Monthly Update #13 (January 2024)
Monthly Update #13 (January 2024)
Paid subscriptions, new regular articles coming soon, and lots of great magic-related videos on YouTube.
Well, here it is. This is the first monthly update for 2024, and, shock horror, it’s slightly late as usual! But, hey, it’s only a day late, so I’ll consider that a significant improvement! 😉
Paid Subscriptions to the Ruseletter
I’ve decided to experiment with a paid subscription to the Ruseletter. However, I still plan to make more than 50% of the content available for free. My monthly updates will be available to read without a paid subscription.
For the rest of the regular articles, I’ve decided to use a “freeven” subscription model, which means that every evenly numbered article is free to read. In other words, every other month, my content will be openly available to all subscribers (and available via the Ruseletter website). Therefore, articles published in February, April, June, August, October and December will be available at no charge. However, content published in January, March, May, July, September and November will be behind a paywall.
In addition, all of the Legends of Legerdemain and Obscure Origins posts will be in front of the paywall. I’ve made this exception to encourage all magicians, young and old alike, to provide credit where credit is due and learn more about magic’s rich history. I’ve noticed a disturbing trend on platforms like YouTube, where magicians teach tricks or moves without crediting the original inventor. I have no issues with magic secrets being taught on YouTube. Whether we like it or not, this is how many people develop an interest in magic as a hobby, which is a good thing. However, if you teach someone else’s trick, you should at least credit them, even if the performer is long dead. Some individuals create content and give the impression that they are ethical creators because they only teach their own tricks (or seek permission before teaching someone else’s effect). However, they seem to neglect the importance of providing “historical credits” for tricks, moves, and principles that belong to performers who are no longer living. Again, just because something is old doesn’t mean you don’t need to provide credit. Okay, that’s the end of my state-of-the-magic-community rant for this month!
Want to read everything I write? Then, I encourage you to upgrade to a paid subscription (if you can afford to). Given the amount of time and effort I put into each article, I’ve kept the cost ridiculously low. A monthly subscription costs $5 (£4) per month. Pay for an annual subscription, and you’ll get two months for free. So, for $50 (£40) per year, you can get access to everything I write. Paid subscribers also gain direct access to all of the hidden pages on my blog. This includes 27 magic trick tutorials (so far). These are all card tricks, apart from “Sum the Spots”, which uses dice. However, I plan to branch out into different genres of magic in the future.
Why am I doing this? Well, to paraphrase Erdnase, whatever the result may be, if people pay for a subscription, it will accomplish the primary motive of the author, as he needs the money! I also hope that writing for a paying audience will encourage me to keep to a more regular publishing schedule, something that I struggled with last year.
I want to make it clear that you should feel under no obligation to pay for a subscription just because you enjoy my writing. After all, you have already paid me with your kind attention. However, if you can afford to support me every month, you’ll be funding the continued publication of the free and paid-for content on my blog and Ruseletter. As an additional thank you, you’ll also receive free copies of my future ebooks (there are several in the works) and access to exclusive magic trick tutorials hidden on my blog.
If you are content with only accessing the free articles, that is perfectly okay with me. I get it. There are way too many magic subscriptions available these days. Even so, this approach seems like the most sensible way for me to earn a modest amount of money from my writing but still provide value to those magicians who cannot afford a monthly fee. And let’s face the facts: any money I earn will probably be spent on more magic books, playing cards and tricks. Or maybe occasionally for less important things, like food and clothes for my kids! 😉
New Regular Articles in February
I’ve already written the first few regular articles for February. This includes a lengthy essay on Count Cagliostro, one of the most infamous characters of the late Eighteenth Century.
I started writing this article for my Legends of Legerdemain column last year. However, I decided to conduct more rigorous research than I originally intended because his life story is so eventful. The article could easily have been ten times longer! If you can’t wait until this is officially published, here’s a secret link that will let you read the article now:
Read Legends of Legerdemain: Count Cagliostro
In the article, I’ve tried to focus on the events that would be most interesting to magicians. However, if you want to learn more about the mysterious Masonic magician and his remarkable life, I’ve included detailed footnotes and a full bibliography at the bottom of the page.
Other regular articles that will be published this month include:
Obscure Origins: The Twirl Change - A deep dive into the history of this popular colour change.
Deeper Magic: Basic Magical Effects (Part 2) - This continues a series of articles on the different types of effects magicians perform. Paid subscribers can now read part one, which looks at David Devant’s seven basic magical effects.
Packet Trick Paradise: Petit Pinetti - This is a fun, self-working packet trick I accidentally invented when reading about Pinetti last year. You can learn more Pinetti-inspired card tricks for free on my blog.
Vernonesque: Tongue Twister - Dai Vernon’s “Twisting the Aces” was one of the first pieces of sleight-of-hand magic I learned. This is my handling of the Vernon classic with a more visual reversal of the final Ace.
Fully Stacked: Simple Tricks with the Si Stebbins Stack - In this short article, I explore the handful of tricks William Coffrin, aka Si Stebbins, described in his original manuscript for his famous mathematical Stack.
Easy Does It: Refined Robbers - Finally, I’ll share some handling tips for that old chestnut, The Four Burglars (or Bank Robbers). This article includes insight from the famous English magician Paul Daniels.
And the best thing is that, as these are all even-numbered articles, they’ll all be available to you for free.
Workshop Tutorials From Mechanic Industries
Speaking of free content so much is available nowadays that it is easy to miss the good stuff. Jimmy Karsberg, the designer, magician and owner of Mechanic Industries, has started to publish some excellent card magic tutorials on his YouTube channel called “Workshop Sessions: Fine Tune Your Magic”. 🔧
In the latest video, Jimmy shares a flashy Four-Ace Production that is much easier to perform than it looks:
I also really enjoyed the tutorial he produced on the Duck Change a few days ago:
Each video also features one of Jimmy’s unique custom-designed decks, available from his website (or your favourite Murphy’s Magic dealer). I own a few of Jimmy’s decks. What I like about them is that, while they feature fully customised backs and faces, they’re still suitable for the performance of magic. In fact, all of his decks have built-in features that make them a more unusual and, therefore, exciting prop than your standard pack of Bicycle Rider Backs. Note: I have no financial relationship with Mechanic Industries; I like Jimmy’s products and think he deserves more customers!
Here’s the entire playlist of videos. I’d also encourage you to subscribe to his YouTube channel to be notified of any future videos in the series.
Three Magic Videos Worth Watching
Finally, I thought I would finish this monthly update with three magic-related videos that I think are well worth watching. If this feature proves popular, I will include it at the bottom of each newsletter. Let me know what you think about this idea in the comments.
Cruisin’ with Jeremy Tan
The first is a mini-documentary by professional magician and YouTuber Jeremy Tan. The 20-minute vlog provides an authentic and detailed look into the life of a cruise ship magician, covering both the highs and lows.
I have been a fan of Jeremy’s YouTube channel for a while. He consistently delivers high-quality content. He’s also just received his Silver Play Button from YouTube for reaching 100K subscribers. Congratulations, Jeremy! 🥳
Ben Seidman is a Sleight-of-Hand Beast!
The following recommended video comes from Vanity Fair and features some incredible magic by Ben Seidman. This video has been popping up in my YouTube feed for a while, but I only watched it yesterday.
I had no idea Ben was such an accomplished pickpocket and sleight-of-hand magician. I also love how the production team, hidden behind the camera, laugh nervously every time Ben performs a trick!
Want more videos like this? Here are some more magic-related videos from Vanity Fair:
Casino Cheating Expert Reviews Card Counting and Casino Scams From Movies
Watch Illusionist Adam Trent Blow These Office Workers’ Minds
A Documentary on the Bible of Card Magic
The third and final video is a full-length documentary on The Expert at the Card Table. The video is almost two hours long, but it is essential viewing for anyone with even a passing interest in the mysterious S.W. Erdnase and his influential book.
Some of you may remember that I started an Exploring Erdnase Book Club last year but failed to keep it going for the entire year. Well, the good news is that I plan to revive the club soon. You can still read all the existing articles in the archive. The next update has been written and will be published sometime in February.
That’s all for this month! 😁
Yours Magically,
Marty
P.S. Want to learn an exciting variation of Charlie Miller’s “Dunbury Delusion”? The man behind The Magician’s Forum, Rudy Tinoco, has just shared a curious variation using a blank-faced playing card. You can download it for free from Vimeo. I like this idea because it gives the impression that you implanted a false memory in your participant’s mind.
This is a preview of the type of material that Rudy shares via Patreon. I’m not a paid supporter of his, but this is a good offering if you’re looking for a subscription that teaches well-tested material from classic magic books.