chat

issue 2

Ollie Mealing
 HELLO
Hallelujah, youre back! Maybe now that I have an
audience I should start selling you overpriced playing
cards. (tip 13 dont exploit your audience)
In all seriousness though, thank you for coming back, it
allows me to fulfil my promise.
So lets pick it back up, I last mentioned break-
ing-norms, I said it was a technique that influences
Chat
my approach to card tricks so whats it about then?
Well ironically, its a train of thought I first entertained
on the London Underground. Picture the scene, Id just
began a tube journey, the carriage was quite-full and I
was privately gleaming to have scored a seat (jackpot),
everything so far was typically normal. However, a few
stops down the line and a five-piece brass-band shuffle
into the mix, making full use of the announcement
please move down inside the carriage the leg of the
sax player, pressed against my own. Now immediately,
their presence ensued significant changes upon the oth-
erwise normal tube dynamics for a start, passengers
were mutually aware that imminently, wed all be sub-
jected to an awkwardly overbearing, inescapable, brass
cacophony. And of course, as the train departed, the
band IMMEDIATELY STARTED PLAYING, IT WAS LOUD,
REALLY LOUD, TOO LOUD, NOT FUNNY LOUD, PLEASE
MAKE IT STOP LOUD, BUT IT DIDNT.. FOR WHAT
SEEMED LIKE FOREVER.. UNTIL FINALLY, JUST BEFORE
WE REACHED THE NEXT STATION, it stopped, followed
by a quick whip-round.
When the doors finally opened, the band skedaddled
out and everything returned back to being typically
normal as if someone had hit a reset button. It
highlighted for me how quick we are to conform to
social norms, unspoken behavioural rules that govern
societal order. The presence of norms remain hidden
in plain sight, but in contrast to being surrounded by a
screeching band, they now appeared clearly as distinct
attributes of normal. In the comfort of my seat and
with two stops to go, I drifted into thought, what is
normal
*my eyes glaze over*
what was that quote again, oh yeah, Normal is an
illusion. What is normal for the spider is chaos for the
issue 2
fly. Charles Addams
*my face glazes over*
so could normal just be like a big cocktail of illusions,
which by sipping, sustains an unsuspecting intoxication.
Conformity then, being the compliance to drink what
everyone else is. (tip 14 drink responsibly)
*my body glazes over*
It was beginning to dawn on me,
If were prey to conformity outside of magic, why would
it be any different within?
Could we in magic, be compliant towards its own list of
hidden in plain sight?
If we could break free from those attributes/norms,
what might we discover?
I started to consider what norms exist within card
tricks trying to envisage whats obvious, whats syn-
onymous, whats typical throughout what we do? (tip 15
questions lead to discovery)
I kept in mind the following quote, If you want to hide
it, paint it red Bradley Henderson
My thinking was, if I could notice what goes unnoticed,
I could question what goes unquestioned and by
doing so, hopefully discover some original answers.
 I took out my WOSI notebook (Working On Some
Ideas), my pen (that rarely stays where its put) and
with the performance of card tricks in mind, began
trying to list some norms. As it turned out, trying
to recognise whats obvious isnt quite as obvious as
youd think, but once the ball got rolling, it became
clear that theres loads. And if everything isnt making
much sense, apologies, but I promise when you read
the list below it will. So here they are, just a handful of
Chat
our very own card trick norms unspoken rules that
govern our material:
the effect is observable
the effect is sequential (Structure)
the effect is short-term
the performance occurs in light
the performance requires a participant (Warmth)
the performance inhabits a conventional space
the performer is present/visible during the performance
theperformer is present/visible for the revelation of an
effect (Serendipity)
theperformer is responsible for the revelation of an
effect (Assumptions)
the
audience know when the performance has begun
(Choices)
theaudience believe the performer knows the effect
(Inspiration)
the audience dont expect it to go wrong (One-Handed)
the presentation coincides with the trick
the presentation occurs in real time (Pheromone)
the presentation is delivered by the performer
Words in brackets, denote tricks on the channel that
have since stemmed from questioning how to challenge
or break these particular norms.
issue 2
With these and many others norms, it is possible to find
examples that successfully oppose their rule, but gen-
erally the bulk of our material does not. Now of course
this evokes no worrying problem, our material still has
a vast amount of flexibility, but I believe the more we
can break norms the further we can build new edges
to our understanding. Who wouldnt want to know what
that looks/feels like? Since very early on, looking for
what magic can be rather than what it is, became the
pursuit thats kept me here. Its a pursuit that warrants
innovation if you do what youve always done, youll
get what youve always got, which is precisely not what
Im looking for. (tip 16 change permits continued
growth)
The pursuit of something cant be left to chance, it
requires a lot of critical thinking, our approach has to
be evaluated, reasoned and modified if were to guide
ourselves strategically. In my pursuit then, the tech-
nique of breaking-norms has become a highly useful
tool without it, would remain a huge amount of ideas
Id have yet to explore.
Anyway, Ill wrap this bit up here, but long story short,
I missed my tube stop by an extra three and I
couldnt have cared less.
(tip 17 take the seat)
 TRICK: SUBCONSCIOUS

Before reading the explanation, I recommend watching
the performance so you can experience how fooling it
is. It is however from four years ago, so I apologise
in advance for my younger-self, hes such a dick, but
perhaps in another four years Ill be cringing at the
current me (tip 18 its about where youre going not
where youre from). Anyway, heres the link:
Performance:
The method to making this trick succeed every time,
relies on skewing whatever the outcome/order, into a
supposedly logical deduction. A sortve improvised dot
to dot.
Think about how a medium operates, they peddle a load
of lines/nonsense to seemingly create incredible hits
youll be adopting the same approach.

issue 2
Chat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcxWGNCNA40 I can only recommend you grab some cards now, think
of one and begin running through the process youll
Hopefully youve just watched the performance, if not, soon encounter the range of outcomes & begin devising
go back and click the link! (I wouldnt say so unneces- your own armoury of nonsense.
sarily)
(tip 19 enjoy nonsense)
Assuming youve now seen the performance, this effect
is all about remaining cool under pressure and learning
to bullshit which fortunately for us, comes naturally.

Peek a selected card, allow spec to shuffle it back in

and have the deck positioned, squared, face-up on a
table.

Youll now be asking your spec to split the deck in up-to

five packets. With each cut, youll be announcing how
each newly exposed card offers a clue to the selections
identity.

The idea is that somehow, the spec reveals to you their

chosen card. Now unless they cut directly to their card
(miracle hit), heres an example of a perfect outcome,
well imagine they chose the QH.

First cut, reveals a red card. Second cut, reveals a

heart. Third cut, reveals a queen. All of this information
(in whatever order it appears) can be justified to form a
logical deduction of the chosen card.
 OTHER

The norms being broken in this trick are the performer
is responsible for the revelation of an effect & the
performer knows how the trick will play out. I also feel
that the audience doesnt believe its a trick is men-
tionable, as in concert, it really can feel like a pseudo
explanation/demonstration of a real thing.
deliberate, because besides presentation, the effect
says something about you which ties in directly with
the delicacy of pitching status. As I mentioned in the
previous issue, well be returning to status as well as
the many merits of modesty/minimalism in a future
issue.

You might be wondering why just five packets. Well I Another reason why I love this effect, is because of the
think if you were to exceed five, it would begin to dilute

issue 2
variety that comes with it no two performances are
Chat

the impossibility of the effect, diminishing the impact the same, it genuinely gives me a thrill to perform. (tip
and perhaps even transpiring the method as with 20 enjoy what you perform)
most things, less is more. Five is simply my preferred &
suggested maximum. The success of this effect lies not only in what you
say but of course the management of miracle hits. So
If
when they cut, the displayed card offers no con- continuing our meander, miracle hits will be our theme
ceivable assistance, then its ok not to deduce it. In for next weeks issue. Well be exploring how to weave
these instances, Ill act pensively and say OK, lets them into our routines, encourage their hit rate &
have a look at the next card. This tactic as well as solidify the idea that it wasnt just luck.
many others, serve to strengthen your delivery by
keeping it credible & flowing an excess of incredulous Breaking-norms is a creative device for innovating
deductions or hesitation will fail to preserve maximum ideas. If we dont find ways of innovating, our actions
impact. will only produce similar results. Its results, that build
the edges of our understanding.
What if theyve cut five times and theres just zilch to
work with? In desperate measures, Ill say something
like I think this shows me all I need to know collect
up the cards, spread through/remove selection and
feigning some uncertainty, reveal. Although this slightly
changes the plot, it redeems a logic for the cut-packets
& still leaves onlookers mystified better to deliver
something than nothing.

Ifat any point they cut to their card, theres a lot of fun
to be had with that. But for reasons I mentioned in the
previous issue, Ill leave you to envisage those implica- GOODBYE
tions for yourself.
Thanks again for returning. If you enjoyed what you
Thiseffect has always had an allure for me, I love read, please tell your friends.
how its procedures are so minimal, nonchalant &
unostentatious, its an effect that has its feet firmly Good to chat, see you soon.
on the ground. Striving to instil modesty in effects is