic effects.

The first is the TOXIC force, as it's commonly known. This is a way to set up your calculator on your phone to force any number. Here's how it works on the iphone. Turn on your calculator and turn it sideways so it's in scientific calculator mode. Enter the number you want to force into the calculator. In this case 4,141,079. Hit + then hit 0 then hit x i.e, multiply then hit 0 then hit ( i.e. left parenthesis.

Again that's:

4,141,079
+
0
x
0
(

Now turn your phone to its normal orientation and the scientific calculator part will go away. You can turn your phone off and/or exit out of the calculator, just don't close the calculator app. 

When you're ready to perform you turn on your phone, open up the calculator (in regular, non scientific mode), and give your phone to your friend. She can do any calculations she wants but when she presses the equals sign it will show your force number. Mathematics!

(I assume you can do this, or something similar with an Android or even a regular calculator. I don't know. Honestly, just get an iPhone if you're a magician. It makes things so much easier. iPhone is the phone of magic. Saying, "Can I do it on Android?" is like watching a card trick and saying, "Can I do it with dominoes?")

The second part of the method is just a utilization of the fabulous Cryptext by Haim Goldenberg. This is something every magician and mentalist should have in their brain. I use it all the time. (I built an effect into my phone number, in fact.) It's the best way to have a prediction or revelation in full view the whole time.

The rest plays out as I described above. With the membership card in your wallet you're all set to go. You don't even need the instructions written down, you could just do them from memory, but I like to pretend I'm not overly familiar with them. I like it to seem like I don't quite have a grasp on the whole thing. And that I'm just an overconfident dope. "Does my membership number look at all familiar to you?" I say with all the slimy magician faux-confidence I can muster and a big phony smile on my face. While my spectator thinks, "Did this idiot never notice his number was 16?"

Of course you could play the whole thing straighter. You don't need to play the smug idiot. You don't need to do the fake phone call. You could just guide her through the calculation and then say, "Would you be amazed if your number that you just created was printed on the front of my card?" You turn it over. "Hmm... 16... Would you be amazed if I was within 4,141,063? No, I'm kidding. You see it's not in my membership number where your number is echoed, it's in the acronym for the organization itself..." blah, blah. Or whatever. That would still be good.

But I prefer the presentation above. I like bringing up this secret sub-set of a magic society. I think that's inherently interesting. I like playing stupid. And I love anything that plays out as half of a phone conversation. Like an old Bob Newhart routine. I think there is a lot of opportunity for comedy there. And there's something intrinsically engaging about it because they can't help but fill in the other half of the conversation even though they know you're not really talking to anyone.

Get your membership kit here. (You won't be member 16 (well, one of you will be) so don't be confused if you're, like, 17 or something. "Hey, my card is broke!" No, they're just all uniquely numbered.)

The GLOMM - Part Two

I've heard your clamoring and I've created some GLOMM banners of various sizes for you to put on your social media and your business website (you'll probably want to put the logo on your business cards and other promotional material too). Please only do so if you adhere to the Code of Ethics as described at the bottom of this page. 

The first is simple and soon to be classic. I suspect there will come a time when, if this logo isn't on someone's site, you will hear a lot of, "Oohhhhhh... was this guy kicked out of the Global League of Magicians & Mentalists? Uhh.... yeah... thanks but no thanks, pal."

The second implies a little more as you label yourself a "member in good standing." Those in the know will say, "Ah, I understand what that means. We can have him around the kids. It's okay."

And finally, the third banner really spells it out for people.

Also, the first handful of membership kits were sold yesterday. I applaud the bold few who picked one up. You are truly on the vanguard of a new era in magic. Those will go out Thursday. (With the exception of my 3XL brother. Your shirts are being printed as part of a new run which should hopefully be completed next week.) These aren't some iron-on transfer bullshit shirts. They're screen-printed by hand, color by color, at this cool little t-shirt company run out of a small, old brick factory building in upstate NY. And I didn't get a ton of any one size initially (or any 3XL or 4XL) so there may be short delays to fill an order if/when a size runs out.

The GLOMM - Part One

Pre-History of The GLOMM

I first mentioned the GLOMM back in December, I think, and today I can finally explain it.

There are two things that led to the GLOMM and they both stem from my decision last October to offer a limited edition book for sale, the proceeds of which I would use to pay the people who assist with the site and then "buy my time" to work on the site as well.

The first was that many of the people who wrote me back in October (and since) expressed a sentiment along these lines: "I'm donating because the stuff you're writing about really resonates with me in a way most other magic writing doesn't." (Actually, they put it in much more heartfelt terms than that. And I was going to quote some of those emails here. But they're too nice and overly-complimentary and it feels weird to post them publicly.)

I felt honored -- actually, "honored" makes it sound corny and insincere -- but it felt cool to be presenting some ideas about magic that were resonating with people all over the world. But not widely resonating. I liked that it was a small, passionate community rather than a large detached one. And I wanted to create a kind of faux organization for people who are into this site.

At the same time I was bummed about the idea of releasing an expensive magic book and then having bootleg copies floating around. As I've mentioned before, I wasn't bummed for my sake. I would have very few to sell after publication regardless. But I had been in that position where I'd purchased a pricey magic book and then some dude tells me he found a pdf copy online and it kind of sucks. I'm protective of the people in my life who have been good to me and so, if possible, I wanted to protect the investment of the people who were good to this site. 

So I gave it some thought. The first thing I did was come up with a way of individuating each copy of the book. Now, if a copy of the book showed up somewhere, I would at least know who made the copy and was distributing it. But what action could I take? I guess I could ask Greg Wilson if his dojo was free for me to go at it with the culprit, but I wanted something longer lasting than that. I could, of course, talk shit about them relentlessly on this site, and I'm sure I will if it happens, but that wasn't enough. 

So then I got back to thinking about the people who like this site and support it as a this tiny, obscure magic society. Perhaps what I could do to anyone who distributes a bootleg copy of the book is to kick them out of our magic society. In that way I get to take something away from them.

Big deal. They won't give a shit.

No, of course not. Why would they?

Then I thought of a nice evil twist on the idea.

Hey, remember a while back when I asked you guys to contribute the names of magicians who were convicted of sex crimes?

So here's what I've done. I've created a new organization called the Global League of Magicians & Mentalists. It's the world's largest magic society and you are all a part of it. Welcome! Anyone with an interest in magic is automatically a member. There are no dues to pay and you don't have to perform so that some no-talents can "evaluate" you to see if you're good enough to get in. You're in.

There are only two mandates in our Code of Ethics. The first is: Don't be a jerk. The second is: Don't be a sex offender. 

So let's say you do something jerky, like...oh... say, selling bootleg copies of a book you didn't write. Well, then you're going to get kicked out of the GLOMM and your name will go on the list on our page of banned members. As of now that list is just sex criminals: pedophile magicians and guys who take secret video of women peeing at the Magic Castle and that sort of thing. If you want to be a jerk and get your name on that list too, knock yourself out. It will be great company to be in if anyone ever googles your name. By the way, it's not two different lists, it's just one list of banned members with no designation as to why they were banned. "The following people have been permanently kicked out of the Global League of Magicians & Mentalists for being perverted sex criminals and/or jerks," the page reads.

Yes, this is some crazy shit. I mean, I guess I could have made the book an ebook with DRM, but that's much less fun.

Honestly, I think it will be a non-issue. I think everyone who has purchased the book has this site and the other purchaser's best interest at heart. And if not, I look forward to hiring someone who knows SEO to make your entry on the GLOMM list one of the top results for people looking for your name. 

You might think I'll wield this list viciously and put anyone I don't like on it, but that's not true. It doesn't matter if I don't like you, or if you don't like me or this site. I have no issue with that. In fact, Steve Brooks is a member in good standing of the GLOMM. Everyone has a clean slate. Only true jerks (and true sex criminals) will be on the list. 

You can visit the new site at www.theglomm.com. I'm happy to welcome all you new members. 

There is a membership kit you can purchase as well. Your support there is funneled back into this site resulting in more content, more foolishness, more happiness. And you'll look dope as hell in your GLOMM t-shirt at your next magic meeting or convention. I want to see picture of these shirts showing up at MAGIC Live and FISM. That would be the best. 

That's the other part about this that I find very satisfying. I mentioned above about wanting to create some kind of loose "organization" for people who enjoy this site. This is a group that really only I get to see through my email correspondence with you. And that's what the Global League of Magicians and Mentalists is: a hyper-niche group of magicians masquerading as the world's largest magic organization. 

Something for the Weekend

Writing a book is no fun. I don't recommend it. But there is one enjoyable part and that's watching the illustrations come in. If I do another book it will be illustrations only. 

Reference photo and illustration from the effect A Very Unusual Camera in The Jerx, Volume 1.

If you are into Tarot cards at all, I want to direct your attention to a deck that is available that is really a part of The Jerx extended family. It was originally commissioned by AC Costello who is handling the financial and distribution aspects of the upcoming book and shoots much of the video for this site as well. And it was designed and painted by Stasia Burrington, who is doing the illustrations for The Jerx, Volume 1.

Check it out in her etsy store. I don't know how many are available so don't sleep on it if you're interested. Support good people. Tell her Andy sent you.

A few of the original hand-painted cards.

I will be giving away a copy of the deck to the winner of the "Judge's Prize" for the #erdnaseblows contest. (One person will win the contest randomly and get their book money refunded. The "judge's prize" is my bonus award for my favorite video.)

In the end, 8 people destroyed their copy of Erdnase. A couple of the videos are below, you can find the rest on my Twitter.

Off topic, I have a movie recommendation. Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping was one of the funnier movies I've seen in the last few years. Check it out if you dig the Lonely Island at all. If not go see Me Before You, you little pansy.

And finally, while I'm doing youtube links, here's the inspiration for today's post title: Something for the Weekend by the Divine Comedy. One of my favorites in the all-too-rare genre of songs with twist endings.

Keep A Light Up In Your Window

Daddy's coming home soon.

Regular posting resumes next week when the next post in the Project Slay-Them series appears and the mystery of what the GLOMM is will be revealed. 

So psyched to be holding the first proof copy of my new book!

Shit... that's the box my Taco Bell quesadilla came in. I was confused because -- much like my book -- the contents were so delicious.

So far no one has destroyed their copies of Erdnase. Although I did receive a number of emails about the subject, which fell into one of three categories.

1. "Are you serious about that contest?" Yes! I'm always serious about everything. Wait... no... that's obviously not true. But whenever I'm talking about anything transactional between us then I'm always being serious.

2. "I'd like to destroy my copy, but I already sold it/got rid of it. I thought I was the only one that didn't like it." Well, you're not. Give me someone who bases their magic on that book compared to someone who bases it on the Klutz Book of Magic, and I'll take the latter every time. KBOM > EATCT.

3. A couple of people wrote to ask if they could do it anonymously because they were worried about dealing with the fallout from Erdnase fanboys. No, you can't do it anonymously. Look, no one is really going to get upset because you destroy a copy of Expert At the Card Table. No one takes this stuff seriously. I don't even take it seriously and I'm the one pretending to give a shit about that book one way or the other! And really, what's the worst thing that would happen? Some crater-faced virgin comes and kills you and rapes your corpse because you burned a copy of EATCT? Ok, well, that actually would be pretty bad. But, to be fair, he raped you after you died. And it's just not going to happen anyways. On the off chance it does, you'd be immortalized. Like in some book about the dumbest things that ever got someone killed or something.

Well, at any rate, you still have a little while to get your video in. I have a feeling someone will sneak in at the last minute and win their $260 back with no competition. Good for them. 

Beyond that, thanks to those of you who have picked up the book in recent days. It means a lot.

Last Call for The Jerx, Volume One

I'm sitting at a table surrounded by dozens of bookmark tassels, looping them into the bookmarks I've had made to go with The Jerx, Volume One. Yes, it's a $260 book, but did I mention it comes with a bookmark!? Actually, the bookmark is part of one of the tricks in the book. There are couple tricks that use the book itself as part of the trick and one of those uses a special bookmark as the climax to the effect. I think you'll like it.

This is a prelude to saying that the book is written now. There is some editing and layout work that needs to be done. And of course it will need to be printed (and we're working on some special stuff in that regard as well, so that may take slightly longer than usual). However, I think it's a relatively safe estimate to say that the book will ship in July.

If you were waiting to order the book, now is the time to get it. Here's the thing, I'm only ordering enough copies to cover people who have ordered the book, then a few more to give to my potential grandchildren and or trade for crack cocaine (chewables -- I'm a kid at heart). I'm a minimalist and I have no desire to have boxes full of unsold books to deal with. So while there will be some available after publication, the price for those is going to go up. After publication they are a finite resource that is only going to increase in demand. This book was never meant to be marketed to a mass magic audience. It was intended as a bonus for the people who contributed to keep this site going. 

Here is my one, completely earnest, statement about the quality of the book: You know how you'll work on a project for a long time and by the end of it you kind of hate it and you have no idea if it's even any good or anything? I used to think that feeling was inevitable. But this is probably the biggest project I've ever been solely responsible for and I just keep liking it more and more the longer I work on it.

I'm genuinely not trying to sell you the book. I could argue that it's in my best interest if there are less copies floating around out there. Then... let's see... let me do the math here... I'm 10 years ahead of my time... so let's say in about 25 years when everyone is like, "Hey, remember that guy who redefined magic? Did you know he wrote a book? Yeah, but only a small number of them were ever printed. And they're super valuable. So he just sells one of the 10 extra copies he had printed every few years and lives off that money." Imagine if you had 10 first editions of Expert at the Card Table, and it had only ever had one printing, and that printing was a relatively small number of copies. You'd be rich. That's my long term plan. Write a book. Redefine magic. Cash in a few decades later by selling the copies I have of the book I once wrote. 

And, of course, it's insane of me to compare my book to Expert at the Card Table. I would never seriously do that. My book is nothing like that dull turd written by that five star bore. My book blows that garbage out of the water. In fact, if you own a copy of that book and you buy my book, you have to promise to keep them at least 3 books apart on your bookshelf. Promise! That book is responsible for 100 years of focusing on all the wrong things and subjecting people to shit like this. In fact...

Contest Time!

If you buy my book and you then make a video of yourself burning or destroying your copy of Erdnase, you will be entered into a random drawing where you will get the cost of my book refunded to you. I'm 1000% serious. Here's how it works:

• You take a one-shot video where you clearly show the book and then you clearly destroy it in some manner (creativity is encouraged).
• You tweet me a link to the video (@thejerx) with the hashtag #erdnaseblows
• It's more than likely no one will do this. If one person does, you're very smart. You just destroyed a $10 book to get a $260 one. If more than one person does this, we'll pick a winner randomly via the NY Lottery numbers for that day. 
• I'll refund you the money you paid for my book

As I said, this is only open to people who buy the book (and, of course, those who have already bought it in the past.). Although, if you haven't, and you still want to burn your Erdnase, go for it, it's just taking up space on your bookshelf.

It might seem risky if other people have already submitted their videos. I mean, you might destroy your copy of Erdnase for nothing in return. Don't worry. The magic gods will reward you. For 100+ years that tedious tome has been heralded by magicians. Not surprisingly, the book barely mentions the people you're performing for at all. What a shock that this "bible of card magic" gives no shits about the audience's experience. It's all making sense now why so many magicians I know are oblivious to the audiences. Why would they care about the people when all Erdnase cares about is where to put your pinky. Well, Erdnase, you can put your pinky up your butthole as far as I'm concerned. And, on the off chance you're still alive and reading this, you just come and find me and we can have it out. I know you'd have to be at least...oh...130-something. I don't care. I'll crack your old ass like a walnut. Bring it, bitch.

THE CONTEST ENDS A WEEK FROM THIS POSTING. SO FRIDAY, JUNE 3RD, AT 3AM EDT.

---

Where was I?

Right, the book. If you want it, now is the time to get it. 

Ordering now:

- Guarantees you a copy of the book at the lowest price it's going to be.
- Guarantees you a free copy of Amateur At the Kitchen Table
- Guarantees you the iphone app.

I want to make this all clear because I don't want you coming back to me 6 months from now being like, "But I didn't understand, I thought...." So here are some clarifications on things some people have asked or may be thinking.

"Why should I buy the book when I can read it all here."

Well, you can't read it here. Half the book is new material. All new tricks that won't be explained anywhere else. These are some of the strongest effects I've ever created, as good or better than the best effects that have been on this site. So if you like this site, you'll like the book.

"I'll buy a used copy."

Sure, but I think people are generally going to be hanging onto the book, if only to sell it for 1000s a few years down the road. Savvy investors.

"I'll find a bootleg copy."

You might. I really don't know if I can prevent that. But I do have a couple things in my arsenal that might make bootleg copies less likely. 

1. I've had conversations with most of the people who bought the book and can tell that they're generally good people. And they bought the book because they like the site, and because they want to have something special. For the sake of this site and for the sake of the value of this book they just purchased, I think they'd be less likely to make a copy of it.

2. I have a system where each book is differentiated in three ways. If someone tries to make a bootleg copy, I'll know who did it.

3. I have an outlet that other authors don't. From this site I can shout the name of anyone who tries to fuck over the people who paid for the book. And I'm savage about it. I'll happily broadcast what a piece of shit anyone is and I'll never let it go. You'll see part of that plan soon. And you'll ask yourself, as I asked myself, "Is that even legal?" And according to a lawyer I talked to, it is. More details on that next week.

I'm less worried about this happening than I was when I first decided to write the book. I've put a lot of effort into making the book something that will be a joy to read, but also a very nice physical object -- the type of thing people will want to have in their collection. Anyone who tries to get a copy outside of buying one through me won't have the experience of the book itself; won't get the props that come with it; won't get the app; won't be able to do the effects in the book that rely on having the physical book there; won't be able to say, "Yeah, I was an early adopter. I knew him before he was famous. True, he's famous for stalking Kate Beckinsale. I'm just saying I knew him before then. When he wrote a magic blog." 

Ultimately it's just a question of if you want to try and pull one over on some dude whose site you derive some pleasure from. That seems like a weird way to go through life.

"So when you say it won't be reprinted, you just mean there won't be another hardcopy. You'll do an ebook or something, right? Or you'll add a chapter and say that means it's a different book so you can do another printing. Something like that?"

No, this is really it. I'm not one of those people on the Cafe who try and weasel their way around offering something as a limited edition and then coming up with some lame excuse a few months or years down the road. 

Screenshot this page. I won't alter it. I'm not going to put these effects in print again.

"Can you give us a hint about the contents in the book?"

Sure, I don't want to give too much away because that's part of the fun of going through a magic book -- not knowing exactly what you're going to get. Also, I should say, some of this is still in flux. I have a lot of material to remove to get this down to the 350-400 page range.

The book starts and ends with two stories. The first is a formative experience in my early magic life. And the last is the greatest trick I've ever performed. Perhaps the greatest trick anyone has ever performed. There is one long essay on presentation that expands on some of the ideas from this site. Then the rest is just tricks. People's favorites from this site, and my favorites that haven't been on this site. You can read about some of those tricks in the "Buy the Book" link in the menu above.

If you asked me my favorite it would be hard to answer. I think I could pick a favorite aspect of all of them and I have fond performance memories of each of them too, so it's hard to say. These are four moments in some of the effects that I have been particularly enjoying lately.

I Know What You Need: This is the trick that the Jerx App was created for (although there is a non-app version that I used when developing this trick and that's described too). At the end of this effect the spectator picks up their phone and watches a video of an interaction you two had earlier in the night. That moment when they're watching the video and things are playing out differently than they remember... it's so great. They get this look on their face like they're losing their mind. It's fantastic.
And Now He Is Me: I performed this last weekend and it gets the biggest, most genuine laugh of anything I've ever done. There is a definite time investment to perform this trick (it involves watching a movie with someone), but it's one of the most fun tricks I've ever come up with.
A Very Unusual Camera: I'm still moving stuff around, but this will be the last trick in the book. It took 40-something steps to describe in print but it's very simple for the spectator to follow. The trick is so strange yet so believable that I had to add a final phase to the end to release the tension it creates. But, if you're an animal, you don't need to add that phase and can just really screw with your spectator's mind.
Dear Penthouse Forum: Hmmm... I don't know what to say about this. For a long time I had a somewhat funny story deck trick that I thought I'd put in the book. It always got a really good response, but not really a "magical" response. Then I had a brainstorm that reinvented the story deck trick. Instead of being a dull demonstration of bad puns and false shuffles, this is a trick with two genuinely powerful magic moments. The first moment completely upsets the spectator's understanding of what has been going on while you tell this dumb and dirty story deck trick, and the second moment brings the whole thing full circle to a botched gambling demonstration you started with. It's not just a kicker ending, it helps negate the method you actually use to create that first magic moment. You'll see. It's pretty awesome. 

"I don't buy anything without seeing reviews first."

Okay, well... I don't know what to tell you. You've read this site, right? You can't make a judgment based on the 280 posts that preceded this one? I think you can handle that. 

"Oh, right, I guess that was a dumb thing to say. Okay, so how do I reserve a copy?"

Right here, pal...

UPDATES

Here are a couple questions that came in that may be of interest to some of you.

"Do the tricks require any expensive props?"

No. Well, other than the book itself, no. I don't think there are any props required that would be more than $10. And most you probably already have.

"Are any of the tricks easy to do? Not in skill sense but in a I-don't-have-5-hours-to-set-this-up sense? Just in terms of practicality, are there tricks that take less than an evening to perform?"

There aren't really any big set-ups, but there are a number of effects that require a big time investment. If I look through the new material, this is how long I would estimate the effects playing out from start to finish: 2 hours, 15 minutes, at least half a day (but better still 3 or 4 days), 30 minutes, 3-5 minutes, 5 minutes, 15-20 minutes, overnight, 10 minutes, 5 minutes, 3 minutes.

So, there are some shorter pieces, but I have to be honest, if those are the types of items you're looking for, then virtually every magic book ever written would be better for that than mine. This book concentrates on more experiential, immersive effects. I almost feel like it's a new genre of magic in a way. And if you're looking for more traditionally "practical" material this may not be the book for you.

---

As I mentioned in the last post, I'm taking my pre-summer break but I will return next week. If you have any questions about the book, feel free to email me. I may update this post in the meantime as well. If not I'll see you next week. For those of you in the U.S., have a good Memorial Day. And for those of you in Puerto Rico, Happy Lod Massacre Remembrance Day.

One

There! It's done, Judge Sternman. When you sentenced me to one year of writing a magic blog, it definitely raised a few eyebrows in the legal community and beyond. "I say you let the punishment fit the crime," you said. This explanation certainly did not satisfy the parents of the 26 four- to eight-year olds that perished when I firebombed that cabin at Tannen's Magic Camp back in the summer of 2014. "If he wants to set fire to the magic world, he can do so with his words," you said, nodding sagely. I only pray that your death at the hands of that angry mob was quick and painless.

Guys... we did it!

Well, I did most of it. Your role was very limited. 

Today this site turns one year old. Hooray!

Yes, it was one year ago today that this site popped into existence from the vacuum that was formed after my old site, The Magic Circle Jerk, poofed into the void 10 years earlier. 

And in that year I've (once again) become the most popular (and greatest) magic blogger in the world. 

Would you like to know my grand marketing strategy to bring this site to that level of prominence? Well, I wrote an email to about three dozen people who had e-mailed me back in 2005 and asked to be kept in the loop in regards to what I did next. Half of those bounced back. What a shock. You mean this rocketmail address that references an Alien Ant Farm song isn't good anymore? Huh. And then I made a single post on a twitter account I never used and had close to no followers. That's how you make your magic blog take off. That's the secret sauce, baby! 

Other than that, I literally did nothing. This site has grown entirely by word of mouth. And that "word of mouth" has been solely by the little guys (at least within the magic community). The magic publications haven't written a word about me and if you start a thread about this site on the Magic Cafe, it strangely disappears. And for those of you who say, "Well, these magic magazines must have much bigger, more exciting topics to write about." Well, exhibit A and exhibit B suggest otherwise.

So, begrudgingly, I guess I do have to give you some credit for this site making it to its first birthday. Okay, you win this time, dear reader. Yes, we did it. (99% me, 1% split amongst all of you.)

Now, let me speak to the magic historians reading this site in the future. Greetings, Genii-bot 3000. Yes, I guess it's probably fair to say that this year has been one of the most, if not the most, prolific for anyone in the history of magic. Take that, Reginald Scot, you lazy scrub! My output for the past year includes:

• 280 blog posts
• Dozens of routines
• A goddamn 600 page book (soon to be cut down to 400ish), The Jerx, Volume 1, approximately half of which is the best routines from this site revised, updated, and illustrated. The other half is all new material.
• A 40-page booklet (The Amateur at the Kitchen Table, an extended essay on the performance of non-professional magic.)
• 6 issues and counting of a monthly review newsletter
• 3 websites (the jerx, mysextutor.com, and one other launching soon)
• 20 video clips
• 1 magic app

I had originally intended this site to be a summer project while I took a few months off from freelancing. But things progressed in a manner that made sense to keep it going and the site will continue for as long as people support it. I'm not sure what form that will take in the future (it sure as shit won't be another book, writing that thing has been a motherf'er), but there will be direct and indirect opportunities to support the site and I'll be on board as long as you are.

So what's next?

Thanks for asking, Italics Voice. Well, for starters, I'm thinking of adding a new character to the site named, "Fake editor's notes in brackets." We'll see how that turns out.

As far as the immediate future goes, there will be some news about the book in the next couple of days. Then I will be taking a week off and will return at the beginning of June to launch year two with a big (dumb) announcement. Stay tuned. 

Then my plan is just to continue the trajectory we've established here. Continue talking about magic, posting routines and ideas, theory and criticism, jokes and bullshit. And, from time to time, post about larger topics as well, including thoughts on crafting experiences; creating long-lasting memories; the value of surprise; and using magic to cause happenings, capture moments, and bring you and the people you perform for closer together (as opposed to the all-too-common view of magic as an art that engenders a greater divide between performer and audience).

And I want this site to continue to be an example of a way of life that I advocate. It's a benign style of hedonism that values day-to-day happiness and small pleasures above all else -- not just appreciating these things, but investing energy into cultivating them. Here it's demonstrated via my relationship to magic and the people I perform for. But that is just one example of a larger philosophy that I espouse.

Beyond that, this train is just going to keep on steamrolling ahead on a non-stop flight to the stars and beyond! [Andy, is there a gas leak in your house? Work on this metaphor. It's a disaster. Ed.]